tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post115354326409510043..comments2024-03-12T04:51:46.468-05:00Comments on Blue Gal: Book Review: Margaret Atwood's Alias Grace (1996)Fran / Blue Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18293627981248346055noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153696972641910212006-07-23T18:22:00.000-05:002006-07-23T18:22:00.000-05:00And I was in classes at Harvard Divinity School wh...And I was in classes at Harvard Divinity School where men were deliberately excluded to the detriment of the class and the learning experience. I would have loved to have a reader like you along side me, Dave.Fran / Blue Galhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18293627981248346055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153677348029742652006-07-23T12:55:00.000-05:002006-07-23T12:55:00.000-05:00I got to take courses at Temple with two outstandi...I got to take courses at Temple with two outstanding feminist writer/critic/poets: Rachel DuPlessis and Sonya Sanchez. These were two of the most rigorous, most mind-expanding, most amazing undergrad classes I ever took, and I was one of maybe four males who made it through to the end of those semesters whithout dropping out. Why? Because they felt intimidated by the material. Not by the assigned readings. By everything else. Now, this is a good thing and a bad thing. I got to read a lot of neat stuff I never would have read, and I got to learn about it in ways I never would have normally been exposed to. But, in defense of the guys who quit the class, some of this discussion and analysis made the material unreadable. They never got to appreciate the literature *as literature*, meant to be READ. So they never read it, and missed out.<BR/><BR/>I'll probably get hammered for saying that, but I think I feel the need, as a reader and as a teacher of reading, to say that sometimes we need to put down the microscope or the scalpel or whatever other toys we bring to the book and just read the book.<BR/><BR/>Besides, I met the coolest women in those classes...QuakerDavehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10727729821155579518noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153665032611683312006-07-23T09:30:00.000-05:002006-07-23T09:30:00.000-05:00Absolutely, Quaker Dave, tho' not to put too fine ...Absolutely, Quaker Dave, tho' not to put too fine a point on it, "woman novel" is a term of art used by lit critters to talk about the 19th century pulp novels with the overplot I mentioned. The seminal feminist lit crit on this period is "Madwoman in the Attic" by Gilbert and Gubar, and yes, Pippa, the title refers directly to Jane Eyre. There's a whole English Lit dissertation topic on whether Jane Eyre is woman novel and how it reflect/distorts the woman journey story of the popular fiction of its day. Just like Alias Grace.<BR/><BR/>But again, I'm with Dave, a lot of this is just intellectual jerking off and does not add one bit to the <I>enjoyment of literature</I>.Fran / Blue Galhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18293627981248346055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153629804370391372006-07-22T23:43:00.000-05:002006-07-22T23:43:00.000-05:00What's a "women's novel"? A "chick book"? Or a bo...What's a "women's novel"? <BR/><BR/>A "chick book"? Or a book written by a "women"? I'm about to start reading "The #1 Ladies Detective Agency," about a "women," written by a man, with the word "ladies" in the title. So what's that called?<BR/><BR/>Just. Read. It.QuakerDavehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10727729821155579518noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153610553945665332006-07-22T18:22:00.000-05:002006-07-22T18:22:00.000-05:00I have a confession to make, even though i was an ...I have a confession to make, even though i was an english lit student, i've never picked up any of the copies of the atwood novels that we have at home. I think I might now. Elaine Showalter? There's a name from my student past....<BR/>BTW do you think that a novels such as jane eyre could be considered as a "women novel"? I know it doesn't strictly follow the guidelines but it could be considered surely? <BR/><BR/>Pippafifipoo07https://www.blogger.com/profile/15765891661291636807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153602961201658892006-07-22T16:16:00.000-05:002006-07-22T16:16:00.000-05:00Robber Bride is next on my Atwood list. I also re...Robber Bride is next on my Atwood list. I also really liked Oryx and Crake, which had quite a bit of humor in it for dystopian sci fi. I listened to that one unabridged on CD. Campbell Scott read it and it was excellent.Fran / Blue Galhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18293627981248346055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153602348074621452006-07-22T16:05:00.000-05:002006-07-22T16:05:00.000-05:00"The Robber Bride." Most under-rated of her work...."The Robber Bride." Most under-rated of her work.<BR/><BR/>Will look for this: thanks for the tip.QuakerDavehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10727729821155579518noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153586188771851952006-07-22T11:36:00.000-05:002006-07-22T11:36:00.000-05:00Silly me...I didn't *know* there was a *sister sit...Silly me...I didn't *know* there was a *sister site* I was missing out on.<BR/><BR/>*wink*<BR/><BR/>More interesting reads to add to my list (and I NEED to do a Bookstore Shopping date!)Karen McLhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09721731853548537686noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153584731814446642006-07-22T11:12:00.000-05:002006-07-22T11:12:00.000-05:00Something new for my reading list. Thanks BG.Something new for my reading list. Thanks BG.mark hobackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07278212408374559241noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8983386.post-1153576512213079252006-07-22T08:55:00.000-05:002006-07-22T08:55:00.000-05:00I read this novel when it was first released. Tha...I read this novel when it was first released. Thanks, BG, for rekindling my enthusiasm for this book with your review. You reminded me of many delicious hours in front of the fireplace with this book one winter.<BR/><BR/>Greetings from Bean Town.threadingwaterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11160933882285696582noreply@blogger.com