Board: /lit/
"/lit/ - Literature" is 4chan's board for the discussion of books, authors, and literature.
/lit/ is for the discussion of literature, specifically books (fiction & non-fiction), short stories, poetry, creative writing, etc. If you want to discuss history, religion, or the humanities, go to /his/. If you want to discuss politics, go to /pol/. Philosophical discussion can go on either /lit/ or /his/, but those discussions of philosophy that take place on /lit/ should be based around specific philosophical works to which posters can refer.
Check the wiki, the catalog, and the archive before asking for advice or recommendations, and please refrain from starting new threads for questions that can be answered by a search engine.
/lit/ is a slow board! Please take the time to read what others have written, and try to make thoughtful, well-written posts of your own. Bump replies are not necessary.
Looking for books online? Check here:
Guide to #bookz
https://www.geocities.ws/prissy_90/Media/Texts/BookzHelp19kb.htm
Recommended Literature
https://lit.trainroll.xyz/wiki/Recommended_Reading I'll start:
>be me
>11yearsaNEET.xml
>buy 6-7 secondhand books weekly with NEETbux
>read nightly while in bed
>only read introductions
>when I get to chapter 1(One/I) I add it in a bookcase for aesthetic purposes
>finish a six pack in ~45 minutes and fall asleep watching hockey or whatever is on TCM
>when I save up enough gubergibs and go on vacation I take all the books that I liked from the introduction alone and read them all over 2 weeks between coke benders and whore visits
>attempt to explain high literature to said whores between coke-fueled rounds of shagging
>usually goes exactly how you'd think that would go
>kept in touch with one from Havana though and she asks me questions about various spanish novella
they're kinda retarded questions based in egoism but they've gotten a tad more enlightened over time
what about you guys though? Are there any other thinkers that explore the moral values held by people from previous/different eras or civilizations? "Bridge Troll" edition
Previous: >>24101241
/wg/ AUTHORS & FLASH FICTION: https://pastebin.com/ruwQj7xQ
RESOURCES & RECOMMENDATIONS: https://pastebin.com/nFxdiQvC
Please limit excerpts to one post.
Give advice as much as you receive it to the best of your ability.
Follow prompts made below and discuss written works for practice; contribute and you shall receive.
If you have not performed a cursory proofread, do not expect to be treated kindly. Edit your work for spelling and grammar before posting.
Violent shills, relentless shill-spammers, and grounds keeping prose, should be ignored and reported.
(And maybe double-space your WIPs to allow edits if you want 'em.)
Simple guides on writing:
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHdzv1NfZRM
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whPnobbck9s
>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAKcbvioxFk
Thread theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJ7UFoUgrRc Is he autistic? What's wrong with him? what are you all reading? Let's say I write some good shit, 200 pages long. Nice history, have people wanting more... Etc etc.
In what ways could I make money from it? Donations? Sales on amazon or something?
I have no experience in the "market" of books/ebooks and I need money De Alagheriis editio
>τὸ πρότερον νῆμα·
>>24045090
>Μέγα τὸ Ἑλληνιστί/Ῥωμαϊστί·
https://mega dot nz/folder/FHdXFZ4A#mWgaKv4SeG-2Rx7iMZ6EKw
>Mέγα τὸ ANE·
https://mega dot nz/folder/YfsmFRxA#pz58Q6aTDkwn9Ot6G68NRg
>Work in progress FAQ
https://rentry dot co/n8nrko
All Classical languages are welcome. mortality edition
ASOIAF wiki: https://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Main_Page
Blog: https://georgerrmartin.com/notablog/
Old blog: https://grrm.livejournal.com/
So Spake Martin (interviews): https://westeros.org/citadel/ssm/
Book search: https://asearchoficeandfire.com/
SSM search: https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=006888510641072775866:vm4n1jrzsdy
General search: http://searcherr.work/
TWOW samples: https://archive.org/details/411440566-the-winds-of-winter-released-chapters
old: >>24107943 Blood Beast is the fifth book in Darren Shan's The Demonata series and was released 4th June 2007. It is narrated by Grubbs Grady, the narrator of Lord Loss and Slawter and the plot is part of a two part story, along with book six.
Once again we return to our most modern Magician & Assistant Duo, that being Grubbs and Dervish. Let’s see what their future holds for them.
Previous Thread:
>>24078640
Lord Loss I:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24004762/
Lord Loss II:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24017568/
Demon Thief I:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24021566/
Demon Thief II:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24032763/
Slawter I:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24044135/
Slawter II:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24054879/
Bec I:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24070921/
Bec II:
https://www.archived.moe/lit/thread/24078640/ Anyone here read this? Haven't gotten round to it yet but I've been getting into some economic history of thought and I started reading "The Legacy of Piero Sraffa Volume 1". As a former Marxist economist I'm slightly intrigued by a revisitation to the Classicals, most notably Ricardo, because I understand the general thrust of the labour theory of value, however I am also partial to the Austrian criticisms - the criticism I think it most valid is the heterogeneity of labour argument from Bohm-Bewark. However, it seems the same problem can be applied to Neoclassical economists who take the homogeneity of capital to be given (and indeed this seems to be the main thrust of Sraffa's critique during the Cambridge Capital Controversies).
