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A review by godsgayearth
The Sea, the Sea by Iris Murdoch
4.0
The rich, uncontained prose of The Sea, The Sea was such a delight to read - it was a shame that it dragged near the end. But as Charles himself said, "life, unlike art, has an irritating way of bumping and limping on" which explains that sluggish end. After all, I was reading a diary, or a memoir of sorts, so to expect such a clean finish, so unlike life, was unfair of me.
When people talk about liking "unlikeable" characters they likely mean: bad boys, jerks, people who don't care about the world. it's shocking to me too, when i say Charles Arrowby is unlikeable (he's narcissistic, vain, pretentious) and i like him. to an extent, of course. Because i see myself in him. The near-unerring Romanticism. The touch of the dramatic. But, I suppose, he takes it too far as characters in fiction are wont.
the way he talks about women (calls them 'girls') repulses me. how he manipulates Lizzie and casts aside Rosina is disgusting. and when the time came when he sees Hartley again, is it any surprise that he acts like a fool? he rhapsodized so much about this lost first love to the point of obscene elevation. it was almost to be expected that he acts unreasonably. Charles drives me nuts because he imposes his will so much but at the same time Lizzie seems so weak the way she carries on. the idea of Charles’ love for Hartley as some kind of innocent heaven, and Arcadia, prelapsarian. he seems really obsessed with this idea as a means of validating the illusion of his love.
also something about how the way the prose is punctuated. it’s not wrong by any means. it uses commas in a minimalistic manner where i tend to use it any chance i get. this makes me hesitate as i read to make sure i understand the meaning. this isn’t a complaint. it means i read more mindfully because i notice the hiccups. it’s as if the prose demands to be tasted rather than simply swallowed.
So much wisdom in such a lengthy book. I'm glad to have read it at this point in my life.
When people talk about liking "unlikeable" characters they likely mean: bad boys, jerks, people who don't care about the world. it's shocking to me too, when i say Charles Arrowby is unlikeable (he's narcissistic, vain, pretentious) and i like him. to an extent, of course. Because i see myself in him. The near-unerring Romanticism. The touch of the dramatic. But, I suppose, he takes it too far as characters in fiction are wont.
the way he talks about women (calls them 'girls') repulses me. how he manipulates Lizzie and casts aside Rosina is disgusting. and when the time came when he sees Hartley again, is it any surprise that he acts like a fool? he rhapsodized so much about this lost first love to the point of obscene elevation. it was almost to be expected that he acts unreasonably. Charles drives me nuts because he imposes his will so much but at the same time Lizzie seems so weak the way she carries on. the idea of Charles’ love for Hartley as some kind of innocent heaven, and Arcadia, prelapsarian. he seems really obsessed with this idea as a means of validating the illusion of his love.
also something about how the way the prose is punctuated. it’s not wrong by any means. it uses commas in a minimalistic manner where i tend to use it any chance i get. this makes me hesitate as i read to make sure i understand the meaning. this isn’t a complaint. it means i read more mindfully because i notice the hiccups. it’s as if the prose demands to be tasted rather than simply swallowed.
So much wisdom in such a lengthy book. I'm glad to have read it at this point in my life.