LAS in LA Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Segment with this title on All Things Considered today. http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2011/10/17/141429619/why-read-moby-dick-a-passionate-defense-of-the-american-bible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawana Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 I listened to it in the car. Very interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Pledge-drive contributions are finally paying off :D Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAS in LA Posted October 17, 2011 Author Share Posted October 17, 2011 How do we as WTMers respond to the comment that some books are best approached after one has some life experience? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 How do we as WTMers respond to the comment that some books are best approached after one has some life experience? This WTMer says simply, "I agree." But that doesn't mean it hurts to read a great book twice. If one approaches it younger, then revisits it later, all the better, IMO. As for Moby Dick, well, it is epic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 How do we as WTMers respond to the comment that some books are best approached after one has some life experience? I'd say: Reading Moby Dick is a life experience :D Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 This WTMer says simply, "I agree." But that doesn't mean it hurts to read a great book twice. If one approaches it younger, then revisits it later, all the better, IMO. As for Moby Dick, well, it is epic. :iagree: Yes. It gets better as you get older. I can't imagine I would have loved it as a very young teen, but I'm sorry I didn't read it earlier. However, I read it to my youngest on nights when I'm reading, and she can't sleep. She loves it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 (edited) I am reading it now, and am thinking my kids would enjoy it as a read-aloud. There was a great article in the New Yorker (I believe) this month about the joys of reading Moby Dick. Unfortunately, it's not available online. Edited October 17, 2011 by Halcyon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 I found it interesting that the author revered to Moby Dick as the "American Bible." Is the Bible really that good? :D Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 How do we as WTMers respond to the comment that some books are best approached after one has some life experience? I also agree. Some books and authors are ruined by tackling them at a time when they can't be appreciated (which is to say, adolescence). Melville may have been one of them for me (Sorry, Bill!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 I found it interesting that the author revered to Moby Dick as the "American Bible." Is the Bible really that good? :D Bill (Adding my p.s. at the top since I can't scroll down again on my phone - Yes, the Bible *is* that good. Please forgive awkward wording down below, I can't figure out how to edit it now.) Hmmm... musing over this one. The Bible, as it's most basic purpose (I preface all this with a big "as I see it"), provides an in-depth description and explanation of God and Jesus the Christ, as well as the nature of man and the relationship between them. This leads the reader to a more intimate knowledge of each. Taking that view, one could agree that MD is an American bible of sorts. Melville certainly treats his observations with great depth, and the characters are very rich. The books embodies all that is valued about America - industriousness, adventurous spirits, a melting pot of cultures - and a certain selflessness as depicted by (my hero) Starbook. Add a bit of eccentricity with Ahab, and there you have a good representation of America. Not traditional American history, but the blood and guts of Americans, and the things that drive them. My two cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 (Adding my p.s. at the top since I can't scroll down again on my phone - Yes, the Bible *is* that good. Please forgive awkward wording down below, I can't figure out how to edit it now.) Hmmm... musing over this one. The Bible, as it's most basic purpose (I preface all this with a big "as I see it"), provides an in-depth description and explanation of God and Jesus the Christ, as well as the nature of man and the relationship between them. This leads the reader to a more intimate knowledge of each. I actually meant that as a rhetorical question :D Taking that view, one could agree that MD is an American bible of sorts. Melville certainly treats his observations with great depth, and the characters are very rich. The books embodies all that is valued about America - industriousness, adventurous spirits, a melting pot of cultures - and a certain selflessness as depicted by (my hero) Starbook. Add a bit of eccentricity with Ahab, and there you have a good representation of America. Not traditional American history, but the blood and guts of Americans, and the things that drive them. My two cents. Well said!!! Bill (who wonders if "bit of eccentricity" isn't a slight understatement?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 I'd say: Reading Moby Dick is a life experience :D Bill Because it takes a lifetime to get through it? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 Because it takes a lifetime to get through it? :D Touché :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen in PA Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 Because it takes a lifetime to get through it? :D :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 I actually meant that as a rhetorical question :D Oh! Well, in the spirit of Melville.... :lol: Well said!!! Thank you. Bill (who wonders if "bit of eccentricity" isn't a slight understatement?) Alright, more than slight. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tntgoodwin Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 I trudged through the Great Illustrated Classics version as a boy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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