Anyway, let's have an econ thread with some more high level ideas than the 50th Marxism post A century from now, this will be the accepted opinion among literati. There is nothing Lovecraft does which R.L. Stine does not do much better.
Lovecraft was a turgid and clumsy prose writer. Stine's prose is smooth and punchy. Stine's imaginative universe (Slappy the evil dummy, Monster Blood, The Haunted Mask, HorrorLand, not to mention series such as Fear Street) easily surpasses the lame Cthluhu mythos. Lovecraft is mostly known for his dull tentacle monsters (which other writers/artists did far more interesting things with). Stine has a whole pantheon of monsters to offer. As more children who grew up with Stine come of age and create works inspired by him, you can bet that Stine will receive the veneration he is due. favorite books about sad japanese women going through their boring sad lives? Has anyone tried reconstructing Greco-Buddhism as an actual religion? Sounds like a fun LARP Bros.... I think i'm in love.... Someone has sent Luigi Mangione Infinite Jest.
It's going to be wild seeing Wallace's work become reactionary now. Also, why is Eschaton such a popular chapter? I thought it was good and all, but if I hadn’t been told about Eschaton a half dozen times prior to reading the book I’m not sure I would have paid much attention to that chapter at all.
Also, what’s the point of the Raquel Welch anecdote? Is DFW just showing how far AA (he?) will go in saying that addiction should not be blamed on external circumstances? I can’t imagine writing a story like that and having people that I know in real life read it.
Also, how on earth is Orin unable to tell that Steeply is a man, especially given the comic descriptions of Steeply’s disguise from early on in the book. Orin isn’t as smart as Hal, but he’s obviously not retarded. If you like reading for prose then your thoughts on works of philosophy are questionable at best because you're more susceptible to being swayed by sophistry. You're the intellectual counterpart to the consoomer, devouring content simply because it has been given a certain form, with little regard as to the internal coherence of any body of work. Nietzscheans look at this asshole and think "Fuck yeah." Hey anons,
Im looking for university texbooks from the USSR from 1950-1980. I am specifically looking for textbooks about building socialism, local power, socialist institutions, organizing, revolution ect
any language or edition is fine Is there a good secondary literature for Spengler's "The Decline of the West"? Just finished this, my first Houellebecq novel. Brutal book. Houellebecq creates a bleak but accurate description of what the rotting corpse of the West looks like post-sexual revolution. The ending was a bit strange, I'm not sure what I think about it yet. The only major drawback is that at times it's way too pornographic; that could've been completely left out and it wouldn't have hampered the story. discussing philosophy here or anywhere becomes unbearable after reading Kant. I'm not a Kantian and disagree with most of what he said but he was pretty much objectively correct about the antinomies and the transcendental illusion. Yet you see anons here write thousands of words on some gay neoneoplatonic or Aristotelian metaphysics that they think is super profound completely unaware that it's all based on a very obvious logical flaw that Kant pointed out hundreds of years ago. Muslims and Christians are even worse, you literally can't have a religious discussion of any kind after reading Kant because it's just so embarrassing to have to endure the arguments people come up with. 
Can any well-read anons link to some legitimate sources describing times in history wherein pornography has actually been used as a psychological weapon, especially during wartime? I haven't read E. Michael Jones' "Libido Dominandi: Sexual Liberation and Political Control", but I am familiar with this oft-shared passage:
>At 4:30 pm on March 30, 2002, Israeli military forces took over Palestinian TV stations when they occupied Ramallah in the West Bank. Shortly after occupying the Al-Watan TV station, the Israeli forces began broadcasting pornography over its transmitter. The Palestinians were outraged and bewildered. “Why in the world,” one woman wondered, “should one do such a thing?” The answer is simple. The Israelis broadcast pornography because pornography is a weapon in the arsenal of psychological warfare.
My thinking is that if it were such an effective weapon, there would be more recorded instances of pornography having been used as such.
