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3.44 AVERAGE
3.44 AVERAGE
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The first part of this novel examines (in a manner both accurate and funny) the big fuss over deconstruction back in the day of 80's academia. And then it goes on to actually deconstruct the traditional marriage plot via the "discourses" of religion, philosophy, and lit crit. However, this is not a cold novel of ideas; au contraire, JE creates a moving love triangle formed by three smart, lively 20-somethings as they navigate the post-college recession and discover the "real world" with its subsequent heartbreaks, contingencies, and surprises. He does this with real affection and warmth for his characters, and by the end of the book, tears ensued. Now THAT'S saying something for a novel whose driving conceit is deconstruction. I loved how JE wrote a novel of ideas and yet imbued it with such heart. Brilliant, witty, and moving, all in one.
While I was not satisfied with the ending, overall I really enjoyed the process of reading The Marriage Plot.
This narrative has a lot to offer recent graduates by prodding the readers to think about how your first year after college changes you, and forces you to re-evaluate your priorities. The overarching theme of marriage and the paradigm shift that occurred in the 60s regarding marriage also offers historical context, and allows the reader to compare the characters' thoughts on marriage and how they impact our current understanding of the institution.
The most enjoyable part of this book is that it can serve as a quick and easy read, or as a more reflective literary piece. Worth picking up.
This narrative has a lot to offer recent graduates by prodding the readers to think about how your first year after college changes you, and forces you to re-evaluate your priorities. The overarching theme of marriage and the paradigm shift that occurred in the 60s regarding marriage also offers historical context, and allows the reader to compare the characters' thoughts on marriage and how they impact our current understanding of the institution.
The most enjoyable part of this book is that it can serve as a quick and easy read, or as a more reflective literary piece. Worth picking up.
Here's the thing. I really wanted this book to be great. Sadly, I pretty much hate all the characters. I've read two-thirds of it and I just can't take it anymore. They are a miserable bunch, even though I love so many things about the book in general. I may go back to it, but for now I just want to smack them all (well, maybe not Mitchell as much as the others). How do you enjoy a book when you can't enjoy the characters? The angst is just too great for me at the moment.
Three of the worst people you’ve ever met, who somehow also manage to be boring and trite! Every section begins with action, a long digression to backstory, something happening that we don’t get details of, and then ends. These characters are believable in only that their selfish and lack of tenderness betrays a dower look at the capacities of youth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Colonisation
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Hooked immediately at the beginning. Perhaps (likely) due to my own nostalgia for college and a bias toward the campus novel. I love reading about ridiculous things done by earnest students and the absurdity of higher ed. And, of course, Providence! College Hill! Summer in a sleepy college town! Semiotics class! Unintelligible seminars! Unfortunately for me, however, our main characters graduate pretty much immediately. They are going off into the world on their fellowships and grand tours through Europe and India. We follow each separately, learning their backstories slowly, seeing the overlap in their lives from all relevant perspectives. Characters are described by their likes, dislikes, physical appearances, and family histories. Less so by their own thoughts and feelings. Often, the motivations and beliefs of the three main characters remained unclear to me. Madeline actually felt less complex as the story went on, I was more and more confused by her desires and actions—it seemed she had few real anxieties about her life aside from Leonard (which doesn’t feel very subversive, as the premise of this book suggests itself to be). Mitchell was not all that interesting to me. There must be more to say about religion other than that it has both its flaws and redemptive qualities. As for the story itself, the writing about sex felt gratuitous at times. Sometimes things felt over-described and over-articulated, but still unclear. There was a quote about getting down to the simple elements of a landscape: “Salt water rivulets trickled through the marshes, and scrub pines clustered together in discreet groves. The world reduced itself, here, to basic constituents—sand, sea, sky—keeping trees and flower species to a minimum.” I wish the characters could have received this treatment as well. Would give this three stars but adding one for my own nostalgia.
I put off reading this for years bc everyone told me it was too depressing; but I regret waiting so long. While it’s not a fun story, I didn’t find it depressing as much as real with an end that actually felt hopeful.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
2,5 stars, rounded up .
A disappointment. I really enjoyed both Middlesex and The Virgin Suicides a lot, and had high hopes for this The Marriage Plot, but I kind of already knew that I would feel differently about this one. It’s been sitting on my bookshelf, waiting, for years until I finally felt like I either ought to read it or remove it. I don’t regret reading it, and some of the themes are really interesting, but it will forever have dulled the glow of Eugenides in my mind.
A disappointment. I really enjoyed both Middlesex and The Virgin Suicides a lot, and had high hopes for this The Marriage Plot, but I kind of already knew that I would feel differently about this one. It’s been sitting on my bookshelf, waiting, for years until I finally felt like I either ought to read it or remove it. I don’t regret reading it, and some of the themes are really interesting, but it will forever have dulled the glow of Eugenides in my mind.
Ooof I almost didn't make it through this tome but Eugenides' brilliant writing saved it...at least enough for me to finish it. The heavy handed name-dropping & oh-so-pedantic discussions had me rolling my eyes more than once. I loved Middlesex so much that I hung in there until the end (wrapped up way too quickly & oddly tidily) but, for me, it simply comes down to that I just really didn't care about these characters.