week5. labyrinths –
I did not understand this book. It was quite dense and while I got bits and pieces every once in a while, it was difficult to keep my attention. Halfway through I had to switch to an audiobook because I was getting a tension headache from trying to keep up with the story. I’m sure that other people have and will enjoy this book and understand it, but I don’t think I am one of those people. I did enjoy the range of words and prose that Jorge Luis Borges used in his short stories, but whether I understood all of them is another question. I will say, after reading Labyrinths, I have a whole list of words that I didn’t know and that I probably won’t ever say in real life because I don’t want to sound pretentious and elite.
I’m sure that if I was one of these people that enjoys Borges’ style of writing, I would also enjoy breaking down and analyzing the labyrinth that is dissecting the meanings of his stories – but alas, I am not. Sometimes, confusion is a tool masterfully used to enhance a story, cultivate different interpretations and perspectives, but this one felt a little mean-spirited. Almost as if, if the reader doesn’t understand, they are very abruptly, unsympathetically, and brashly left out of this world, without chance of reconciliation. Maybe this is my own frustration at not understanding the book, but this is how it felt to me in a sense.
There was a lot of reference to many different historical periods and events, which was a welcome encounter because I happen to know more about those than the story that mentions them. A lot about things and characters from the Bible, about Rome, and also a brief mention of Uppsala. The mentions about the Bible and Rome is where I felt more comfortable in my understanding, but even then it was difficult to grasp. I think Borges has done an amazing job at mentioning a text that’s specifically known for being long, dense, and complex – such as the Bible – and somehow making it even more confusing. In one story in particular, (I can’t remember which), he even goes so far as to say that Don Quixote is a dense and boring read, or something along those lines.
Perhaps it’s my own lack of will in trying to re-read and grasp these stories, but I know that I’d rather spend my energy reading other books, not trying to understand something that doesn’t want me to understand it in the first place.
My question for you is: did you enjoy and/or understand these stories? Did you reject or embrace the maze-like confusion within the stories?
2 replies on “week5. labyrinths”
One of the adjectives with which Borges has been described is “cerebral”, which in Spanish means too interested in games of intelligence and erudition. He is not an author who makes things easy for us, it is true. So many references can help us, or not, to understand some meanings of the stories. I would tell you to give it a second chance, after talking in class a little more about the book.
Hi Jasmine!
I have to agree with you on not understanding the book. I too was lost throughout it, but I’m glad there were some parts that you enjoyed. To answer your question I did not understand these stories. I tried to embrace the “maze-like” confusion but it was just so hard, so I really just gave up. Also, to be honest this book frustrated me so much that I don’t see myself going back to re-analyze it.