I was watching a documentary recently ("Not a Love Story", 1981) wherein this batty feminist chick shares a story about Nazi Germany distributing pornographic material in Poland in order to isolate people, and I was hoping to find a source for that specific anecdote, if there is one. Why does he spend 60% on filler and then rush the good stuff? This shit is so boring. When does it get good? Alice Edition
>Recommended reading charts. (Look here before asking for vague recs)
https://mega.nz/folder/kj5hWI6J#0cyw0-ZdvZKOJW3fPI6RfQ/folder/4rAmSZxb
>Archive
https://warosu.org/lit/?task=search2&search_subject=sffg
>Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1029811-sffg
Previous >>24091152 >character rolls over and lets everyone rape his asshole for no reason Faustian Caesarism will take the form of AGI Ok so what do you guys ACTUALLY think of these stupid books? This is ass, can’t even finish it with recent events in the west showing us that no matter how much citizens participate in politics, it doesn't matter because the ruling class is sucking up all the wealth in society, resulting in a rapid decline of the standard of living
was fukuyama was wrong about the human desire for recognition being the main driver for achieving the "best" political system? I noticed that Bibles are extremely cheap relative to the cost of other books.
Textbooks range from $60-$100s and you can get a good Bible for as low as 4$ paperback, 20$ hardcover.
It really makes me think how corrupt the publishing industry must be to charge so much money to poor college students trying to get a better education.
On top of that, they include these "webassign" codes inside the textbooks which are required to take the courses, so that you can't just buy an old textbook and have to buy the new one every year.
This is a form of warfare. What books do I need to read to get a steady background in phenomenology?
>inb4 start with da greeks
Which books? I have already read Aristotle's On the Soul. Books on Traditional Catholicism mixed with Fascism/Theocracy, racism, anti-islam, anti-judaism, anti-buddhist, anti-hindu, anti-democracy, anti-liberalism, anti-communism, anti-capitalism, anti-usury, anti-abortion, and anti-sino sentiment being the only valid form of governance Is believing in nothing after death a failure of imagination? What the fuck happened to Stormlight archive? This was unironically the worst book I've read in the last decade What's so special about this shit?
What's the hype about? What are some books that involve a lot of smoking or are centered around the act? Specifically cigarettes. (Hard mode: no noir)
Also post what you smoke. I just got a pack of some Chinese cigarettes and they were good. Tasted like plums. I've heard it's awful for learning about business, but good as an autobiography. Anything I should know going in? I'm not really a politics guy but a couple of my friends said I should read it to provide context for current events.
I've also been reading some real business books as well, but I'm running short on non-grifter ones... We haven't had a stack thread in a hot minute. Post those stacks!!
Everything here with the exception of the Gene Wolfe I received or bought myself for Christmas. Finished Bloodlands already and currently reading Lords of Chaos (I'm also reading Shadow & Claw but haven't touched it for a few weeks, I'm kinda bored of it t b h). remember to visit your local library!
put those tax dollars to use and check something out!
attend an event or listen to a presentation!
ask your local librarian to do an interlibrary loan if they do not have the book you want!
t. your local library worker
p.s. - ignore the homeless addicts, please Why'd he snub Schmitt for getting involved with the Nazis when he himself wore a nazi uniform and waged a war on behalf of the Nazis? >Jeremias Glaser an executioner living in 17th century Germany
>What makes him special is his tendency to write down even the most mundane aspects of his day to day live from the amount of money he spend for his basic needs to the executions he has to perfom as well as other day to day activities of his life
>Thanks to this diary we have been given the opportunity to get a never before glimpse into the lifes of the ordinary people of the time
thoughts?
Anyone besides me that read it? >Compared to Nazgul
>Can be killed by arrows and bound by chains Jordan Peterson. The Author and his work. Discuss. Why haven't you read the Richard Sharpe novels yet anon? Is life fundamentally tragic? Is this actually worth reading or is it just a meme? Is it really the best Bible out there? Or should I stick with the KJV like a good goy? Your original idea that’s going to make it big? Let me guess - its a fantasy. I read but I get lost every two parragraphs fuck how do I fix this? Bear in mind my IQ is low but not retard tier >doesn't even have an article on Freud in your path What would Tolkien think of Hawk Tuah and Skibidi Toilet if he were alive today? >Neil Gaiman
Rapist
>John Norman
Not rapist
Everyone should apologize right now. Should this be read before 2666? Also, how would you describe it? Just write zombie books. It's fun and easy and pays well. >Great Man Theory
Hogwash.
And even if it was true, there'll never be another "great man of history" again. He was a card carrying member of NAMBLA. He never apologized for anything. SFWA leftists still run defense for him. Just marathoned the first chapter. What did I think/what am I in for? 
Trad Cath General: Spirituality Edition. The two main spiritual practises of the Catholic church are the particular examen and mental prayer. They are the pillars of the Church for cultivating virtue, overcoming sin, and deepening our union with God.
This thread is for discussing their purpose, how to practice them, and sharing sources for further reading. But other topics can be discussed and any questions about the Catholic faith you may have can be discussed.
>What is the Particular Examen?
The particular examen (or examination of conscience) is a focused, daily practice to root out specific vices and cultivate virtues. Unlike the general examen, which reviews your day as a whole, this zeroes in on a single fault or weakness.
