tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post6901245177028159189..comments2024-01-06T10:36:04.084-05:00Comments on A Commonplace Blog: On being a fatherD. G. Myershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659136455045567825noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-13502469367377333852009-06-22T17:23:48.905-04:002009-06-22T17:23:48.905-04:00But you must admit, Nigel, that he “highlights” th...But you must admit, Nigel, that he “highlights” the greater maturity and level-headedness of Elizabeth.<br /><br />As for DeVries’s terrible (in the original sense of the word) <i>Blood of the Lamb</i>. It belongs on another list: Five Books of death at a young age. A grim subject, but some great novels have been written about it.D. G. Myershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10659136455045567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-1012531468719309412009-06-22T16:39:17.873-04:002009-06-22T16:39:17.873-04:00I've always been partial to Mr. Bennet.I've always been partial to Mr. Bennet.NigelBealehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06094387597632333192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-79556732384198375702009-06-22T13:28:31.130-04:002009-06-22T13:28:31.130-04:00More amusing is when portrayals of fatherly impote...<i>More amusing is when portrayals of fatherly impotence still yield a sympathetic character, especially when the father’s illiteracy/simplemindedness/etc. is highlighted.</i><br /><br />Austen relied upon such fathers. Think of Sir Walter Elliot, whose dull-witted snobbishness throws into relief Anne’s wide-awake morality, or Mr Woodhouse in <i>Emma</i>.D. G. Myershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10659136455045567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-37377435363381146082009-06-22T13:14:44.296-04:002009-06-22T13:14:44.296-04:00What an interesting point on literary fathers, and...What an interesting point on literary fathers, and thanks for recommending the Orwell book. Sometimes a father is portrayed as an admirable person, only to have that image marred by having a troublesome or feckless child (Pedro da Maia in <i>The Maias</i> comes to mind, although he has additional ‘faults’ as well). Other cases would fit the bill of a good father if the character were either more central or their role as father was expanded (someone like Dobbin at the end of <i>Vanity Fair</i>). <br /><br />More amusing is when portrayals of fatherly impotence still yield a sympathetic character, especially when the father’s illiteracy/simplemindedness/etc. is highlighted.Dwighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13688525659034403580noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-45556191379654625832009-06-21T23:35:02.120-04:002009-06-21T23:35:02.120-04:00[Apologies if this is a repeat; didn't seem to...[Apologies if this is a repeat; didn't seem to register the first time. Anyway--]<br /><br />Would you count Peter deVries, Blood of the Lamb, about the death of a daughter? Or Mayor of Casterbridge?Bucehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16452321114185736762noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-34622215012745768552009-06-21T22:09:01.909-04:002009-06-21T22:09:01.909-04:00You know, I’ve seen A Merry War. I distinctly reme...You know, I’ve seen <i>A Merry War</i>. I distinctly remember renting it. But I have no memory of the film at all. The novel, by contrast, has never left me.<br /><br />“<a href="http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/those-winter-sundays/" rel="nofollow">Those Winter Sundays</a>” is a brilliant poem. The last line gets it exactly right. My best friend Paul Hedeen introduced me to Hayden’s poem not too long ago. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to forget it.<br /><br />The same goes for Ames, Jonathan. He is not only a good father, but the form of <i>Gilead</i>—an address to a son—suggests how seriously he takes his role. Thanks for reminding me of one of my favorite novels!D. G. Myershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10659136455045567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-59914782509495290222009-06-21T21:26:44.509-04:002009-06-21T21:26:44.509-04:00I'll submit Tevye the Dairyman.
I haven'...I'll submit <i>Tevye the Dairyman</i>. <br /><br />I haven't read the Orwell novel, but the movie version, for some reason titled "A Merry War" (1997), includes every detail you mentioned, suggesting a certain fidelity.Amateur Reader (Tom)https://www.blogger.com/profile/13675275555757408496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-45383197019150664812009-06-21T21:24:50.754-04:002009-06-21T21:24:50.754-04:00I too tried to think of a novel with a father them...I too tried to think of a novel with a father theme that was positive. I excluded books for young people, such as The Yearling (although Rawlings might heartily disagree).<br />Then I thought of Cormac McCarthy's The Road. It met the contract but I lost my nerve.<br />Poetry seemed a better source, and there I found Those Winter Sundays by Robert Hayden.<br />Happy Father's Day.Lincolnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-58215913827032548032009-06-21T20:03:18.674-04:002009-06-21T20:03:18.674-04:00Just to add a bit of provocation to the challenge ...Just to add a bit of provocation to the challenge of naming five fathers in literature, I would offer the following for consideration:<br />Three from Shakespeare (each for all sorts of reasons):<br />Hamlet's ghost <br />King Lear<br />Prospero<br />One from Austen:<br />Sir Walter Elliot (because he is so delightfully dense but lovable in spite of his density)<br />One from the Torah:<br />Abraham (because I cannot help but feel tremendous compassion for and bewilderment over the profoundly spiritual man who chose to follow divine orders even though it most sorely tested his commitment to his son)R/Thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07791522136032565027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-21190882516374540262009-06-21T19:42:36.014-04:002009-06-21T19:42:36.014-04:00I could only think of two others - both from the f...I could only think of two others - both from the father's perspective.<br /><br />Although I have mixed feelings about McCarthy's The Road, the father could easily be judged a good one.<br /><br />I think, however, that if there was to be a rival to Atticus, it might just be John Ames. The only hesitation I have in making such a claim is the possibility I am confusing my estimation of John Ames as a man with his abilities as a father. I also wonder how, if at all, such an age difference might affect the quality of parenting.Jonathannoreply@blogger.com