Hey, guys!
Sorry that this post is really late for today, but I didn't have as much time as I would've liked to work on this week's posts on Monday. But better late than never, right?
Don't worry, I'll have a writing exercise up first thing in the morning. But for now, how about a belated book review?
So, for my World Literature class, we have to write a paper on one of the three books/plays that we've read so far. I was originally going to write about Waiting for the Barbarians by J. M. Coetzee, which I've already reviewed.
To be honest, when the professor said that we may write our papers on the latest book if it really "speaks" to us, I scoffed. I couldn't really get into it at first, but when I got halfway through, I recognized a common thread about which it would be easy to write a paper.
I won't hold you in suspense any longer. The novel is An Imaginary Life by David Malouf and is about the exile of the Roman poet, Ovid.
Basically, Ovid has been exiled from Rome for his poems and sent to live in a "barbaric" village that does not speak Latin. So there is Ovid, alone and unable to communicate with anyone and completely depressed about not hearing his beloved Latin tongue from another's lips.
It also doesn't help that Ovid's language doesn't really have the right words to describe the landscape in which he now resides. So at first, he blames the landscape for being so desolate and colorless. But once he decides to learn the local language, Ovid comes to the conclusion that it is Latin that is inadequate.
Once Ovid learns the new language, he is accepted as one of the villagers. But one day, he catches sight of a wild boy known as the Child. The Child was presumably raised by wolves, speaks to animals rather than of any human language, and is not bothered by the harsh environment.
At Ovid's suggestion, the villagers capture the Child and bring him back to the village. There, Ovid tries to civilize the Child and to teach him the local language.
However, as everybody knows, a good teacher always learns from his student. What Ovid learns is of the existence of a silent language that transcends communication and allows one to be one with nature and everything, much like the Child already is, due to his lack of communication and interaction with other humans.
Now, Ovid is on a journey to discover the one true language with the universality to disconnect one from oneself and to thereby connect one with all the earth.
Sounds like a lot of mumbo-jumbo, huh? Well, trust me, the book does a better job of conveying this one true language, so long as you keep an open mind.
I would definitely recommend this novel for upper-high school readers and beyond, because it prompts the reader to think about how humans think and communicate. It's a very thought-provoking novel. Like I said, though, I did have trouble getting into the book at first. You have been forewarned.
That's all for this review. Again, sorry for the tardiness. Hope you enjoyed and that you'll come back tomorrow for the exciting new writing exercise. It's gonna be epic.
Happy reading!!
Sorry that this post is really late for today, but I didn't have as much time as I would've liked to work on this week's posts on Monday. But better late than never, right?
Don't worry, I'll have a writing exercise up first thing in the morning. But for now, how about a belated book review?
So, for my World Literature class, we have to write a paper on one of the three books/plays that we've read so far. I was originally going to write about Waiting for the Barbarians by J. M. Coetzee, which I've already reviewed.
To be honest, when the professor said that we may write our papers on the latest book if it really "speaks" to us, I scoffed. I couldn't really get into it at first, but when I got halfway through, I recognized a common thread about which it would be easy to write a paper.
I won't hold you in suspense any longer. The novel is An Imaginary Life by David Malouf and is about the exile of the Roman poet, Ovid.
Basically, Ovid has been exiled from Rome for his poems and sent to live in a "barbaric" village that does not speak Latin. So there is Ovid, alone and unable to communicate with anyone and completely depressed about not hearing his beloved Latin tongue from another's lips.
It also doesn't help that Ovid's language doesn't really have the right words to describe the landscape in which he now resides. So at first, he blames the landscape for being so desolate and colorless. But once he decides to learn the local language, Ovid comes to the conclusion that it is Latin that is inadequate.
Once Ovid learns the new language, he is accepted as one of the villagers. But one day, he catches sight of a wild boy known as the Child. The Child was presumably raised by wolves, speaks to animals rather than of any human language, and is not bothered by the harsh environment.
At Ovid's suggestion, the villagers capture the Child and bring him back to the village. There, Ovid tries to civilize the Child and to teach him the local language.
However, as everybody knows, a good teacher always learns from his student. What Ovid learns is of the existence of a silent language that transcends communication and allows one to be one with nature and everything, much like the Child already is, due to his lack of communication and interaction with other humans.
Now, Ovid is on a journey to discover the one true language with the universality to disconnect one from oneself and to thereby connect one with all the earth.
Sounds like a lot of mumbo-jumbo, huh? Well, trust me, the book does a better job of conveying this one true language, so long as you keep an open mind.
I would definitely recommend this novel for upper-high school readers and beyond, because it prompts the reader to think about how humans think and communicate. It's a very thought-provoking novel. Like I said, though, I did have trouble getting into the book at first. You have been forewarned.
That's all for this review. Again, sorry for the tardiness. Hope you enjoyed and that you'll come back tomorrow for the exciting new writing exercise. It's gonna be epic.
Happy reading!!
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