>How to Practice It:
Morning Resolution: Pick one fault you want to address (e.g., impatience). Resolve to be vigilant in avoiding it and cultivating the opposite virtue.
Midday Review: Reflect briefly on your morning. Did you fall? How often? Renew your resolution.
Evening Reflection: Look back over your entire day. Record successes and failures. Renew your commitment for tomorrow.
Tips: Start with one specific, tangible fault. Keep it realistic and attainable. Use a notebook to track progress—it helps you stay accountable.
>What is Mental Prayer?
Mental prayer is a form of interior conversation with God. It’s not about reciting set prayers but engaging in personal dialogue, meditation, and contemplation. St. Teresa of Ávila calls it “a friendly conversation with Him Who we know loves us.”
>How to Practice It:
Preparation: Find a quiet space. Begin with an act of presence of God (e.g., “God is here”).
Meditation: Reflect on Scripture, a spiritual book, or a scene from Christ’s life. Use your imagination to place yourself there.
Dialogue: Speak to God about what comes to your mind and heart. Listen for His response in silence.
Resolution: End by making a concrete resolution inspired by your meditation.
Tips: Start small—10 to 15 minutes a day is enough for beginners. Consistency matters more than duration.
Sources to read further about Particular examen and Mental prayer
Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales
The Spiritual Exercises by St. Ignatius of Loyola
Conversation with Christ by Peter T. Rohrbach
The Way of Mental Prayer by Dom Vitalis Lehodey
Fr. Chad Ripperger’s talks on spiritual practices (YouTube)
Ave Maria It's that time again.
Post, rate, critique, discuss. ITT books you read solely for the prose style. Anon, what novels do you know that are talking about gambling? What other good reads like this? I was talking with a coworker and the topic of hobbies came up, I mentioned that I liked reading and he looked at me weird, he chuckled and said reading books is a girl thing, I was too confused to even say anything else, what causes this mindset? Why did he relegate himself to being a censor in ww2? Pen pusher propagandist is a far cry from a war hero that got Pour le Merite in ww1.
Afraid that his good luck streak isn't gonna hold? The eastern front was right there! Look at him the picture of virility. we post characters we aspire to be like. My rosh hashana's resolution is to read 100 books that contain the word n*****. Could you help me out? What are some books that contain the word n*****? I need 100 Is Houellebecq's writing misogynistic and problematic? When was the last time you read a book that was released not more than a decade ago?
I'm genuinely asking this because all I ever see you people talk about are the same several books that's more than decades old. >Crime & Punishment - Fyodor Dostoevsky
>The Metamorphosis - Franz Kafka
>The Art Spirit - Robert Henri
>Name Above The Title - Frank Capra
>Anonymous Photographs - Robert Flynn Johnson
rate 
Life, Death, & the Afterlife Edition
Welcome to /wbg/, the official thread for the discussion and development of fictional worlds and settings.
Here is where you can share the details of your created worlds such as lore, factions, magic systems, ecosystems and more. You can also post maps for your settings, as well as any relevant art, either created by you or used as inspiration for your work. Please remember that dialogue is what keeps the thread alive, so don't be afraid of giving someone feedback!
FAQ:
>What is worldbuilding?
Worldbuilding is the process of creating entire fictional worlds from scratch, all while considering the logistics of these worlds to make them as believable as possible. Worldbuilding asks questions about the setting of a world, and then answers them, often in great detail. Most people use it as a means of creating a setting or the scenery for a story.
>"Isn't there a Worldbuilding general in >>>/tg/ already?"
Yes, there is. However, that general is focused on the creation of fictional worlds for the intended purpose of playing TTRPG campaigns. Here you can discuss worldbuilding projects that are not meant to be used for a roleplaying setting, but for novels, videogames, or any other kind of creative project.
>"Can I discuss the setting of my campaign here, though?"
If you want to, but it would probably be better to discuss it on >>>/tg/ . We don't allow the discussion of TTRPG mechanics, however. If you want to discuss stats or which D&D edition is best, this is not the place.
>"Can I talk about an existing fictional setting that is not mine?"
Yes, of course you can!
>"Does worldbuilding need to be about fantasy and elves?"
Worldbuilding, as already stated above, and contrary to what many believe, does not inherently imply blatantly copying Tolkien. In fact, there are many science-fiction setting out there, and even entire alternative history settings which do not possess supernatural elements at all. Any kind of science fiction book has an implied setting at least, which involves a certain degree of worldbuilding put into it.
Last Thread: >>24029505 
>But orgies and the companionship of women were impossible for me. Not even a friend. I saw myself before an angry mob, facing a firing squad, weeping because of an unhappiness they couldn’t even understand, and pardoning — like Joan of Arc! — “Priests, professors, doctors, you are making a mistake, handing me over to the law. I have never been one of you, never been a Christian; I belong to the race that sang on the scaffold; I do not understand your laws; I have no moral sense; I’m a brute beast; you are making a mistake . . .”
