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A review by hangsangareader
White Noise by Don DeLillo
dark
funny
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
3.5
I read this for my Post-WW2 American literature class as an example of Post-Modernism.
Post-Modernism is a concept with which I still struggle. It is not my favorite movement, nor is this my favorite period - I prefer 19th-century English literature. And this might've influenced how I felt about this book. I thought it was bizarre, and I would like something more Jane Austen sarcastic.
That being said:
This book is very well written. If you are familiar with Post-Modernism, you might appreciate it. It's pretty witty and filled with symbolism. The topics are well tied up, and the title of the book and the titles given to the different parts (3) provide insight into what will follow. But also, so many layers of meaning and further reads, one always being the ironic/parody of reality/deadpan humor. To piggyback on this point: this book is funny. A lot of it is a parody: intellectualism, consumerism, etc. And it's so ridiculous that it makes it funny. But the fun is not enough to make me enjoy the silly.
All the lists. And the seemingly silly meaningless sentences that might mean something.
The characters are not the most interesting, but I did like the whole family. It's a fascinating amalgamation of kids from different marriages in a single household. Of course, everyone is strange; the only average individual in the book is Wilder. And he manages to destroy that perception in the very last chapter. Jack and Babette have a lovely relationship; at least we know he loves her (1st person limited narrator). However, this gets tricky as you read on. Nothing is what it seems. Murray, of course, the best caricature/parody of an intellectual, of an academic, and the love of theory. He sounds like I would hate to meet him in real life. But his musing of the supermarket rim ended me of Ginsberg's "Supermarket in California." I enjoyed that poem. I think the Beat generation might be more interesting to me. I'll decide once I've read enough of both.
I know the plot might seem illogical, or at least part 2 might seem misplaced, but it all ties up. The answer is on the SIMUVAC people. Wink wink. It's a cleverly constructed book. DeLillo is a good writer; things tie up. If you pay attention, you can connect the dots. Words and expressions that repeat themselves. Waves and radiation and noise.
If you are familiar with Baudrillard, you might understand what is going on better than I did. Hyperreality and simulations versus reality.
Post-Modernism is a concept with which I still struggle. It is not my favorite movement, nor is this my favorite period - I prefer 19th-century English literature. And this might've influenced how I felt about this book. I thought it was bizarre, and I would like something more Jane Austen sarcastic.
That being said:
This book is very well written. If you are familiar with Post-Modernism, you might appreciate it. It's pretty witty and filled with symbolism. The topics are well tied up, and the title of the book and the titles given to the different parts (3) provide insight into what will follow. But also, so many layers of meaning and further reads, one always being the ironic/parody of reality/deadpan humor. To piggyback on this point: this book is funny. A lot of it is a parody: intellectualism, consumerism, etc. And it's so ridiculous that it makes it funny. But the fun is not enough to make me enjoy the silly.
All the lists. And the seemingly silly meaningless sentences that might mean something.
The characters are not the most interesting, but I did like the whole family. It's a fascinating amalgamation of kids from different marriages in a single household. Of course, everyone is strange; the only average individual in the book is Wilder. And he manages to destroy that perception in the very last chapter. Jack and Babette have a lovely relationship; at least we know he loves her (1st person limited narrator). However, this gets tricky as you read on. Nothing is what it seems. Murray, of course, the best caricature/parody of an intellectual, of an academic, and the love of theory. He sounds like I would hate to meet him in real life. But his musing of the supermarket rim ended me of Ginsberg's "Supermarket in California." I enjoyed that poem. I think the Beat generation might be more interesting to me. I'll decide once I've read enough of both.
I know the plot might seem illogical, or at least part 2 might seem misplaced, but it all ties up. The answer is on the SIMUVAC people. Wink wink. It's a cleverly constructed book. DeLillo is a good writer; things tie up. If you pay attention, you can connect the dots. Words and expressions that repeat themselves. Waves and radiation and noise.
If you are familiar with Baudrillard, you might understand what is going on better than I did. Hyperreality and simulations versus reality.