The power of the written word
Oscar's for Best Film and Best Direction suddenly threw the focus on Cormac McCarthy. His 'No Country for Old Men' won these honors as well as the Best Supporting Actor honor. Made by Coen Brothers , who also made 'Fargo', this movie was based on the novel of the same name by Cormac McCarthy. It will be a dark tale, if I know my McCarthy well !!
A strong recommendation by David Davidar, editor of Penguin India, in his weekly column in Hindu a few years back was how I got to know about Cormac McCarthy. What caught my fancy was the fact that Davidar mentioned him as a successor to Faulkner. I was naturally curious about McCarthy since Faulkner was one of my favorite authors. I bought and read his 'Orchard Keeper' and then the book recommended by Davidar, 'Blood Meridian'. (It is a pity that Davidar no longer writes that column. I came to know about a lot of good books through that column)
I can understand why lot of people compare McCarthy with Faulkner. The themes that they take up and the dense writing style make for almost instant comparison. Both of them are very good at describing events and their best passages leave you breathless. Having said that I like Faulkner more than McCarthy. I was able to read McCarthy's 'Orchard Keeper' fully but was unable to complete 'Blood Meridian'. It is a tale of blood and it takes a lot of effort to complete this book. So if you are going to try and read 'No Country for Old Men' because it won an Oscar, be prepared for some serious reading.
Read the review of the poster 'dosgatosazules' in the link given below. He has articulated his views well and my views are similar. (The link also has an extract from 'Blood Meridian'. You can get a glimpse of McCarthy's style from this famous description of a Red Indian raid)
http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-0679728759-0
I am sure Coen Brothers would have made a good movie out of this novel. I have not seen their famous 'Fargo' but have watched their other movies like 'Millers Crossing', 'Raising Arizona' and 'The Man who Wasn't There'. The last mentioned being the pick of the lot. It is a classic film noir, in black and white, wherein they explain a very convoluted plot in a clear fashion. Watch that movie if you get a chance.
Coming to Faulkner, I am quoting a couple of paragraphs from his novella, 'Bear'. Get a hang of his style and enjoy the power of the written word. (It is a hunting scene in which a kid, a person called Boon, a dog called Lion and many hounds participate)
"Now the woods ahead of them and the rain-heavy air were one uproar. It rang and clamored; it echoed and broke against the bank behind them and reformed and clamored and rang until it seemed to the the boy that all the hounds which ever bayed game in this land were yelling down at him. He got his leg over the mule as it came out of the water. Boon didn't try to mount again. He grasped one stirrup as they went up the bank and crashed through the undergrowth which fringed the bluff and saw the bear, on its hind feet, its back against a tree while the bellowing hounds swirled around it and once more Lion drove in, leaping clear of the ground.
This time the bear didn't strike him down. It caught the dog in both arms, almost lovelike, and they both went down. He was off the mule now. He drew back both hammers of the gun but he could see nothing but moiling spotted houndbodies until the bear surged up again. Boon was yelling something, he could not tell what; he could see Lion still clinging to the bear's throat and the bear, half erect, strike one of the hounds with one paw and hurl it five or six feet and then, rising and rising as though it would never stop, stand erect again and begin to rake at Lion's belly with its forepaws. Then Boon was running. The boy saw the gleam of the blade in his hand and watched him leap among the hounds, hurdling them, kicking them aside as her ran, and fling himself astride the bear as he had hurled himself onto the mule, his legs locked around the bear's belly, his left arm under the bear's throat where Lion clung, and the glint of the knife as it rose and fell"
Joseph Conrad was another author who had this penchant for describing events in a lively manner. He was able to transport me from the dungeons of Osmania University library, where I was reading his short story, to the high seas, when he described a storm at sea. I forgot which book contained this passage, else I would have given the passage here for all of you to enjoy.
Jayamohan, the Tamil author, is one who can stand up to any of the aforementioned authors in this department. He has excellent way of depicting events and in this aspect he is as good as the best authors in the world. The elephant which runs amok and kills a person in his 'Vishnupuram', the killing of a slender loris by a cheeta in 'Kaadu', a girl running into the ocean and drowning herself in 'Kotravai' are but a few examples. His language is powerful and it mesmerizes the readers. Unfortunately my grip on Tamil and English is not of high quality that I can translate those passages. A bad translation will do great disservice to this world class author.
