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From: wfi@rti-sel.UUCP (William Ingogly)
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: Samual Delany's Dahlgren
Message-ID: <350@rti-sel.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 13-Aug-85 16:01:43 EDT
Article-I.D.: rti-sel.350
Posted: Tue Aug 13 16:01:43 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 19-Aug-85 07:18:08 EDT
References: <124@nte-scg.UUCP>
Reply-To: wfi@rti-sel.UUCP (William Ingogly)
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Organization: Research Triangle Institute, NC
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[from Tim Ryan] 

>> ...   _Dhalgren_ ends up being a circle -- the main character ends up
>> leaving the city, only to be in the same situation that he was in at
>> the start of the novel.  I don't think there was a "moral" to the
>> story, either.  I saw the story more as a character study.  ...
>> I certainly agree with the original
>> poster and with you that _Dhalgren_ is a bizarre novel.  For a short,
>> classic piece of Delaney, I recommend "Time Considered as a Helix of
>> Semiprecious Stones."  ...

I personally enjoyed reading "Nova" too, although some of the
other people in this group thought it was not one of Delaney's best.
It's been quite a few years since I read it, though so I'm not sure
what my reaction would be on rereading it. I have to admit I've yet 
to make it through "Dhalgren;" I'm currently trying it again (but 
then it took three aborted attempts to get through Thomas  Pynchon's 
"V" :-).

The requirement that the novel contain conflict(s) and a denouement is
(to the best of my recollection) a more or less European literary
tradition. There's a Japanese novel, for example, with a title that
has the word "mountain" in it, that is about an old man's experiences
as he awaits his death (I can't remember the title or author,
unfortunately). The effect is that of a chunk lifted out of the old
man's life; this kind of fiction can seem boring to a Western reader
who expects a novel to build to one or more climaxes before things are
wrapped up at the end (note of course that a lot of 20th century
European and American fiction departs from this model, "Dhalgren"
being one example).

Our definition of Good Story has been conditioned by our experiences
as members of 20th century Western society, and we bring to our
reading of fiction (SF as well as other genres) certain expectations
based on that conditioning that are just as rigid as the Japanese Noh
fan's expectations when he goes to view a play. I suspect the
difficulty a lot of us have with "Dahlgren" is related to the strength
of that conditioning and the difficulty we have in stepping outside
its rigid bounds to appreciate a work of art that was crafted to
approach the human experience in a different way.

I expect I'll end up liking "Dahlgren;" if not, I'll at least
appreciate the craftsmanship that went into it. In any case, I'll work
for the enjoyment (but part of the kick in reading such a book for me is
my response to the demands the author puts on me as a reader).

                     -- Cheers, Bill Ingogly