Review: Five Dialogues by Plato

Posted on June 29, 2010 by

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Summary:

Plato’s Five Dialogues includes essays which recount the days leading up to Socrates’ trial for “corrupting the youths of Athens”, as well as Socrates’ defense (apologia) to the jury, and his final conversation with his closest friends before his induced suicide by hemlock. The essays are an exploration of the man and his methods, as well as an historical account by Plato of the time period and its dangers (during the transition from oligarchy to democracy there was a tension between the government and its people – the government being always weary of its own weaknesses).

The Good:

My particular favorites of these five are: “Euthyphro,” “Apology,” and “Phaedo.” I found the first dialogue, “Euthyphro” to be the most true to Socratic Method and to my understanding of the kind of man Socrates was likely to be – humorously humble. He allows Euthyphro, in their discussion of piety, to back himself into corners, find new footing, then get turned around all over again, before finally Euthyphro gives up and ends the discussion (never admitting defeat, of course). “Apology” was, perhaps, the most moving and inspirational; that a man could stand such injustice, look into the faces of his prosecutors and still be empathetic and forgiving – interpreting with distinction the law as the law, and human fault as human fault, is impressive and powerful. Finally, though I found some fault with “Phaedo” as being largely a fiction placed with (supposed) true or nearly-true historical dialogues, I also found it to be truly thought provoking. What is death, really? What does it mean for the human soul, and how can we, in waking life, ensure that our souls will live on in a greater and better way, after separation from the bodily shell? Whether one is atheist, religious, or agnostic, it is fascinating to watch the discussion and to begin to test one’s own beliefs in terms of the afterlife and, in a way, immortality.

The Bad:

I did not particularly enjoy “Crito” or “Meno,” perhaps because I found the philosophical argument too heavily scaled in Socrates’ favor. This is, to an extent, to be expected – the dialogues are about Socrates and the Socratic method, after all; still, that Socrates would go on and on for paragraphs at a time, with the only rejoinders from these supposedly equally learned men to be one or two words, or a sentence perhaps, typically in agreement or submission, seems to be a bit dishonest. I also found some fault with “Phaedo,” perhaps because I knew it was more hearsay than the other dialogues. I understand that they are all reinterpretations, as Socrates never wrote his own essays (his life and lessons were relayed through Plato, largely), but knowing Plato was not even present during the time of Socrates’ death, and that the back-and-forth among Socrates and the other philosophers was largely imagined and based off what Plato would assume to be true to Socrates’ vision (with a bit of Plato mixed in), makes “Phaedo” harder to appreciate – a pity, as it is, really, the most important.

The Final Verdict: 4.0 out of 5.0

Published by Hackett, 2002

ISBN: 0872206335
Challenges: N/A
YTD: 33
Source: Owned Copy

Review: Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

Posted on June 26, 2010 by

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Summary:

Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is a resounding cry for help for the working class. Willy Loman, the play’s main character, is a traveling salesman, always on the road and so far removed from his family (physically & emotionally) that he is too blind to see how disrespected he is by his children, and how pitied he is by his wife. Willy’s youngest son, Happy, and his wife, Linda, perpetuate an illusion of grandeur – convincing Willy that he is the greatest of everything, the greatest father, the greatest husband, the greatest salesman, and the greatest man who ever lived. In reality, Willy is just rather mediocre in everything, and his eldest son, Biff, comes to realize this and is conflicted between wanting to break the cycle of lies surrounding Willy, and respecting and honoring his father. As the boys come home and Willy begins to realize, subconsciously, that nothing really has been as he believed it to be, his mind starts to crack and, ultimately, even Willy’s cowardly end is disguised as an act of sacrifice for the well-being of his family.

