tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post6721397456645933176..comments2024-03-09T00:19:36.011-08:00Comments on Reading the Short Story: Julian Barnes’ The Sense of an EndingCharles E. Mayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11642048806407593585noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-49488145370254645142021-02-21T09:43:27.104-08:002021-02-21T09:43:27.104-08:00Thanks for your comments, anonymous. Not sure wha...Thanks for your comments, anonymous. Not sure what you mean that my criticism was "more about me," when what I tried to do was make an honest evaluation of what seemed to me to be an ordinary, average book. I was really more interested in the critical issue of what constitutes a novella, which I talked about in more detail in a subsequent blog entry. Thanks again for taking the time to respond.Charles E. Mayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11642048806407593585noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-51631942080418491892021-02-20T16:04:39.468-08:002021-02-20T16:04:39.468-08:00My comment is possibly based on my enjoyment of Ba...My comment is possibly based on my enjoyment of Barne's "Sense of an Ending". My mind returned to it many times after finishing it.<br />Yes, the protagonist was flawed, and yes it was short in word count, but the writing was dense, intimate, compelling, and reflective. <br />it exactly echoed where I am in my life.<br />Without wanting to be too rude, your criticism seems to be more about you and your preconceived ideas about Barnes than the book itself.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-26890645080168070622018-02-15T10:13:15.761-08:002018-02-15T10:13:15.761-08:00In it Julian Barnes reveals crystalline truths tha...In it Julian Barnes reveals crystalline truths that have taken a lifetime to harden. He has honed their edges, and polished them to a high gleam. <br /><br /><a href="https://www.iranketab.ir/book/36-the-sense-of-an-ending" rel="nofollow">کتاب درک یک پایان</a><br />Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04188795354929245893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-5091257534202485612014-05-10T06:41:11.395-07:002014-05-10T06:41:11.395-07:00The story's facade is simple, refined almost t...The story's facade is simple, refined almost to monotony and dependent on the revelation of a secret towards the ending. But what is hidden between the lines is far more chaotic—and likely to leave the reader anxious for days after finishing the book. I loved that the book made me really think about regret, and repentance. It also made me think about the idea that we are always dishonest narrators of our own lives. And the book was very disturbing that it made me think about how easy it is to think you are one kind of person, when you are actually not and how universal human frailty is.<br />The ending was excellent that it left me lost in the lines, sitting there, recollecting all the little pieces of story back together in my mind. And it left me chaotic and disturbed for days after finishing the book.Nehahttp://hindisms.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-61245201719727644212013-04-22T10:56:12.543-07:002013-04-22T10:56:12.543-07:00The story's facade is simple, refined almost t...The story's facade is simple, refined almost to monotony and dependent on the revelation of a secret towards the ending. But what is hidden between the lines is far more chaotic—and likely to leave the reader anxious for days after finishing the book. I loved that the book made me really think about regret, and repentance. It also made me think about the idea that we are always dishonest narrators of our own lives. And the book was very disturbing that it made me think about how easy it is to think you are one kind of person, when you are actually not and how universal human frailty is.<br />The ending was excellent that it left me lost in the lines, sitting there, recollecting all the little pieces of story back together in my mind. And it left me chaotic and disturbed for days after finishing the book.Meerahttp://shayari.co.innoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-89937616349467111632012-02-24T10:46:09.304-08:002012-02-24T10:46:09.304-08:00Thanks, Charles, for some honesty in reviewing.
I...Thanks, Charles, for some honesty in reviewing.<br /><br />I often feel that there's too much of a "play-safe, they might review me next" attitude in the press.<br /><br />I remember Banville's "The Sea", (ugh) and almost widespread "gushing" with just one judge standing against the tide...<br /><br />Alex<br /><br />BTW Barnes also had another book of shorts, "The History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters"Alex Keeganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03852766836039129209noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-27210214397209592122012-02-22T11:32:06.573-08:002012-02-22T11:32:06.573-08:00Always good to hear from you, Sandra. I have not ...Always good to hear from you, Sandra. I have not read Bausch's novel Peace, although I am a fan of his short stories. As you describe it, it sounds like the kind of thematic approach the novella finds most suitable. Glad you find my comments on the relationship between narrative genres useful.Charles E. Mayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11642048806407593585noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3161136885462262525.post-57684089409910900992012-02-20T12:14:21.929-08:002012-02-20T12:14:21.929-08:00If you've read Richard Bausch's Peace, I&#...If you've read Richard Bausch's Peace, I'd like to hear your comments on how you understand it as a form of novella or something else! I found his writing not only deals with a profound moral dilemma but the repeated instances of language's inability to capture meaning rises to the level of symbolism in the story. And the ongoing search for the enemy is also symbolic because it rises beyond the immediate context of the story. I don't see it as a novel because the scope is limited almost like a short story, but it has a wider scope than most short stories. Fascinating topic you are posing here and one that is not often discussed with much depth. Thanks again for this blog.Sandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12782368871063356222noreply@blogger.com