>Yes, my eyes are closed to your light. I am an animal, a nigger. But I can be saved. You are fake niggers, maniacs, wild men, misers, all of you. Businessman, you’re a nigger; judge, you’re a nigger; general, you’re a nigger; emperor, you lousy bastard, you’re a nigger: you’ve drunk bootleg liquor from Satan’s still. This nation is inspired by fever and cancer. Invalids and old men are so respectable they want to be boiled. The smart thing to do is leave this continent where madness prowls, out to supply hostages for these monsters. I will enter the true kingdom of the sons of Ham. How historically accurate is this shit? Did people ever really live like this or is it purely an idealized antiquity fantasy? For example the huge-ass brothel-cum-temple with hundreds of permanent whore/priestess residents, did something like that exist? Apologies if this should rather go on /his/ but I'm asking about this specific book, after all. >literally the greatest and most influential novelist of all time
>almost completely forgotten in the 21st century
How did this happen? What could possibly account for it? I thought it'd be interesting to make a thread on Jungian literature and his concepts, mainly concerning mythology and dream analysis.
I saw in Wasoru that some threads were made on this topic and were deleted by mods, but they were basically threads where people shared their dreams and the OP, a tripfag, answered with interpretations, like a tarot or astrology thread on /x/. So I think if we stick with the literary discussion of his works and concepts we'll be fine.
What books have you read on the topic of archetypes, mythology and dream analysis?
What dreams (yours or from another) did you find interesting and would like to share (with your own attempt at interpretation)?
Do you think dream analysis is taken seriously in academia and by people in general?
What are some interesting myths you have encountered?
Are there any worthwhile modern Jungian writers? I find it difficult to approach any significant post-war western philosopher/social theorist who held a prominent position in academia for many years without thinking that they're glowies. Richard Rorty is a prime example of this. So is Dennett. has anyone actually read this guy's books?
are there any really good ones? Philosophy
>Watts, Fraser
>Soskice, Janet
>Hebblethwaite, Brian
>Ford, David
>Milbank, John
Church History
>Thompson, David
>Rex, Richard
>Brooks, Peter Newman
>Duffy, Eamon
>Bammel, Caroline
Honorable Mention
>Young, Frances Margaret Listen, fucker, you probably couldn't even write a crime thriller so give up on trying to write the next Ulysses. Why does he get called an unreliable narrator? I read the books and he seemed pretty reliable to me. You are affirming life, aren't you anon? Who do you prefer? Why? Who fills out the role of hero better? Who would you rather serve? Any comparisons between them welcome. Any comparisons between either work welcome (Including Odyssey) I judge books by their cover, and it has literally never failed me.
Cool cover = good book
Lame cover = bad book Guys, how do I cope with the fact that there's no gym for my face? 
>Must a man of genius be fat or thin? Flesh or fish?
>In truth, I could not imagine a man of genius otherwise: he must be thin. And I would not have accepted a lyric poet weighing more than ninety-nine pounds.
>At the time, I was firmly convinced that genius had to be as thin as a dried herring. I had settled on this with even greater certainty because I myself was not particularly fat at the time.
>Since then, by comparing my theory with reality, I realized that I had been grossly mistaken, as always happens, and I came to formulate this axiom, perfectly antithetical to my first: A man of genius must be fat.
>Yes, the man of genius in the nineteenth century is obese and becomes as large as he is tall: the breed of the thin writer has disappeared, it has become as rare as the breed of King Charles's little dogs. Poets no longer trample the city's mud with soleless boots.
>Men of genius no longer dine as they once did on the smell of rotisseries; they take their meals at tables and on plates that are their own, along with those who serve them. Oh, fabulous progress! Oh, unexpected fortune!
Will the literary genius of the 21st century also be obese? Powerful. As a white male (I know, I know...) I really learned a lot about the hardships Black folx STILL have to face. No, I’m not a troon, but I’ve dating a fairly patrician lass and all of her interests including literature are hyper masculine. I recommended her Storm of Steel and Sun and Steel and she devoured them each in one day. But lately it’s been feeling like I am dating a man in a woman’s body, especially since she tries act macho all the time. Slammed her fingers in a door by accident once and she didn’t flinch or anything even though there were huge marks and I asked if she was okay and she said “only cowards fear pain.” Yeah she is younger than I am.
tl;dr need books that will cultivate femininity in a lesbian coded woman I want to learn more about the natural state of humans (pre-civilization, hunter & gatherer tribes) and what we were like before the satanic forces of agriculture. I want to understand how humans tend to act in nature because I feel it'd give me better understanding of myself. What books are good for this? I already read "Civilized to Death" by Christopher Ryan and I'm looking for something similar. Thoughts on Ian Fleming and the original James Bond novels? Moonraker is my favorite. 
