{"id":574,"date":"2018-09-13T08:45:42","date_gmt":"2018-09-13T08:45:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=574"},"modified":"2021-08-04T07:16:06","modified_gmt":"2021-08-04T01:46:06","slug":"editors-picks-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=574","title":{"rendered":"Editor’s Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"

V.S. Naipaul passed away on 11th<\/sup> August, 2018. His prolific career spanning over half a century has been bombarded with the political observations of his native Trinidad and post-colonial world. This Nobel Prize and Booker Prize winner is an author of nearly 30 books where most of his works are spanned over the efforts of understanding his cultural heritage and identity. Below are the comments on Naipaul snipped and tailored from various scholars like Amarnath Prasad (Critical essays, Volume 3, Google books).\u00a0\u201cHis masterful skill of using different literary genres to illuminate \u201careas of darkness\u201d surrounding him and to transmit his diasporic experience has been quite successful. To a certain degree, Naipaul\u2019s achievement in interweaving personalized post-colonial experiences with Spanish and British imperial adventures has generated a new way of re-charting the terrain of English literature too.<\/p>\n

On account of his travels to many different parts of the world, Naipaul wonders \u201cwhether the borrowed form of novel\u201d could offer more than \u201cthe externals of things.\u201d In order to translate the essence of his Indo-Trinidadian-English experience, Naipaul has to find his own way to express things without losing an iota.\u00a0 As a result, Naipaul has created a fictional world, in which he fights against historical incompleteness, absence, and new ways of re-enacting and transforming history.<\/p>\n

A House for Mr. Biswas<\/em> is the novel that marked Naipaul\u2019s rise as one of the world\u2019s literary stalwarts. It deals with the theme of isolation, frustration and negotiation in a colonized society, a society that turns callous and cruel to the aspiration of the protagonist. Mohan Biswas. It also deals with a number of spiritual or physical melodies such as the clash of cultures between the old and new in a multi-racial society; a quest for identity in a conservative framework and above all, the protagonist\u2019s monotonous journey full of many jerks and jolts. It is to be noted that the theme of identity crisis rings the note of almost all the major works of Naipaul. He also transmits his father\u2019s legacy to many of his fictive characters. He expresses his view of the world in a structure at once naturalistic as, \u201cThe substance of the novel has to do with the transformation of Mr. Biswas, a slave to place, history and biography, into free man, the sign and realization of that emancipation being his house.\u201d No doubt. Naipaul\u2019s feelings of rootedness, life of exile that results in personal insecurity and cultural instability are presented in the versions of Mr. Biswas\u2019s experiences. Being alienated from all walks of life and unable to belong either to Britain or Caribbean, the protagonist becomes a man without a side. On the whole he reflects the author\u2019s struggle to assimilate his Indian past, his own complex and personal history, his continual self-criticism and self-evaluation, and sometimes, his excessive reactions to the core of creative intelligence from his authorial vision.\u201d (1)<\/p>\n

During the late 60\u2019s, Naipaul had seemingly settled on a journalistic \u2013 objective style of writing and \u2018A way in the world\u2019 marks a significant departure from his brand of \u201crealism.\u201d And it was at this time, he became a man of contradictions and was least liked by many. Paul Theroux will be able to shed more light on this!<\/p>\n

*<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nabokov seemed to be a master while reading his lectures on literature. But, when one happens to read his \u2018literary\u2019 works, the opinion might change. I was searching for a paperback print of Ada for a long time and was overwhelmed joyously only until I had read it. Nabokov’s obsession with pre-adolescent female sexuality is evident and prolonging. This book, Ada, supposed to be a memoir narrated by Van flips often from the path to be a straight third person narrative. Proustian way of approach helps the author to make it pedantic and bloated throughout the novel. The story about incest relationship between Van and his half-sister Ada is less authentic and recondite.<\/p>\n