A strong recommendation by David Davidar, editor of Penguin India, in his weekly column in Hindu a few years back was how I got to know about Cormac McCarthy. What caught my fancy was the fact that Davidar mentioned him as a successor to Faulkner. I was naturally curious about McCarthy since Faulkner was one of my favorite authors. I bought and read his 'Orchard Keeper' and then the book recommended by Davidar, 'Blood Meridian'. (It is a pity that Davidar no longer writes that column. I came to know about a lot of good books through that column)
I can understand why lot of people compare McCarthy with Faulkner. The themes that they take up and the dense writing style make for almost instant comparison. Both of them are very good at describing events and their best passages leave you breathless. Having said that I like Faulkner more than McCarthy. I was able to read McCarthy's 'Orchard Keeper' fully but was unable to complete 'Blood Meridian'. It is a tale of blood and it takes a lot of effort to complete this book. So if you are going to try and read 'No Country for Old Men' because it won an Oscar, be prepared for some serious reading.
Read the review of the poster 'dosgatosazules' in the link given below. He has articulated his views well and my views are similar. (The link also has an extract from 'Blood Meridian'. You can get a glimpse of McCarthy's style from this famous description of a Red Indian raid)
http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-0679728759-0
I am sure Coen Brothers would have made a good movie out of this novel. I have not seen their famous 'Fargo' but have watched their other movies like 'Millers Crossing', 'Raising Arizona' and 'The Man who Wasn't There'. The last mentioned being the pick of the lot. It is a classic film noir, in black and white, wherein they explain a very convoluted plot in a clear fashion. Watch that movie if you get a chance.
Coming to Faulkner, I am quoting a couple of paragraphs from his novella, 'Bear'. Get a hang of his style and enjoy the power of the written word. (It is a hunting scene in which a kid, a person called Boon, a dog called Lion and many hounds participate)
"Now the woods ahead of them and the rain-heavy air were one uproar. It rang and clamored; it echoed and broke against the bank behind them and reformed and clamored and rang until it seemed to the the boy that all the hounds which ever bayed game in this land were yelling down at him. He got his leg over the mule as it came out of the water. Boon didn't try to mount again. He grasped one stirrup as they went up the bank and crashed through the undergrowth which fringed the bluff and saw the bear, on its hind feet, its back against a tree while the bellowing hounds swirled around it and once more Lion drove in, leaping clear of the ground.
This time the bear didn't strike him down. It caught the dog in both arms, almost lovelike, and they both went down. He was off the mule now. He drew back both hammers of the gun but he could see nothing but moiling spotted houndbodies until the bear surged up again. Boon was yelling something, he could not tell what; he could see Lion still clinging to the bear's throat and the bear, half erect, strike one of the hounds with one paw and hurl it five or six feet and then, rising and rising as though it would never stop, stand erect again and begin to rake at Lion's belly with its forepaws. Then Boon was running. The boy saw the gleam of the blade in his hand and watched him leap among the hounds, hurdling them, kicking them aside as her ran, and fling himself astride the bear as he had hurled himself onto the mule, his legs locked around the bear's belly, his left arm under the bear's throat where Lion clung, and the glint of the knife as it rose and fell"
Joseph Conrad was another author who had this penchant for describing events in a lively manner. He was able to transport me from the dungeons of Osmania University library, where I was reading his short story, to the high seas, when he described a storm at sea. I forgot which book contained this passage, else I would have given the passage here for all of you to enjoy.
Jayamohan, the Tamil author, is one who can stand up to any of the aforementioned authors in this department. He has excellent way of depicting events and in this aspect he is as good as the best authors in the world. The elephant which runs amok and kills a person in his 'Vishnupuram', the killing of a slender loris by a cheeta in 'Kaadu', a girl running into the ocean and drowning herself in 'Kotravai' are but a few examples. His language is powerful and it mesmerizes the readers. Unfortunately my grip on Tamil and English is not of high quality that I can translate those passages. A bad translation will do great disservice to this world class author.
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