The Good:

Miller tells a painful truth of the working-class father and family. Children are raised to look up to their father as a hero, someone to emulate and worship; but, what happens when the father is just a man? Willy Loman is flawed in many ways. He lives a life of regret for missed opportunities, and he pretends to be a man of character and loyalty, all the while lying to his children about his supposed successes and deceiving his wife in the worst possible way. The turmoil, the struggle to balance a respect for father and husband with reality, this is the true genius of Miller’s work. How does a family deal with its figurehead’s superhero complex, when that superhero is really just the Clark Kent aspect – a decent worker but without any spectacular prowess. I found the husband-wife dynamic beautiful and tragic; that the wife removed Willy’s “suicide pipe” each day to get it out of sight (out of mind) and then replaced it each night, so Willy would not know that she, Linda, knew, is so heartbreaking and so very real. The relationship, too, between the children and their father – the childish way they look at him, the way they pretend to honor and respect him, all the while calling him by nicknames like “kid,” “sport,” and “pal” as if he was just a younger friend, to be tolerated and coddled. Plot and characterization were masterful, the lonely desperation was moving and, despite its hilarity at times, left me really breathless in pained understanding of how tortured this man, this family really was.

The Bad:

The only negative is really a positive, in the end. I found it very difficult to connect with any of these characters, partly because the story moves so quickly and not much time is spent gaining an understanding of any one or the other character. Another reason, though, is because there just is not much to connect with. Each of the Lomans is so utterly superficial and self-indulgent. They pretend to have this powerful, unbreakable bond with one another, a love and respect above all others, to be idolized by other families – a model to all. Yet, while this made it difficult to care about the family, the point might perhaps have been not to care about this family, and its delusions. Their one friend, Charley, seemed to have a pretty clear understanding of what was going on, and though he tried to guide Willy into reality and offered him help whenever possible – including money and a steady job – Willy would not listen, and Charley’s only real way to combat such nonsensical behavior was to behave rather (maliciously) nonsensical himself. It was frustrating that the one friend Willy did seem to have (despite his many claims that people all over New England knew him by name, and would come flocking to his funeral) was rather crass. Still, though I could not find myself loving any of the characters, I did find myself loving their story, and understanding it. So, again, the negative was not really a negative (though I can’t help wishing they had been more tragically similar to the Joad family who, notwithstanding their many flaws, still redeemed themselves as people often enough).

The Final Verdict: 5.0 out of 5.0

Death of a Salesman is a stunning, powerful drama, reflective of the confusion of the “new” American sales family. This tale is the tale of the rise of capitalism and the destruction of personal bonds for monetary gain. Brothers, friends, children mean nothing in the face of making more, more, more. The characters were believable and easy to empathize with, though I could not really sympathize with any of the characters except, perhaps, Biff and Willy’s brother, Ben.

Published by Penguin Plays, 1984
ISBN: 0140481346
Challenges: N/A
YTD: 32
Source: Owned Copy

Review: The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh

Posted on June 25, 2010 by

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Summary:

As New York Times columnist Ben Brantley said of McDonagh’s work here: “comedies don’t come any blacker than ‘The Pillowman.’” The vast majority of the play is set in a police station interrogation room, where a young man is being tortured into admitting to crimes that he did not do. The crimes, all (except two) are against children, and all were actually committed by the main character’s mentally challenged older brother, who was himself tortured and abused as a child by the brothers’ parents. The play works as a piece of meta-fiction, telling a story about story-telling and the misperceptions about writers’ and dramatists influence on their readers.

The Good:

As a reader, I absolutely enjoyed all of the many ways which McDonagh played with the idea of writing and the power of written expression & emotion. The plot twist at the end, involving the reality behind the abused brother’s crimes, is fantastic. Also interesting is the idea that true writers can, in their last few dying seconds, completely re-write their life story as their body is shutting down. Because that’s just what writers do. I also enjoyed the two policemen’s hidden back stories, one of which became a bit obvious as the plot wove on, but was still interesting. The impetus behind their actions – behind all actions, really- are well conceived and realistic. What would drive a boy to murder his parents? What would drive a man to torture children? What would drive a writer to develop story-after-story about the death and suicides of little boys and girls? And what would make policemen enjoy abusing their prisoners and sentencing people to death without so much as a lawyer present or a trial offered?

