Recently I picked up a new book by an author whose work Daria Morgendorffer has also read: Cormac McCarthy. In "Camp Fear," Daria is shown reading Blood Meridian; the novel I have now is The Road. I haven't yet read the former, but I've read about it, and it must be admitted that the idea that she was working her way through such a book at her camp reunion is mind-boggling.It is said sometimes that Daria is exactly as smart as you think she is. Whether you picture her as merely bright or as an incandescent genius, you will fit the pieces of her life together to support that outcome. Blood Meridian is not considered a light work by anyone who has ever reviewed it, and the levels of both symbolism and violence in the tale are said to be extreme. It crossed my mind that there might have been some subtle point being made by the cartooning staff in having her take that book along to Camp Grizzly, but in retrospect it is likely that the writers or artists only wanted to show that she had sophisticated and intellectual tastes in literature. The actual content of Blood Meridian was not the issue.
If anyone else has read Cormac McCarthy's work, you are invited to comment on the curiosity of having Daria be a possible fan of his novels, and what that says about her, if anything at all.
A new Iron Chef has risen on PPMB. "Continue this as an AU" is a challenge offered by Gouka Ryuu. Take one of Kristen Bealer's stories ("Squandered Potential") and develop it as an alternate universe.
PPMB
- Avalon, by legendeld (Part 18): Time to go, Dorn thought, as the entire underground base began to shake.
- A Little Vacation, by Doggieboy (Part 19): You are now in the outer limits of the twilight zone. Keep your hands and feet inside the narrative at all times. Brace yourself for sudden shocks.
- The Other Side of Time: And All That We've Won, by The Sidhe (COMPLETE!): “That was just a little too weird, even for my taste,” said Daria as they walked back down the street. (SFMB version)
- Stacy Rowe, Seeker (Part II), by jtranser (continued): "I'd like to buy a train ticket to Nowhere." "Yes, of course. Which Nowhere?"
- Turnabout Confusion Part II: All The King's Horses, by Dennis (continued): Well, I'm already through the rabbit hole, thought Jane. May as well see where it leads. (FF.net version here).
More later.
4 comments:
You could pile all the works of the so-called Angst Lords of Daria fandom next to Blood Meridian and they would seem like outtakes from the Mary Tyler Moore Show—outtakes that were too trivial and treacly to permitted in.
But even that probably overstates how they pale in comparison. It is the most violent, nihilistic book I've ever read. McCarthy himself may not be a monster like L.F. Céline, but there are moments of warmth in Journey to the End of the Night and Death on the Installment Plan. But Blood Meridian? Forget about it.
In The Road, some kind of worldwide firestorm has destroyed almost all life except for humans, who have now begun to feed on each other. A father is trying to cross America with his young son to get to the coast while dodging cannibals, slavers, murderers, thieves, and starvation in the dead of winter. I can't even imagine writing angst after reading that book. It was pretty good, though.
I watched (but did not read) No Country for Old Men. Now, that was as violent as The Wild Bunch, which is my favorite Western, but the ending went down like a lead weight. What happened? I can figure most of it out, but it did kind of go THUNK.
So, you think Daria liked Blood Meridian? ("It was more interesting than talking with Amelia.")
What happened?! Sugare got the drug money and successfully killed off everyone involved that was trying to get it.
See, that's what I figured happened, but the accident afterward . . . was that Fate saying, "Not even you can control Fate, Sugare!" BOOM!
And the sheriff's dreams at the end. I kinda sorta didn't get that, maybe I should read the dialog again.
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