Comments on: Here I Am

By: RB

RB — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:18:12 +0000

Dear Claude,

The anti-social thing really confused me. Frankly, I think “Excellent Text, Sad Life,” is a brilliant line. So I drew attention to it on my personal blog. [http://wickedwitchoftheweb.blogspot.com/2009/12/im-self-centered-antisocial-thrill.html]

You should check out the entry! And the comments! But on serious note, this essay was not about thrill-seeking, but about being lost and confused in life. I do thank you for your misreading–it has offered interesting food for thought in terms of writing craft.

By: claude lambert

claude lambert — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 13:18:53 +0000

OK, I apologized once already. And yes you are right: it is a difficult problem to solve, I think it strikes both ways: we interpret people from what they write and writings from the people who wrote them. Should the fact that Althusser killed his wife affect our interpretation of structuralism? Or the nazism of Heidegger tint his writings? Are we what we write? Actor Errol Flynn once wrote a very antisemitic sentence in a private letter. It may be a little part of him, smaller than his love of the sea, but it is there, isn't it?
And I read this as an antisocial text.

By: Michael Bennett Cohn

Michael Bennett Cohn — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 12:56:32 +0000

What's interesting to me here is the particular life/art distinction (“excellent text, sad life”). On the one hand, it's separating text and life, and then criticizing life, which is a tricky maneuver in a situation where all one knows about the author's life is what can be gleaned from the text.

On the other hand, text and life are being expressly conflated, because the particular facet of the life that happens to be represented in this particular text is being used to inductively create a whole universe. In other words, supposing that it's possible to extrapolate a whole life from a thousand words, and then making a judgement upon that inferred life… well, it's a lot of speculation, isn't it? In my view, it's useful to consider the author's decision to examine herself in this regard as part of the text. The very act of articulating personal issues that one isn't proud of, in such a way that they can be easily understood by others, is an act of communication that shows a desire to connect with others through the universitality of human experience.

By: claude lambert

claude lambert — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:44:16 +0000

Well, I missed it then, sorry about that. There was not much about considering others' feelings in the text I read. But you are right: it does not prove anything.

By: KIrasheba

KIrasheba — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:33:35 +0000

claude….what do you know about her? Your comment makes NO SENSE at all. Rachel has a wonderful fun filled life that she has dedicated to helping others and growing in her own way to be a caring human being.

Self centered…. totally off target….she is about the least self centered person I know.

Amusing “thrill seeker” once again totally off target!

Missed the whole post it seems…..

By: Chris

Chris — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:42:55 +0000

Purpose isn't always handed to us. Sometimes life is more interesting without knowing where it's going. Most people don't think about these things and dismiss them because they afraid to open the box. Nice piece.

By: Lizad

Lizad — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 19:19:37 +0000

Nice. Your piece made me think about being lost in choices made. Who is to define what is lost and not lost, except oneself?

By: claude lambert

claude lambert — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:24:11 +0000

Excellent text, but sad life. Life has a way of interfering with self-centered thrill seekers; it steals their time. To take an example in music, YoYo Ma or the Kronos Quartet were useful thrill seekers. Useful thrill seekers are in great demand, but it is hard to achieve.

By: Ursula

Ursula — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:40:55 +0000

I like this. I spent time at all those places, –clam shack, drive-in, square dancing, whale watching, dune-scrabbling–but since everyone else was depending on me not to get lost, I didn't. I never realized how full of meaning those warning signs on the beach can be. Keep on writing about this, please.

By: Mark Moran

Mark Moran — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:53:17 +0000

It's all about the journey. Arriving at your destination is never quite as satisfying as the process it took to get there.

By: Samando

Samando — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:35:36 +0000

This is great, Rachel. “I want to climb back in the car with dirty feet, awaiting a bath.”
When I was little, I got lost on purpose in the grocery store, and didn't even freak out until I heard my name announced over the loudspeaker. I liked the feeling of being lost, too – thank you for articulating it so eloquently. Looking forward to reading more from you.