Re: RARA-AVIS: Re: The definition of literature

From: Nathan Cain ( IndieCrime@gmail.com)
Date: 05 Nov 2007


The edition I read was a very old hardcover and may well have been the first American edition. Interesting. I wonder what prompted him to change his mind.

On 11/5/07, Stephen Burridge < stephen.burridge@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> 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<IndieCrime%40gmail.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<stephen.burridge%40gmail.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><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%40aol.com> <
> >
> >
> > > scatalogic@aol.com <scatalogic%40aol.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]
> >
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> >
> >
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>
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>

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