Yeah, his loathsomeness has to be very deliberately crafted, doesn’t it? As I noted on the “Funny” thread, I found it interesting that Shrike is described as “joking” when what he really is doing is bullying. His intentions seem to be consistently brutal.
I felt like he was an exaggerated (or maybe not so exaggerated) of a certain kind of guy from that era — mouthy, insensitive, cynical, selfish, clueless about women. He seemed somewhat educated, but he used his intelligence like a cudgel to brutalize others. Life was one long, mean-spirited practical joke to him, but there was nothing humorous about it, as DW noted.
If you just read the letters, you might think that West is being a snob and putting down the poor who can barely write and can’t get their act together. But then we have Shrike to show that schooling in itself doesn’t build character. Shrike perpetually observes, but then mocks the world. Betty, on the other hand, keeps her head down and works in earnest. Interesting contrast between the two.
Yeah, his loathsomeness has to be very deliberately crafted, doesn’t it? As I noted on the “Funny” thread, I found it interesting that Shrike is described as “joking” when what he really is doing is bullying. His intentions seem to be consistently brutal.
ReplyDeleteI felt like he was an exaggerated (or maybe not so exaggerated) of a certain kind of guy from that era — mouthy, insensitive, cynical, selfish, clueless about women. He seemed somewhat educated, but he used his intelligence like a cudgel to brutalize others. Life was one long, mean-spirited practical joke to him, but there was nothing humorous about it, as DW noted.
ReplyDeleteIf you just read the letters, you might think that West is being a snob and putting down the poor who can barely write and can’t get their act together. But then we have Shrike to show that schooling in itself doesn’t build character. Shrike perpetually observes, but then mocks the world. Betty, on the other hand, keeps her head down and works in earnest. Interesting contrast between the two.
ReplyDelete