Nabokov who shows keen interest to expatiate, festoons the novel with dumb incidents and presumptuous philosophical conversations. At times, the sentences were too long that I felt hard to get the point or forget what the author had originally intended by those mere text-filling lexicality. I even doubt whether the writer himself was sure about it. One feature of the book is that each section is shorter than the last. But the mind-blowing thing is that each section takes longer to read than the previous one. I hoped fervently that something would come up and take a turn till the end. The author’s agenda to puzzle the reader is stinky with all those same old ludicrous allusiveness. I recognized some of the references taking us back to earlier works. There are some intriguing moments and bestowed previous impression on Nabokov that makes this readable, but ultimately dull and boring. Adorable style doesn’t always help!<\/p>\n

*<\/strong><\/p>\n

As for style and evocative writing combined, Michael Ondaatje is a master. His new novel Warlight, listed in the long list of Man Booker Prize 2018, is a brave and brilliant book. As usual, his prose is so exquisite filled with poetic images. In addition to that, the lyrical writing is topped with intriguing mystery moving back and forth in time. \u201cSet in the post WWII period, it tells the story of two young teenagers, who are mysteriously left\u2014abandoned\u2014by their parents and left in the care of a somewhat dubious character they dub \u201cthe Moth.\u201d Nathaniel and Rachel attend school by day, but at night the house is often filled with the eclectic friends of their caretaker. Then, their mother mysteriously returns\u2014without their father. Their lives take on a surreal quality as they become acquainted with quirky and unexplained characters who pass through their house, and Nathaniel gets involved with some shady operations throughout London. It seems that there are no hard edges to Nathaniel’s existence during this period, and even when the mother reappears it is difficult to pinpoint what is going on with him practically and emotionally.\u201d (2) Ondaatje’s skill turns this somewhat eerie tale into a strangely haunting portrait of a certain time and place and rootlessness. A tale of light and shadow. Highly recommended!<\/p>\n

*<\/strong><\/p>\n

Alas! SC decriminalized section 377 and has been hailed as a historic judgement. It rights the wrong the LGBTQI community faced in the form of ignominy and ostracism as mentioned by Justice Indu Malhotra. He also clearly stated that \u201cMajoritarianism cannot stand against the individual space and rights.\u201d That was a beautiful day. The day that ensured the very notion of love.<\/p>\n