The Bad:

It is difficult not to put something in the “bad” column, because that makes me seem either 1) bias or 2) unable to do my job correctly, that is, comprehensively and objectively. But there is so much to like in this play, and so little to dislike. I suppose one criticism may be that, for a play, it is written much more like a novel. There was very little stage direction, which one comes to expect from a play though, in reality, more dramas are being written without stage direction, leaving this up to the directors’ creativity. Still, it did seem pointed, particularly as I started reading Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” the day after I finished “The Pillowman” and the difference is conspicuous. Another minor criticism is the denouement with the children. The question is, why would Michal (the “slow” brother) lie about what he did to them? Was he truly that confused – did the stories get jumbled in his head and, therefore, so did his actions toward the children? Or was he trying to write his own story, and using his brother and the policemen as an audience? It is hard to say, but a final resolution here would have been nice (if, perhaps, too clean for such a dark comedy).

The Final Verdict: 4.5 out of 5.0

I truly enjoyed this play, morbid as it may have been. It was like a love-child of Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 and Banks’ The Wasp Factory. The examination of effects of literature on human action is always a fascinating on here and, while any direct connection can be dismissed relatively simply, what happens when the readers happen to be mentally underdeveloped or emotionally damaged at the outset? Does this change the impact that literature might have on their actions, based on perception and an inability to keep separate fact from fiction and reality from fantasy? This play also says much, I think about the idea of truly understand literature and all its idiosyncrasies – the way a book can be misread and misunderstood because the reader lacks comprehension in terms of satire, allegory, metaphor, parody, leitmotif, and psychological exploration . It’s a brilliant play, also, because character interaction and monologues are moving and each moment seems to do more to advance the plot.

Published by Farrar, Straus, & Giroux, 2004.
ISBN: 0571220320
Challenges: N/A
YTD: 31
Source: Owned Copy

Review: Watership Down by Richard Adams

Posted on June 21, 2010 by

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Summary:
Watership Down is like a psychic-Rabbit equivalent of The Grapes of Wrath, except Richard Adams is not quite the writer that John Steinbeck is. At the start, a small group of rabbits from a relatively peaceful, advantageous warren leave their home at the urging of a small, mysterious rabbit with the gift of foresight. They traverse across the wide countryside, encountering roads, rivers, and floating devices for the very first time. They also make unlikely friends, and dangerous foes (or should I say, does – hah!). Ultimately, this is a story of family and friendship, love and survival, strength and adventure. The “realistic” portions of the story are interwoven with stories of rabbit mythology, which makes the novel read much like an updated adventure story, with Greek, Egyptian, or other traditional mythological throwbacks (I’m thinking of something like Louise Erdrich’s work, for instance, which tells one story of a modern people, but demonstrates how the people are still driven by and attached to their ancient mythologies and folklore).

The Good:
There are two pieces of this novel which stand out: characterization and story progression. I found Adams’s character development within the rabbit warren to be masterful, in that each rabbit – from the prominent leaders to the more conspicuous followers- are distinguishable from one another and necessary to the overall story. Hazel-rah, Fiver, and Bigwig all develop in their own way as the story progresses, and each seems to find his place in the end. Kehaar, the gull who befriends the rabbits of Watership Down also shows growth throughout the story, and the many enemies (cats, dogs, foxes, and other rabbits) are all distinctive from one another and demonstrate the traits we would expect in these types of antagonists.

Story progression, too, was very well done. The rabbits’ path is easy to follow (the plot line involving the river I found to be particularly endearing, as I am a huge fan of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn) and the included maps are reminiscent of something out of classic fantasy novels, like Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. With each new point on the trail, there are things to be learned, characters to be encountered, and stories to be told (and made).

The Bad:
While the story was engaging and interesting, I found that it took me longer than I would have expected. It is hard to find particular fault, except to point out the following: First, I did not particularly like the fact that certain “rabbit language” was infused into the prose & dialogue. This is a typical complaint of mine as I feel it detracts from the story when you have to try to remember what certain words mean; perhaps I just do not like to make the effort and I do continually remind myself that Shakespeare, in his plays, invented an incredible amount of vocabulary that is still in use today. Still, I have my likes and dislikes, and this is a dislike. Could it have been executed in a way such as to distract me less and, thus, not bother me as much? Yes, I think so. Adams’s prose in general I found to be a bit scientific and mechanical. The story was passionate and quite intense in parts – the rabbits were often times fighting for their lives, and they truly grew to care for one another, except only in the words. The true feelings did not come across (maybe because they were not human feelings, rabbits being uncomplicated by such trifles) but, after hearing how this novel so impacted many friends and associates of mine, I could not help but wonder “why?” A novel like Where the Red Fern Grows, for instance, I found to be much more emotionally challenging. Perhaps I just cannot relate to animal narrators.

