tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post2753429744328813411..comments2024-03-29T08:26:06.759+00:00Comments on The Notion Club Papers - an Inklings blog: Michael Moorcock's "Epic Pooh" essay on Tolkien and the Inklings Bruce Charltonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09615189090601688535noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post-75517550853525097442015-06-23T04:42:48.495+01:002015-06-23T04:42:48.495+01:00Haven't tried it yet (or any Moorcock, ever), ...Haven't tried it yet (or any Moorcock, ever), but ChrisC made me think of Lewis's Experiment in Criticism, and how it has room for comics (if people really like them) while not being impressed by rigid (so-called) 'theoreticians' of whatever sort (though I don't know he refers to 'theory' in criticizing such folk), and encouraging wide 'experimenting' in trying different things to see if you like them, and why.<br /><br />David Llewellyn DoddsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post-82574138008350174972015-06-20T21:37:07.204+01:002015-06-20T21:37:07.204+01:00The very worst part of the entire thing, the line ...The very worst part of the entire thing, the line that betrays his worldview more than anything, is the jab about "hating hobbits".Tuckernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post-61070571175639110672015-06-19T16:15:43.444+01:002015-06-19T16:15:43.444+01:00"Against such indomitable modern heroism; wha..."Against such indomitable modern heroism; what have the likes of Tolkien and CS Lewis to offer other than serving in the front line trenches during the first world war?"<br /><br />I love the nonchalant delivery of this line. It really sums up the issue with Moorcock quite nicely. It made me laugh out loud.<br /><br />Wadehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10998228889982961028noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post-63480548890431608072015-06-19T02:50:38.498+01:002015-06-19T02:50:38.498+01:00Aside from a pretty good takedown of Moorcock'...Aside from a pretty good takedown of Moorcock's critical shortcomings, it is also possible what you've highlighted here can shed some light on certain phenomena I've noticed in today's artistic discourse.<br /><br />Consider the fact that today a 30-something with little aesthetic knowledge in either the history of fiction, film, or stage, and more important, an undeveloped imagination that is necessary to arrive at a proper artistic enjoyment can nonetheless be the de-facto commanding voice in terms of what is regarded as the best and brightest in art. I'm talking about kids whose taste starts at, say, Marvel or DC comics, and yet never displays a curiosity about any possible higher form of storytelling. This is the kind of person who would label, say, John Ford a racist, or the Marx Brothers as unfunny because it doesn't meet their limited "chronological Snob" worldview.<br /><br />The result you get is a true anomaly: an audience member who is unable to work up an appreciation for entertainment, and is probably not able to get much from what little he claims to enjoy, and yet they still keep coming back, even when they know the result can only be disappointment due to their lack or inability from imaginative enjoyment, which is an "acquirement", not something given.<br /><br />I don't know, but it could be that the kind of essay by writers like Moorcock (and perhaps critics like Pauline Kael?) helped kick-start a trend of what is now considered your typical Angry Fan Boy syndrome, what Andrew Keen perhaps meant when he coined the phrase "Cult of the Amateur".<br /><br />Just some interesting food for thought.<br /><br />ChrisCAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post-1893470976665012022015-06-18T06:11:57.417+01:002015-06-18T06:11:57.417+01:00@p- I suppose it is only fair to state I have not ...@p- I suppose it is only fair to state I have not read any of Moorcock's Sword and Sorcery genre; that was how he made his name, and they may well be better than the other stuff. Bruce Charltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09615189090601688535noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post-83010136895664913982015-06-18T04:35:47.762+01:002015-06-18T04:35:47.762+01:00I also read several of Moorcock's fictional wo...I also read several of Moorcock's fictional works years ago, and gave him up as hopeless....He is a sloppy and uninteresting writer.pyrrhushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06150605108788285274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2410716623228444076.post-76902422280614326042015-06-17T21:52:44.896+01:002015-06-17T21:52:44.896+01:00Indeed, there is both a pervasive lie to the idea ...Indeed, there is both a pervasive lie to the idea - yet perhaps some truth. The establishment always pretends it is the underdog and "rebelling", though it is, of course, in possession of power. However the truth lies in the true anti-Christian nature of all the rebellions and "progress". Perhaps those in rebellion realize that ultimately the rebellion is futile and self-destructive? That all worldly power is but transient and fleeting, while that which they hate is eternal?Nathanielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04531664498277638757noreply@blogger.com