vindictive literature: Is there such a thing?

ever felt vindicated after reading a book?
In other ever felt as if you were held into account through reading a story as if it was somehow your fault that things were going wrong in the book, that you were helpless and wished you could have done something but couldn't?

I was 21 yrs old back then. I had finished Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie in three days of intensive reading (This was for a presentation in a course). Once I was done with the book I felt vengeful for a lot of wrongs that I perceived were done to me. I don't know if this answers your question. The feeling was without a tinge of regret or guilt. I have never felt like that in my whole life. Interestingly the two conflicting central characters were difficult to be labelled as protagonist and antagonist. Both had been wronged and both were vengeful. I could relate with both of them.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by dark desire

I was 21 yrs old back then. I had finished Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie in three days of intensive reading (This was for a presentation in a course). Once I was done with the book I felt vengeful for a lot of wrongs that I perceived were done to me. I don't know if this answers your question. The feeling was without a tinge of regret or guilt. I have never felt like that in my whole life. Interestingly the two conflicting central characters were difficult to be labelled as protagonist and antagonist. Both had been wronged and both were vengeful. I could relate with both of them.

---

Thank you dark desire this answers the question perfectly.
Do you think the feelings you got from it afterwards were because you were only 21?
In other words would you have been much older you would have had less harsher feelings towarsd it?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cacian

Thank you dark desire this answers the question perfectly.
Do you think the feelings you got from it afterwards were because you were only 21?
In other words would you have been much older you would have had less harsher feelings towarsd it?

---

Yeah... I agree it was more of an age thing. I had a lot of repressed emotions, so felt pretty intense and I flowed in the feeling too till someone said he hates Rushdie's writings. I think postmodernist writers can make one feel like that. Reading Delillo's White Noise right now. There is a sense of impending doom in writings of both these authors.

Now things are different because I have become introspective. I recently watched the movie Dogville (2003 directed by Lars Von Trier) and again the sense of being wronged rose within me. But now that I write, the feeling gets channelized.

I'm glad I was able to answer your querry.

Maybe try reading some Catullan or Horatian invective if you wanna see some writers who had quite a vendetta against some of their contemporaries.

Dante populated his hell with the characters and politicians he didn't like in The Divine Comedy. pretty vindictive, and it's only one view.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by cacian

ever felt vindicated after reading a book?
In other ever felt as if you were held into account through reading a story as if it was somehow your fault that things were going wrong in the book, that you were helpless and wished you could have done something but couldn't?

---

Yes!

Kazuo Ishiguro's 'Never Let Me Go.'

The first time it was moving to experience how the characters, Tommy, Kathy H, and Ruth, go about their existence given their dreary fates. The second time around I was very angry. Who would so compliantly accept this fate, going through the caretaker programs and watching friends "complete," while awaiting their turn? "Run! Grab a gun and host a standoff," I wanted to yell at them!

There's several worthwhile explanations for my strong reaction - Ishiguro's marvelously subtle and disquieting storytelling at the top of this list. But I'd like to wonder if my particular reaction was a very American reaction. Let me explain: I'm American, but have lived in Europe as well, and the reality of 'Never Let Me Go' would never work in America. Euro culture is so frustratingly passive compared to America's and, unintentionally, I thought this book made this painfully glaring.

Again, as the American reading 'Never Let Me Go,' I would've done something for these characters.