John Fowles, I had no idea...

[Helga]

I never thought of reading Fowles before, in my English class we just finished the Collector and it's definetly one of the best books I have ever read. It's so sweet and sad, the beuty in it is amazing! Fowles has complete power over his readers and I can't wait to read more books by him and his biography.

I was just wondering if you guys (since your the only people I can discuss literature with) feel the same about Fowles and his books, mainly the Collector?

[Qwinto]

Fowles' books are wonderful writings. I'm in love with his novels, with "Collector", "The Magus", "Daniel Martin".
These books are essential part of the modern literature, I think. They demonstrate an experience and progress, despair of the intelligence and fear of mind of our century. Hope and freedom.
Fowles' main idea is the idea of freedom. And his books is a teaching to the young generation first of all.

[vango]

i have never heard of him before. but i wish to know more about him. i wonder if he is a contemporary writer. and what's his nationality?

what we read are always those that belong to the past. :(

[Qwinto]

He is Englishman. As I know, he lives in UK now. His latest book of essays was published in 1996.
I'm afraid he won't publish anything else. On the other hand, possibly he said everything he wanted to say.

As I remember, he admitted that some ideas in his writings are repeated after some one, but I want to underline, that his main ideas, his main thoughts are unique. And I hope, some of them are essential.

We should respect the right of the writer to point by himself that he was under impression of someone's other thoughts in some places of his own writings. Especially, if these writings are so beautiful and are recommended for learning on English Literature courses and faculties.

[vango]

thanks, qwinto. i hope i will read his books soon. are most of his works essays?


We should respect the right of the writer to point by himself that he was under impression of someone's other thoughts in some places of his own writings. Especially, if these writings are so beautiful and are recommended for learning on English Literature courses and faculties.:thumbs_up
writers are not simply thinkers. great writers need not only great thoughts but also great techniques of arranging and expressing their thoughts.

[Helga]

he has only written a few books and the first one he wrote was the Collector, it is a must read book. My teacher said that he based it partually on his own daydreams and I find that very charming! I also read that the Magus is in some ways based on Shakespeare's the Tempest.

He is probably the most interesting writer I have ever read about, he once said that he feels like he is one of the intelligent trapped in the world of the stupid.

He is one of the five people,dead or alive, I wish to know!

[Diceman]

I first encountered "The Collector" back in the late nineties, and thought it was OK. Nothing special, but a good read.

I did not encounter Fowles again until I picked up "The French Lieutenant's Woman" around last December/January. I seriously loved this book. So much so that I have subsequently read several of Fowles' other works (The Ebony Tower, The Magus, The Aristos, and re-read The Collector). Also "Mantissa" currently sits atop my pile of books to read next.

What I like about Fowles is that there is so much more to his books than the story. There are many subtexts and allegories to be seen - but it is up to the reader to find them. I'm not a huge fan of historical novels, but French Lieutenant's Woman was captivating: One could look behind the tale of love and lust in the Victorian era, and see a moral tale on standards and hypocrisy, on the clash between the roles imposed by society and the roles one wishes to assume. I saw many themes in common with some existential literature (Camus, Sartre etc) I had also recently read.

I passed this book to my partner, because she does like historical stuff, but it left her completely nonplussed: she didn't like the story much, and didn't care to see past the story for the deeper meaning. She wanted light entertainment, and Fowles is anything but this!

Also, on re-reading "The Collector" I actually liked it a whole lot more this time. Having familiarised myself with some of Fowles other works, I was better able to look deeper into the novel and see the hidden themes. The underlying existential themes are there, as well as an allegory of class interaction.

Next year some time I will re-read "The Magus". Of the Fowles books I have read so far, this is the one which puzzles me the most. And yet I get the impression that maybe that was the point; that it was kind of like a Rorschach inkblot: everyone sees something different in it, and no one thing was "correct".

I'm glad to see others appreciate Fowles' work. I am jealous of the rest of you, because you are all able to pick up his books and read them for the first time :D

[Xamonas Chegwe]

I used to be annoyed that Fowles wasn't more prolific. But I was young then. Now I realise that he was far more prolific than most. He just crammed everything he had into a single book. Fowles' ponds are deeper than most writers' oceans. Every book John Fowles wrote rewards rereading at least as much as it rewards the first read and none of them offer up all of their secrets on the first date.

R.I.P