Never??!!

[littlelit]

how come no one ever posted a single post in this forum?
Mr. Thackeray is not that bad a writer. Let's begin with talking about Vanity Fair.
I think it is superbly written.
what are your views about this 'novel without a hero'??

[Remarkable]

You've got a point there!I mean,I found Vanity Fair,exept for extremely entertaining,also very meaningful.In the end,it is quite a rarety for the time to write about characters that are either bad nor good.The old black and white cliche has dissapeared here.For example,Emily is not such an angel because she is not that intelligent as to maintain herself even in worse,or she is simply tooused to good.Becky,apart from whatever she did,was a fighter and a very brilliant mind.She was,in the end,continually persecuted and what she did was for pure survival.So...who's the hero?

[Elbereth]

Hello!
I'd like to ask one little question about Thackeray. In what of his novels there is a situation when somebody forgot his handkerchief at dinner having a bad cold in the head?
You'll help me very much if you answer.
As for this novel, I like "Vanity Fair". I read it for the fisrt time when I was 17 and now I read it again. The difference is very strange.
Sorry my errors in English:-)

[kakazinho]

pls help:who is the protagonist of this novel?

[manolia]

pls help:who is the protagonist of this novel?

This book is prologued (at least in the edition i have) as the book without a protagonist ;) . But if you insist on finding one i'd say that Becky Sharp is the predominant figure in it :) (in my opinion always).

I liked this book very much :nod:

[kakazinho]

Oh Thank You very much ;)

[kelby_lake]

i like vanity fair

[Agatha]

I very like Vanity Fair. I liked Becky- she's very interesting character. The contrast between Becky and Emily was simply hilarious. Thackeray's style of writing reminds me a bit Dickens. They two wrote their book in ironic way, they tried to show in their books a society with all their defects and ridiculousness. I'm a bit surprised that Thackeray isn't so popular as Dickens or Austen. For me he was a great writer.

[optimisticnad]

I've read Vaity Fair a number of times, it's a wonderful satire and although quite lengthy it has always kept me glued to the pages. I think even Dickens himself couldn't have created better characters as exemplified in this novel; characters such as Mrs Bute, such as poor Miss Crawley with her rebellious lifestyle and irrational hyperbolic fear of death - and why not with everyone of her relatives waiting for her to die so they can inherit her money! And of course Joe Sedley, what a bufoon he is!

It's apt that this satire has no hero - after all which one of us is free from silly faults and follies? Even 'honest Dobbin'. He annoyed me a little with his constant self-sacrificial attitude towards Amelia. For heavens sake you fool just tell her! And Amelia - though virtuous was so insipid, especially compared to Becky Sharp.

Becky Sharp! Who does not cringe at that name. There should be some kind of help book - I'll write it - for women: The Becky Sharp guide to handling men. She had them eating out of her hands! But alas, what an end. But what a journey!

[Truthlover]

Thank you optimisticnad. Since you've read this book a number of times, you're the one to be our mystagogue, helping us get into this book. I have started reading the book and have found myself in a disconnected state sometimes. Maybe it's because I'm using a Kindle, and perhaps I skipped a few pages and will have to return back a few chapters to know how I got where I am right now. Your blog helps because it is encouraging to find a reader who, even after several readings, believes in this book. From the critiques I have read so far, Thackeray is one of the greatest novelist of English literature. Why more people are not reading this book should not dismay us. After finishing Moby Dick yesterday, I learned that Melville was not appreciated while he lived. It took many decades for his books to earn the appreciation they have today. Jane Austen was also pretty much overlooked while she lived. This is why I prefer to read books that are over 80 years old. If they've withstood the ravages of time they are more likely to be worth reading.

[Truthlover]

Two years have passed since my last post on Vanity Fair. After having finished only 20% at that time, I have finally taken up this novel again. This time, my impression is completely different. I am overawed by Thackeray's irony and depth of insight into people's minds. In this novel we do not need a hero. This novel reminds me of Cervantes' way of dealing with his characters in Don Quixote. It appears to be a superficial treatment, but actually the author is a genius. My own experience, of not being able to "get" Vanity Fair the first time, had everything to do with my own emotional dispositions then. My attitude now is completely open to Thackeray. And I suggest if anyone wants to enjoy this great book, to make the effort of concentrating on what you are reading. This is a case where you don't read a book, the book reads you. Once you attain Thackeray's ironic and humorous perspective, you're really in for a great tour of that particular fair of vanity.