Note :<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. https:\/\/books.google.co.in\/books?id=p6c0O22ZP2gC&pg=PA37&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=4#v=onepage&q&f=false<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. http:\/\/www.librarything.com\/work\/20268305\/reviews\/159770698<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    V.S. Naipaul passed away on 11th August, 2018. His prolific career spanning over half a century has been bombarded with the political observations of his native Trinidad and post-colonial world. This Nobel Prize and Booker Prize winner is an author of nearly 30 books where most of his works are spanned over the efforts of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7545,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[21,9],"tags":[35],"class_list":["post-574","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editors-picks","category-english","tag-35"],"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":442,"url":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=442","url_meta":{"origin":574,"position":0},"title":"Editor’s Picks","author":"\u0b95\u0bcb\u0b95\u0bc1\u0bb2\u0bcd \u0baa\u0bbf\u0bb0\u0b9a\u0bbe\u0ba4\u0bcd","date":"13.08.18","format":false,"excerpt":"The long-list for Man Booker prize 2018 has been announced and it has included a graphic novel, Sabrina by Nick Drnaso, for the first time in the award's history. Graphic novels were never my cup of tea, yet I loved Persepolis and Blue is the warmest color (you know the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Editor's Picks"","block_context":{"text":"Editor's Picks","link":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?cat=21"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WEB_Ondaatje_Nasrallah_Art2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WEB_Ondaatje_Nasrallah_Art2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WEB_Ondaatje_Nasrallah_Art2.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WEB_Ondaatje_Nasrallah_Art2.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/WEB_Ondaatje_Nasrallah_Art2.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2464,"url":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=2464","url_meta":{"origin":574,"position":1},"title":"Editor’s Picks","author":"\u0b95\u0bcb\u0b95\u0bc1\u0bb2\u0bcd \u0baa\u0bbf\u0bb0\u0b9a\u0bbe\u0ba4\u0bcd","date":"20.04.19","format":false,"excerpt":"It has taken 22 years to publish the uncensored edition of Svetlana Alexievich's \"The Unwomanly Face of War\", a chronicle of testimonies of the Soviet women who participated in World War II. Though the book was completed in 1983, the Russian censorship condemned the author's pessimistic approach towards their 'heroic\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Editor's Picks"","block_context":{"text":"Editor's Picks","link":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?cat=21"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/78d02878-6dba-11e7-b9c7-15af748b60d0.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/78d02878-6dba-11e7-b9c7-15af748b60d0.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/78d02878-6dba-11e7-b9c7-15af748b60d0.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/78d02878-6dba-11e7-b9c7-15af748b60d0.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/78d02878-6dba-11e7-b9c7-15af748b60d0.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/78d02878-6dba-11e7-b9c7-15af748b60d0.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1302,"url":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=1302","url_meta":{"origin":574,"position":2},"title":"Editor’s Picks","author":"\u0b95\u0bcb\u0b95\u0bc1\u0bb2\u0bcd \u0baa\u0bbf\u0bb0\u0b9a\u0bbe\u0ba4\u0bcd","date":"15.12.18","format":false,"excerpt":"16th Chennai International Film Festival has commenced on 13th December, 2018. The film schedule looks fleeky and is opinionated to be the best list thus far. 70% of the films screened in IFFK and to be screened in CIFF are deliberately borrowed from the choices opted by IFFI Goan committee.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Editor's Picks"","block_context":{"text":"Editor's Picks","link":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?cat=21"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/abstract-film-festival-poster-color-illustration-62084324-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/abstract-film-festival-poster-color-illustration-62084324-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/abstract-film-festival-poster-color-illustration-62084324-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/abstract-film-festival-poster-color-illustration-62084324-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1921,"url":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=1921","url_meta":{"origin":574,"position":3},"title":"Editor’s Picks","author":"\u0b95\u0bcb\u0b95\u0bc1\u0bb2\u0bcd \u0baa\u0bbf\u0bb0\u0b9a\u0bbe\u0ba4\u0bcd","date":"17.02.19","format":false,"excerpt":"Director Lee Chang-Dong is one of the most reputed Korean Filmmakers of his generation. His last film, Poetry, was released eight years ago. He has made his comeback by adapting a short novel written by Haruki Murakami titled \u2018Barn Burning\u2019. In this Palme d\u2019Or competent, Burning (2018), he offers us\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Editor's Picks"","block_context":{"text":"Editor's Picks","link":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?cat=21"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/carousel1b.bbce62ef.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/carousel1b.bbce62ef.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/carousel1b.bbce62ef.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/carousel1b.bbce62ef.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/carousel1b.bbce62ef.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/carousel1b.bbce62ef.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":636,"url":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=636","url_meta":{"origin":574,"position":4},"title":"Editor’s Picks","author":"\u0b95\u0bcb\u0b95\u0bc1\u0bb2\u0bcd \u0baa\u0bbf\u0bb0\u0b9a\u0bbe\u0ba4\u0bcd","date":"12.10.18","format":false,"excerpt":"A24 films Production Company has produced some timeless classics over the years. Founded in 2012, within a short span of time, it has already racked up a whopping twenty-four Academy award nominations. This independent entertainment company seems to have a strong conviction to produce only quality films that are devoid\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Editor's Picks"","block_context":{"text":"Editor's Picks","link":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?cat=21"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/first-reformed-ethan-hawke_amanda-seyfried1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/first-reformed-ethan-hawke_amanda-seyfried1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tamizhini.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/first-reformed-ethan-hawke_amanda-seyfried1.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1018,"url":"https:\/\/tamizhini.in\/?p=1018","url_meta":{"origin":574,"position":5},"title":"Editor’s Picks","author":"\u0b95\u0bcb\u0b95\u0bc1\u0bb2\u0bcd \u0baa\u0bbf\u0bb0\u0b9a\u0bbe\u0ba4\u0bcd","date":"14.11.18","format":false,"excerpt":"IFFI Goa 2018 commences on 20th November and Israel will be the country of Focus for this year. I went through the titles listed in \u2018Country Focus\u2019 section and neither the titles nor the name of the directors rang a bell. 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