I have challenged myself to read all of Melville's major works this year, and I just finished his first novel, Typee. At the time I read this, I had only ever read Bartleby, Benito Cereno, and part of the Confidence Man, which filtered me. The prose in Typee is very pleasant, and I think that's what kept me reading, because as a novel, it kinda sucks. The story just straight up drops off after the first fifteen or so chapters and the book turns into a memoir/travelogue. Of course novels aren't just stories, but still, a good story is required for a good novel. However, Typee does deliver on the promise of its subtitle. This isn't just a peep, it's a complete look. Melville's description of Typee culture is thorough, and his musings on colonial relationships are radical. Anyone else here read it before?
This is my schedule in case you'd like to join me:
Typee: A Peep at Polynesian Life (1846). 368 pages. Will read between Jan 1st and Jan 19th.
Omoo: A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas (1847). 374 pages. Will read between Jan 20th and Feb 19th.
Mardi: and a Voyage Thither (1849). 729 pages. Will read between Feb 20th and Apr 5th.
Redburn: His First Voyage (1849). 443 pages. Will read between Apr 6th and May 6th.
White-Jacket; or, the World in a Man-of-War (1850). 336 pages. Will read between May 7th and May 29th.
Moby-Dick; or, the Whale (1851). 710 pages. Will read between May 30th and July 17th.
Pierre; or, the Ambiguities (1852). 495 pages. Will read between July 18th and Aug 19th.
"Bartleby, the Scrivener" (1853). 48 pages. Will read between Aug 20th and Aug 22nd.
I and My Chimney (1856). 28 pages. Will read between Aug 23rd and Aug 24th..
The Confidence-Man: His Masquerade (1857). 335 pages. Will read between Aug 25th and Sep 14th.
Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War (1866). 356 pages. Will read between Sep 15th and Oct 9th.
Clarel: A Poem and Pilgrimage in the Holy Land (1876). 500 pages. Will read between Oct 10th and Nov 30th.
Timoleon (1891). 70 pages. Will read between Dec 1st and Dec 12th.
Billy Budd, Sailor (1924). 166 pages. Will read between Dec 13th and Dec 24th. What’s the literary equivalent of The Sopranos? How to be a good writer according to /lit/
>James kissed Laura
Shit writing
1. Intertextuality
>Orpheus kissed Juliet
Woah now it is in conversation with other texts. Now it is deep.
2. Metafiction
>He wrote the next line: "Orpheus kissed Juliet"
Holy breaking the 4th wall
3. Magical realism
>He wrote the next line: "Orpheus kissed Juliet and her eyes turned into gold coins"
Now we are fictioning
4. Black humor and irony
>He wrote the next line: "Orpheus kissed Juliet and her eyes turned into gold coins. She would need them to pay her ophthalmologist."
I dont want to deal with real emotion lol
5. Nonlinear fragmentation
>Her eyes turned into gold coins. She would need them to pay her ophthalmologist. Baseball is the true American sport. He wrote the next line: "Orpheus started to kiss Juliet."
This is now a masterpiece. It is very difficult to do these simple tricks and werdpleigh. >The only options in life are to be a hedonistic hylic gigacoomer normalfag Mammon worshipper or a meta-ironic contrarian altruism fetishist masking what is essentially the Reformed Whore stereotype
>Even people who "renounce" either still essentially fall into the latter group just based off raw statistics and human nature
Is there any literature that addresses this? >nice guys finish last, or something 
I'm starting to get really fucking annoyed of the 'translator's burden' which feels forced upon me with suffocating condescension. Why is it that translations must be judged not by careful comparison between the source to the result, with accuracy and faithfulness and so on placed above all else, but by how well it reads independently? Why is it the translator's burden to improve upon the source text or else be lambasted for it, and yes, I do say improved?
It's staggering. Even those who profess a dedication to accurate translations end up compromising this belief at all times and demanding the translator improve the text. Let's say an author is a stupid fuck who uses the same adjective 500 times. I, as a humble and logical translator, elect to translate the adjected in the same way 500 times. The original author did it, why wouldn't I? Well apparently that's lazy, apparently that reads poorly, apparently it's my fucking sacred duty to do a better job than the original fucking author and come up with 100 creative, varied ways of expressing the singular idea which the hack author repeated ad nauseum. Or let's say the author just gave the fuck up on prose, they decided that curt, dry descriptions will do for their book. Fair enough, let me just translate them into curt, dry lines of English and- OOOOOOH no wait I forgot that makes me fucking lazy and bad, I need to write evocative and gripping prose, if I write any dry lines at all then I am giving the original author a bad fucking name because noooo way would myyyy favorite author have FUCKING DOGSHIT WRITING.
