Public Address | Cafe | Muse: V.S. Naipaul and the Gentle Art of Prostate Gazing http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/ en-us Copyright (c) 2013 Public Address Public Address http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216618#post216618 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216618#post216618 Discussion from blog post.

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 09:16:45 +1200 Russell Brown http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216619#post216619 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216619#post216619 Wed, 15 Jun 2011 09:16:45 +1200 Danielle http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216621#post216621 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216621#post216621 Sense and Sensibility that an over-reliance on romantic tosh means you'll wind up nearly dying of pneumonia and should have just married that nice middle-aged widower in the first place? ]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 09:30:15 +1200 Danielle http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216622#post216622 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216622#post216622 Or, in Emma : don't set your sights on the romantic stranger; marry your sensible next-door neighbour.

Or, in Northanger Abbey : act like a swooning idiot and lose that nice sensible chap you enjoy hanging out with.

(Yeah, I could do this all day.)

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 09:34:27 +1200 Craig Ranapia http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216624#post216624 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216624#post216624 Sense and Sensibility. (Though a hardcover of Middlemarch would probably make a more satisfying crack.) Nowadays, though, I suspect Leonard Cohen CDs are more likely? ]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 09:39:12 +1200 recordari http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216627#post216627 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216627#post216627 Shakespeare's sonnets.

121 would seem apposite. Just sayin'.

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:09:30 +1200 Martin Lindberg http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216631#post216631 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216631#post216631 Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:57:18 +1200 Ngaire BookieMonster http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216632#post216632 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216632#post216632 Isn't the whole point of Sense and Sensibility that an over-reliance on romantic tosh means you'll wind up nearly dying of pneumonia and should have just married that nice middle-aged widower in the first place?

Especially if that nice middle-aged widower is Alan Rickman.

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 11:00:41 +1200 Deborah http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216639#post216639 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216639#post216639 I feel no such restraint, Martin.

??. Well, Miss Elliot,? (lowering his voice) ?as I was saying, we shall never agree I suppose upon this point. No man and woman, would, probably. But let me observe that all histories are against you?all stories, prose and verse. If I had such?

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 12:12:39 +1200 recordari http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216642#post216642 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216642#post216642 I do like a good quote-off.

No one is more arrogant toward women, more aggressive or scornful, than the man who is anxious about his virility.
&
The writer of originality, unless dead, is always shocking, scandalous; novelty disturbs and repels.


Simone de Beauvoir.

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 12:23:56 +1200 Martin Lindberg http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216643#post216643 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216643#post216643 I'll let Mark Twain rip then:

I haven't any right to criticise books, and I don't do it except when I hate them. I often want to criticise Jane Austen, but her books madden me so that I can't conceal my frenzy from the reader; and therefore I have to?

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 12:54:59 +1200 Craig Ranapia http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216664#post216664 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216664#post216664 I?ll let Mark Twain rip then:

OK. Personally, I can never quite tell how much of Twain's writing prove anything more than he would have made a damn good talkback radio host or blog-farmed comment troll if he'd been born in 1985 instead of 1835. Emily Auerbach has a [[http://www.vqronline.org/articles/1999/winter/auerbach-barkeeper-entering/|fascinating?

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:08:10 +1200 Martin Lindberg http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216668#post216668 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216668#post216668 OK. Personally, I can never quite tell how much of Twain?s writing prove anything more than he would have made a damn good talkback radio host or blog-farmed comment troll if he?d been born in 1985 instead of 1835.

True, but I do love his turn of phrase. I'll bookmark?

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:16:31 +1200 bmk http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216670#post216670 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216670#post216670 Yeah I love Mark Twain?s quotes on Austen, (I do like most ?classics? but for some reason just can?t stand Austen) my favourite one:
Jane Austen? Why I go so far as to say that any library is a good library that does not contain a volume by Jane Austen.?

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:19:45 +1200 Sacha http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216678#post216678 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216678#post216678 on the wrong side of Craig

you'll survive

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:59:16 +1200 recordari http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216696#post216696 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216696#post216696 I should endeavour to [sic] get on the wrong side of Craig.

It takes some practice, but eventually you'll get the hang of it.

Anyway, who needs Austen when you've got Harold Robins?

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 21:25:58 +1200 Steve Parks http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216703#post216703 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216703#post216703 ...Naipaul?s sadistic abuse of his first wife and various mistresses.

I hadn't heard of that until I read this at The Dim-Post.

Carnal pleasure meant violence ? in fact it was inextricable from beating Margaret up, degrading her in bed, turning the great man?s penis into an object of worship.?

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 22:16:41 +1200 Craig Ranapia http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216704#post216704 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216704#post216704 And now I have just insulted, albeit by proxy, his favourite author.

Meh... if Austen's reputation can survive waxing and waning for two centuries, I can deal with others not sharing my perfect literary taste. :)

]]> Wed, 15 Jun 2011 22:28:43 +1200 Tamsin6 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216712#post216712 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216712#post216712 I remember the lovely controversy over the interview conducted by Mrs Naipaul with the former Mrs Mandela last year.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23812947-how-nelson-mandela-betrayed-us-says-ex-wife-winnie.do

There are a few clues in that piece about how Naipaul views women, and just other people generally.

My nerves were playing up: my husband does not like to be?

]]> Thu, 16 Jun 2011 03:34:22 +1200 Craig Ranapia http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216714#post216714 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216714#post216714 Combine that with his myopic views on women writers, and it?s clear Naipaul has serious issues with women.

If you want to read A Writer?s People, I think it?s pretty clear that Naipaul has serious issues with men too ? well, male writers who get attention that belongs to him.?

]]> Thu, 16 Jun 2011 07:01:11 +1200 DeepRed http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216758#post216758 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216758#post216758 If you want to read A Writer?s People, I think it?s pretty clear that Naipaul has serious issues with men too ? well, male writers who get attention that belongs to him.

Which would make him a misanthrope, right?

]]> Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:43:17 +1200 Nik C http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216787#post216787 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216787#post216787 Diana Athil's response to him calling her work "feminine tosh" was quite amusing too. Basically along the lines of, "Lol, come at me bro."

"I can't say it made me feel very bad. It just made me laugh ... I think one should just ignore it, take no notice really."?

]]> Thu, 16 Jun 2011 13:51:17 +1200 Craig Ranapia http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216824#post216824 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=216824#post216824 Stet would reveal that Athill is about as sentimental as a flick knife ? she has Naipaul?s measure (and several other authors) with forensic precision. But she also provides a useful reality check on anyone who wants to get too nostalgic about the good old? ]]> Thu, 16 Jun 2011 18:58:18 +1200 Timothy Maby http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=217518#post217518 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=217518#post217518 Sat, 25 Jun 2011 02:34:59 +1200 Craig Ranapia http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=217537#post217537 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=217537#post217537 Editor of Granta, John Freeman wondered why so many ageing male writers turn curmudgeon.

Honestly, I don't know if that's an affliction you can pin on the literary XY chromosome. Germaine Greer, anyone? Fay Weldon?

]]> Sat, 25 Jun 2011 09:24:11 +1200 Islander http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=217605#post217605 http://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/muse-vs-naipaul-and-the-gentle-art-of-prostate/?p=217605#post217605 But I cant think of too many others, Craig?

And most female writers I know (as in, have met & enjoyed conversations with, as well as via their books) of an age even more senior than mine, are singularly gracious beings. And, interestingly, not competitive.

Naipaul (whom I?ve never met) strikes?

]]> Sat, 25 Jun 2011 17:48:18 +1200