The Final Verdict: (4.0 out of 5.0)
I was actually going to give this novel a bit lower of a rating but, upon further reflection, I realize that my bias toward non-human narrators and toward nature stories in general might be impacting my neutrality when it comes to reviewing the novels characteristics and achievements on their own; still, I would hope that an animal story done right would still be a story done right. This one, I felt, lacked a bit of something that should have been there to grab me and drag me into the story. I felt I was an outsider to the journey when I would have liked to have been a traveler and an adventurer. Still, there were many pluses; a lot of the humor was quite good – cute and appropriate. The characterization and plot development, and the final resolution were all positive. Overall, I found the read to be entertaining and certainly something that many, many readers might enjoy but I will likely not pick it up again.

Published by Avon Books, 1969
ISBN: Unknown
Challenges: 2010 TBR Challenge
YTD: 30
Source: Owned Copy

Rating: 4.0/5.0

Review: As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

Posted on June 10, 2010 by

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Summary:
William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying is an exploration of family, society, and mortality.  The Bundren family, led by their bumbling but ultimately calculating father, travels by horse and buggy from their small farm into the city of Jefferson, Alabama to bury their dead mother.  The trip takes days, due to weather and various calamities, and what the reader learns about each character, and the characters about one another, ends up being the redeeming trait for a would-be-simple trip gone wildly awry.

The Good:
The first item which stands out for me in this novel is the fact that each small “chapter” (never more than a few pages, really) is told from the point of view of a different character – either a family member or one of the few outsiders they encounter along the way.  Faulkner does a masterful job of characterizing in such a way as to demonstrate to the reader, without necessarily having to title the portions by character name, who is speaking when.  The youngest boy’s youth and/or mental retardation, for instance, stand out plainly from the father’s slow but more reasonable, confident language.  The middle boy’s anger and instability is expressed in the prose of his portions, as is Dewey Dell’s fear and concern for her special circumstance.

I also very much preferred this more coherent prose to some of Faulkner’s signature, disjointed, out-of-sequence pieces.  Faulkner still manages to be creative without sacrificing the story which, I find, sometimes happens when so much energy is given to manipulating time and space through prose and form.

The Bad:
Certain events, major events, happen with such minimal and brief description that it is almost as if they hardly matter at all; this is, of course, not the case, as certain events are turning points in the characters’ lives.  I imagine the novel playing out as scenes of  a  movie and, while some scenes (like the attempts at crossing the river) are very well designed, others – like the fire – are completely lacking in significance and impact.  I was also confused by the story in relation to the title, as the “dying” happened rather early in the story, whereas the journey to the grave site is what took up most of the time.  “Journey to A Final Rest” or something similar may have made more sense, though this is not exactly a major concern so much as it is an observation (pointed out to those who might imagine, after reading a title like As I Lay Dying, that the reader would be narrated to by a dying person, and learning about that person’s path toward acceptance and release (denial, anger, etc.).  The dying character, Mrs.  Bundren, is hardly a character while in the living, and one comes to understand that the dying may be a metaphor for the end to one family’s way of life.

The Final Verdict: 4.0 out of 5.0
All-in-all, I found this to be one of Faulkner’s more accessible novels.  For literature lovers who are interested in reading Faulkner but who have been dissuaded by reviews/descriptions of his more ambitious works or who have perhaps started those novels and given up, this might be a substantive, meaningful compromise.  While I did find some fault with the novel, particularly in the lack of “meaty” scenes and character interaction, I was still generally happy with characterization itself, as well as the story and it’s ironic, darkly humorous ending.  The last few lines of the novel, when Mr. Bundren’s ultimate purpose and decision are revealed to his family and the reader, I was almost reminded of a Vonnegut-esque wit and total exasperation for humankind.  This, of course, was right up my alley, and it made a “good” read, for me, pretty great in the end.

Published by Random House, 1957
ISBN: Unknown
Challenges: N/A
YTD: 29
Source: Owned Copy
Rating: 4.0/5.0

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