The translator's burden! It fucking sucks. We are expected to simultaneously be accurate but also produce the 'best possible form' of a novel such that audiences have maximal enjoyment. Original work is dogshit in some way? Too fucking bad, if your translation recreates this dogshitness audiences will decry it and blame you for the original's failings. They prefer blissful ignorance. Even the culture warriors who pick apart Japanese anime and games, in reality, end up complaining when translations recreate the poor quality of the originals. The reality that people prioritize their personal enjoyment over abstract accuracy is eternal - just avoid contemporary memes and slang. So the translator's burden is to not only be a good translator, but to be an excellent writer; the BEST writer, one who surpasses even the writer they are translator. Because a flaw in the original language is to be expected in art, but a flaw in a translation is the translator's fault.
Perhaps I should count my blessings I even have a job to complain about considering AI will be taking it soon, but what sickens me most is that AI is going to be doing this same thing. If the AI produces dry prose which repeats the same adjective 500 times it'll be slapped and told to try again, so it will. The AI will dupe everyone just the people want. Ignorance is bliss I guess. >write a bunch of unintelligible gibberish about some degenerate family in the south
>"OMG he's le heckin genius!!!"
What the fuck is this bullshit So, if the syllogism is an anatomy of a proper explanation... then we have a subject, the explanadum (predicate), and the explanans (middle term). But doesn't that leave the major term unaccounted for?
>Major: All animals are mortal.
>Minor: All men are animals
>Conclusion All men are mortal.
>subject: men
>explanadum: mortal
>explanans: animals
Also, I just find the terminology to be strange. I know that the explananda is supposed to inhere in the subject. But if "explanadum" is the thing to be explained... wouldn't the subject be taking that role? The point is to describe the subject, no?
I guess I'm looking at the syllogism and seeing an endless sky and bottomless pit. POST A PASSAGE FROM THE BOOK YOU'RE READING AND OTHER ANONS HAVE TO GUESS WHAT IT IS
OK I WILL START. CAN YOU GUESS WHAT THIS IS? 
Linguistics
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23963282
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23963580
Joyce
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23967383
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23967536
Heidegger
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23970957
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23971190
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23971395
Shakespeare
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23976384
Political Philosophy
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23980395
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23980715
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23981045
Evolutionary Psychology
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23984976
Alain Badiou
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23991816
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23992167
Cultural Studies
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23996615
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/23996769
Baudrillard
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24006092
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24006399
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24006661
Lévi-Strauss
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24010099
Plato
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24014118
Mind & Brain
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24024995
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24025284
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24025900
Continental Philosophy
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24036313
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24036589
Machiavelli
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24041204
Derrida
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24051975
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24052126
Sociology
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24056405
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24056598
Hegel
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24057260
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24057571
Slavoj Žižek
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24060920
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24061273
Ethics
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24068203
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24068386
Psychology
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24073107
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24073313
Capitali$m
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24078008
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/24078230
Romanticism
>>24092207
>>24092416
Infinity
>>24098178
>>24098553 How do I understand what is being said in Shakespeare's works? I can discern the meaning of some parts but not everything is clear. >writes the good ending for himself in his book
>gets the bad ending irl
Why didn't anyone save him? >I leave to others the decision as to the good or evil tendencies of my character, but such as it is it shines upon my countenance, and there it can easily be detected by any physiognomist. It is only on the fact that character can be read; there it lies exposed to the view. It is worthy of remark that men who have no peculiar cast of countenance, and there are a great many such men, are likewise totally deficient in peculiar characteristics, and we may establish the rule that the varieties in physiognomy are equal to the differences in character. Is it just Aristotle?
I recently watched some clips of Mortimer J Adler, and one of the things he said, kind of as an aside, is that rigorous study of Aristotle resulted in practical, cool headed, efficient, capable people. He gave the example of the British Officer at the height of the empire. Very capable men.
Of course Aristotle himself was Alexander the Greats tutor, so that's another point.
And I'm thinking at how the start of the Nicomachean ethics he says something like "this isn't for the ethical theorist, this is for someone who wants to know how to achieve virtue".
Also, I'm not sure how true this really is but I've heard it said many times, that the scientific mind and method has it's roots in Aristotle.
Maybe this is putting the cart before the horse, but regardless, can you think of another philosophy which produced such practical, effective, tangible results? Is surrealism for people who can't write? So whenever I try to send an epub I downloaded from Internet Archive to my Kindle, it fails. I'll get an email which says
>could not be delivered due to E999 - Send to Kindle internal error.
Anyone else have this problem, or know how to fix it? When I download epubs from Gutenberg, they work fine, but Internet Archive's epubs are messing me up. Thanks. Why did Dante put himself and the poet Virgil in his stories? >Symzonia; voyage of Discovery (1820)
Basically 'a journey to the center of the earth', but the original but pre-Vernes.
