The situation seems a little confusing. I just spent about 5
minutes doing Google searches on various combinations of
"Graham Green",
"Brighton Rock" and "entertainment". I found several
references to
"Brighton Rock: An Entertainment". I also found the following
quote from a book called "A Study in Greene: Graham Greene
and the Art of the Novel" by Bernard Bergonzi: "Greene
originally thought that
"Brighton Rock" would be an 'entertainment'. He changed his
mind before the book was published, though not in time to
stop the first American edition from being so described on
the title page."
The sentence that one is also of interest: "Its roots in
popular fiction are evident, both the classical detective
story and the tough, fast-moving thriller on the American
model."
I don't know anything about Bernard Bergonzi, though the name
seems vaguely familiar.
Stephen
On Nov 5, 2007 2:33 PM, Nathan Cain <
IndieCrime@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
> I don't own a copy either, but I'm certain I
remember the title page
> carrying the label "an entertainment." Greene's
wikipedia entry says he
> considered his thrillers as entertainments, and
Brighton Rock certaintly
> falls into that category.
>
>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Greene#Novels_and_other_works
>
> An entry on biblio.com (which is almost exactly the
same as the wikipedia
> entry) explicitly references Brighton Rock as an
entertainment:
>
> "His fiction was originally divided into two genres:
thrillers or
> mystery/suspense books, such as Brighton
> Rock<
http://www.biblio.com/search.php?tid=&auid=&stage=1&author=greene&title=rock>,
> that he himself cast as "entertainments" but which
often included a notable
> philosophical edge, and literary works such as The
Power and the
> Glory<
http://www.biblio.com/search.php?tid=&auid=&stage=1&author=greene&title=power>,
> on which his reputation was thought to be
based."
>
>
> On 11/5/07, Stephen Burridge <
stephen.burridge@gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > I don't have a copy of "Brighton Rock", but I
read a library copy a
> > few months ago, and I don't think it was one of
the books Greene
> > called "entertainments".
> >
> > Stephen
> >
> > On Nov 5, 2007 1:54 PM, Nathan Cain
> <
IndieCrime@gmail.com<IndieCrime%40gmail.com>>
>
> > wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > I going to have to say that I'm confused
about Brighton Rock being
> > labeled
> > > an "entertainment" since it dealt with
some pretty weighty themes. I'm
> > > really not sure what Greene meant by his
use of that term, because it
> > > implies that the works he considered
serious were not meant to be
> > > entertaining. Maybe it was the Catholic in
him, trying to separate the
> > > earthly from the spiritual, or something
like that. Perhaps there was a
> > > conviction that fun things shouldn't be
serious and serious things can't
> > > possibly be fun.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On 11/5/07,
scatalogic@aol.com <scatalogic%40aol.com>
<
>
>
> >
scatalogic@aol.com <scatalogic%40aol.com>>
wrote:
> > > >
> > > > "I find a special intensity in his
writing, regardless of
> > > > topic. Greene may be much
undervalued, still, by the literary
> > > > establishment."
> > > >
> > > > Greene's interesting in terms of this
discussion isn't he, in that he
> > did
> > > > split his works into the
'entertainments' and serious literature and
> > the
> > > > entertainments tend to be the works
that come under Rara Avis's large
> > and
> > > > flexible
> > > > umbrella. I used to be quite annoyed
with Greene for doing this (a
> > > > particularly stupid and pointless
rage I'll freely admit - I think I
> > was
> > > > annoyed he
> > > > didn't consider Brighton Rock serious
when I did!) and I've just been
> > > > having a
> > > > quick flick through the Norman Sherry
biography (though I only have
> > the
> > > > first
> > > > volume, to 1939, here) to see if I
can find anything on this division,
> > > > which
> > > > I can't, beyond a brief snippet that
Brighton Rock was intended as a
> > > > thriller
> > > > and "an entertainment" - I'd be
grateful if anyone does know.
> > > >
> > > > I think Greene is magnificent and
love his 'entertainments' probably
> > more
> > > > than his 'serious' works,
particularly Brighton Rock, Our Man in
> > Havana
> > > > and A
> > > > Gun For Sale, I think you'll love
Ministry of Fear: an entertainment,
> > too
> > > > (what a magnificent title) and it is
certainly noir - although Graham
> > > > Greene
> > > > makes me think of a particularly
English greyness. I've never seen the
> > > > Fritz Lang
> > > > film, but scan the TV schedules for a
showing.
> > > >
> > > > Is he undervalued? I hope not and in
my brief searchings I've just
> > found
> > > > Stamboul Train has been voted as the
best novel of 1932 by a panel at
> > the
> > > > Cheltenham Literary Festival
(Britain's biggest) given the odd task of
> > > > awarding
> > > > Booker prizes for pre-Booker years or
something similar.
> > > >
> > > > I've always thought of Chandler being
similar in sensibility to Greene
> > and
> > > >
> > > > vice versa, but just found this quote
from Big Uncle Raymond:
> > > > "Am reading The Heart of the Matter,
a chapter at a time. It has
> > > > everything
> > > > in it that makes literature -- except
verve, wit, gusto, music, and
> > > > magic...
> > > > There is more life in the worst
chapter Dickens or Thackeray ever
> > wrote,
> > > > and
> > > > they wrote some pretty awful
chapters."
> > > >
> > > > Cheers all, Colin.
> > > >
> > > > Join my Church:
www.myspace.com/thereverendspadgedooley
> > > >
> > > > [Non-text portions of this message
have been removed]
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > > [Non-text portions of this message have
been removed]
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
removed]
>
>
>
>
>
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 05 Nov 2007 EST