The Violent Bear It Away
Ratings8
Average rating3.9
Dang... O'Connor has become one of my absolute all time favorite writers... Her writing is stunning, so much anger constantly pushing against itself, her characters both extremely alienating yet hypnotizing. Absolutely unforgettable moments and images, I don't think I will ever escape Hazel's flagellant marching or Tarwater's rubble revelation.
I try to read 2 classics and 2 award winning books each month. This was 1 of the classics for June and for the 1st time in 2 years of reading I must say it didn't interest me at all. I should have researched a bit of what the book is about before starting! Strong emphasis on religion which is not my strong point. Also the author should have put names on some of the characters early on and used them all the time through out the book. Referring to characters as old man, nephews etc had me confused thru the 1st 1/3 of the book.
I'm sure this book s/b considered a classic to most folks but I was just sorry I read it!! DN
Short Review: I am working through all of O'Connor's fiction this year. I have read Wise Blood and now The Violent Bear it Away so the novels are down. I will re-read A Good Man is Hard to Find and then Everything that Rises must Converge.
My very quick initial impression is that I liked this more than Wise Blood. I didn't see Violent Bear It Away as filled with the same type of characters as Wise Blood. They felt more human, flawed and traumatized humans, but humans that I could understand.
I feel like I miss 90% of the meaning of O'Connor. So I will be re-reading these and I will be seeking out some more books/podcasts/lectures that will explain them to me. But this is a classic that I understood and appreciated on my own. Some classics I appreciate as a classic, but do not particularly like as stand alone works of art. This one isn't a pretty work, but is one that I appreciate.
My not particularly insightful blog post about it is at http://bookwi.se/the-violent-bear-it-away/
I'm missing some key context here. It was all so bizarre! It reminds me of the Graham Greene book I read that one time :???
I wish I were more of a literary scholar. I wish I could appreciate the greatness of this novel and Flannery O'Connor, but alas I did not. While the writing itself was superb, the actual story didn't do much for me. If my AP English teacher was around to explain, maybe it woul have helped. :)