Captain Seaborn sets out to prove the 'Hollow Earth theory' by Captain J. Symmes.
Considered the first American Science-fiction book
>A Journey to the center of the earth
needs no explanation
>The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, Edgar Allan Poe
Pym sets aboard a whaler, where adventure and misfortune strike. Mutiny, Cannibalism, Hostile Blacks, and also Hollow Earth
>At the Mountains of Madness, Lovecraft
A 1930s expedition to Antarctica sets sail to find an Ancient Race far older than humanity.
Based upon Arthur Pym
>A descent into Maelström, Edgar Allen Poe
An old man in Norway recalls his encounter with a whirlpool Beyond the Wall of Sleep is fine, but it's not as good as the Black Sabbath song it inspired.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf9mJ9Yr6Jo What's your favorite Magic Treehouse book? I like this one and Ghost Town at Sun Down >"what was in front of me was an indescribable horror like no other"
>*spends the next two paragraphs describing the said indescribable horror in full detail* So is “Will to Power” metaphysics or not? What's it all for, in the end. I read all these books, I try to write on my own, I dig into the past to understand the present better. But most people don't read. The modern world doesn't reward literacy. No one takes action. The rich get richer, the new books remain unread and disposable, the world keeps going as usual as the writer's words fall on deaf ears and blind eyes.
I don't know if I'm just wasting my time or not. The chances of becoming a great, known author today are near nonexistent. And the wisdom you get from literature has no practical application in modern times either. Why is wanting to write a book a bad thing? Do redditors say this because they read a bad translation or is that also the opinion of Germans with the original text? Do you read one big book / series at a time or do read multiple short ones at once? Would anyone be interested in a surrealist novel that advocatr for socialism by pointing out the absurdity of slaving to death for capitalists? I know it sounds very tumbleresque, tranny, SJW, etc, etc, but I promise it's a/an(?) hilarious novel à la A Confederacy of Dunces. The penultimate — or is it the ultimate — plot point is the titular slave's birthday party where he has been surrealistically turned into a monster, kind of like Monster ElisaSue from The Substance, due to the ills/evils of capitalism.
It's a translation btw, not my own original work. Pic rel is the author. t. every French, Jewish, or SFWA writer Where should I start with the Arthurian legends?
Give me the basic gestalt on this?
Thread theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juflBDJTbGA This is really good. Why does Steinbeck get no love here? Mirra Ginsburg did a translation of The Master & Margarita and Notes From Underground that are much better than those of Puke & Vomit. Have there ever been any good refutations of historical materialism written? Marxists will say that Popper doesn't count because the soviet union wasn't socialist because they are dogmatists who believe that historical materialism is reality or, when they are feeling humble, that it is merely a tool that still effectively explains reality better than all other tools.
Of course, I already know that all marxists say this because they are motivated by a desire for nothing but self-indulgent pleasure and comfort, but I'd still like to find some good attempts at refuting historical materialism. What book is this?
It has 200 pages or more and the chapter on pic related seems to be called "religion of ancient egypt".
If anyone could tell me, that would be great. What does “good prose” even mean? Has no one ever questioned this? It’s a completely baseless and subjective value judgement that very much does depend on the psychology and natural inclinations of the reader (whether by nature or nurture). Different languages have completely different sentence structures and even alphabets and ways of expressing ideas, it’s inconceivable to determine one having better prose then the other yet the whole idea of “good prose” is the platonic ideal of a “good prose” that all prose should strive to approximate but be impossible to apotheosize a prose into becoming, which I have already shown is nonsense. I therefore assert all labels of good and bad prose to be a dirty rotten lie! Give me books with/about wizards, sorcerers, mages and shit
No dumb bullshit like Harry Potter, and I already enjoyed a little of Dresdin
I just want to learn more about Wizards so I can write mine better >present perfect
it happened in the past Has anybody managed to make it big releasing fiction on Substack? Why does he get called an unreliable narrator? I read the book and he seemed pretty reliable to me Is anyone else finding that Kid/YA books are better quality of adult books? I've been re-reading some books I've read in my youth and everything feels a lot more genuine than the constant murder/depression/sex dump of whatever the top 50 is.
Even darker themes feel like they hit a lot more in books meant for kids. >age
>location
>current read Yay or nay? And if yay, where to start? I’d prefer one of the Everyman’s Library collections What specifically do you think is preventing him from finishing his series? Is dyslexia real? Does anyone here have any experience with it? Has it hindered your reading? Camus was actually pretty perceptive. Got another comics book legend doing literary adaptations! women's terrible taste in "books" never ceases to amaze me favorite 1800s gothic/horror novel? 
![David-Lynch-tells-you-how-to-experience-his-movies[1]](https://i.4cdn.org/lit/1737127419306852s.jpg)
