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From: barryg@sdcrdcf.UUCP (Lee Gold)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: Telling the Plot
Message-ID: <2095@sdcrdcf.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 22-Jun-85 09:48:59 EDT
Article-I.D.: sdcrdcf.2095
Posted: Sat Jun 22 09:48:59 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 25-Jun-85 08:12:10 EDT
References: <2321@topaz.ARPA>
Reply-To: barryg@sdcrdcf.UUCP (Lee Gold)
Organization: System Development Corp. R+D, Santa Monica
Lines: 23
Summary: 

I'm contending that a murder mystery spoiled by finding out that the ballerina
(or butler) did it is merely a piece of third rate writing.  I don't find
THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV spoiled because I now know which brother killed
Fyodor.  I don't even find Sayers' Wimsey books spoiled because I know
Whodunnit.

A book is as much about those "subtleties" (interplay of characterization,
for instance) as about what happens next.  I don't find knowing the plot of
a book spoils it anymore than knowing its theme or mood.  (I just finished
an enjoyable evening of rereading O'Henry stories.  A "surprise" ending
sometimes hits you even harder when you know it's coming.)

Incidentally, I have to confess typically skimming the last page of a new
book before buying it.  (And so do many of my friends.)  I started this
back in the late 60s, as SF books began imitating New Yorker short stories.
I don't like novels that end up along the lines of "He was now Emperor of
the Galaxy, but what did it all mean?  Hadn't he been happier as a simple
zort-herd.  Esmerella had thought so, and now she was dead.  Phargamerp
drank some more rooq and fell asleep."  Since publishers aren't willing to
flag these books as "Pretentious/Depressing" on the bacover, the only
protection seems to be checking them out for myself ahead of time.

--Lee Gold