Am reading a collection of Ibsen plays

battery chucka' one · Post by **battery chucka' one** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 6:06 pm

Have finished two so far. Nowhere near as good as I thought they should be, taking into account the man's lofty reputation. Very disappointing, as yet.

PSUFAN · Post by **PSUFAN** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 6:51 pm

Ibsen's works are definitely worth his solid reputation. Once you've read more, commence with your substantive criticisms.

Goober McTuber · Post by **Goober McTuber** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 7:28 pm

I’m pretty sure Ibsen doesn’t measure up to the writing you’d see in a typical day at .net.

PSUFAN · Post by **PSUFAN** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 7:45 pm

The characters might have similar kinds of problems - syphilis, diabetes, madness, moral disarray...but Henrik has a subtler touch.

PSUFAN · Post by **PSUFAN** » Fri Jun 22, 2007 9:01 pm

BTW, what brought you to Ibsen, BCO? Did some christian goth band title a dirge "when we dead awaken"?

battery chucka' one · Fri Jul 13, 2007 10:11 pm

PSUFAN wrote:BTW, what brought you to Ibsen, BCO? Did some christian goth band title a dirge "when we dead awaken"?

No. I happened upon a book store that was going out of business about 1 1/2 years ago. Landed upon a treasure trove of paperbacks for next to nothing. I think I added about 40 books to my collection for under $30. Was a great haul. Here's what I pulled off one shelf in my living room, just now:

Tess of the D'urbervilles-Hardy
Walden and Other Writings-Thoreau
Selected Poetry-Robert Browning
Sense and Sensibility-Austen
Kidnapped-Stevenson
In the Heat of the Night-Ball
Goodbye, Mr. Chips-Hilton
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf-Albee
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer-Twain
Selected Writings-Emerson
Swiss Family Robinson-Wyss
The Unvanquished/Light in August-Faulkner
The Yearling-Rawlings
Jane Eyre-Bronte
The Winter's Tale-Shakespeare
The Aeneid-Virgil
Frankenstein-Shelley
I Never Promised You a Rose Garden-Green(berg)

And that's just one shelf (aka a small sample). Needless to say, I have a ton of reading to do. I'm getting caught up on a ton of works I always wanted to read but was never presented in school. Just bought A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, actually (wanted Cannery Row, but thought B & N had it in stock, we couldn't find if on the shelves with the other Steinbeck works). Am currently reading both The Virginian (Wister) and The Rise of Silas Lapham (Howells). After reading each (Mayor of Casterbridge and the aforementioned Frankenstein), I currently hold Shelley and Hardy in practically the same esteem as I do Ibsen, but then I do have two more plays to read by him (as well as Tess). What is it about him that you enjoy? Peace.

PSUFAN · Post by **PSUFAN** » Wed Jul 18, 2007 2:34 pm

What do I enjoy about Ibsen? Basically, his plays were nothin less than searing. They were essentially screams against the staid societal hypocrisies that he lived among. Such voices were rare at that time, and certainly his was the only one in Norway loud enough to be heard across Europe and the Atlantic.

If you want to know a thing or two about modern drama, you started in the right place. Try imagining Eugene O'Neill - not to mention all that followed and flowered in American Drama - without the precursor of Henrik Ibsen.

battery chucka' one · Post by **battery chucka' one** » Wed Jul 18, 2007 3:10 pm

PSUFAN wrote:What do I enjoy about Ibsen? Basically, his plays were nothin less than searing. They were essentially screams against the staid societal hypocrisies that he lived among. Such voices were rare at that time, and certainly his was the only one in Norway loud enough to be heard across Europe and the Atlantic.

If you want to know a thing or two about modern drama, you started in the right place. Try imagining Eugene O'Neill - not to mention all that followed and flowered in American Drama - without the precursor of Henrik Ibsen.

Funny that you mention O'Neill as I also recently (several months ago) read Iceman. I thought it was well written, though the title character (Hickey, I believe his name was) ended up being rather crappy (killed his wife as she slept). It made his encouragements to the others rather hollow and everybody ended up remaining the nothings they were when the play began. Very disheartening.

As far as Ibsen, as I said, two plays in (Ghosts and Enemy of the People) and I'm not blown away. Yes, in the former, I understand that it's basically saying that people are shallow. In the latter, that society will always protect itself short term over long term security. I think I might be right in those assessments. After all, it has been awhile since I read them. I will read the other two and let you know my feelings on them.

I guess that my main criticisms are that there is no 'victory' in either Ghosts or EOTP. Both just kinda' end on down notes, ya' know? Perhaps that's my main dislike.

PSUFAN · Post by **PSUFAN** » Wed Jul 18, 2007 5:49 pm

Yes, you are missing the Hollywood Ending. You're not generally going to get that in Ibsen, O'Neill, or really any serious dramatic craftsperson.

Which leads me back to my initial question...how did you even hear of Ibsen? Was the Blockbuster out of Will Ferrell flicks, or something?

Given your expectations listed here, I think we can confidently begin to assemble an AVOID list for you.

Ibsen
Strindberg
O'Neill
Tennessee Williams
Sam Shepard
Arthur Miller

...and so on down the list of modern dramatic playahs...

battery chucka' one · Post by **battery chucka' one** » Wed Jul 18, 2007 6:58 pm

PSUFAN wrote:Yes, you are missing the Hollywood Ending. You're not generally going to get that in Ibsen, O'Neill, or really any serious dramatic craftsperson.

Which leads me back to my initial question...how did you even hear of Ibsen? Was the Blockbuster out of Will Ferrell flicks, or something?

Given your expectations listed here, I think we can confidently begin to assemble an AVOID list for you.

Ibsen
Strindberg
O'Neill
Tennessee Williams
Sam Shepard
Arthur Miller

...and so on down the list of modern dramatic playahs...

I very much enjoy Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams, for that matter. Crucible is wonderful. Same with Salesman and Streetcar. There was a point to all of them. It's not that I require a hollywood ending, just something that tells me there was a reason for them to be at the bar. Not just that their only motivation to get up off their butts was a guy who lied to them and that life is pointless. The writing is great, but the endings leave me a bit perplexed. But then maybe that was the point.

PSUFAN · Post by **PSUFAN** » Wed Jul 18, 2007 11:34 pm

Yes, that was the point.

Risa · Post by **Risa** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 5:16 am

battery chucka' one wrote: I think I added about 40 books to my collection for under $30.

You lucky bastard. If I didn't like you, I'd hate you. Ok, I wouldn't hate you, but I'd be plotting a thomas crowne affair on your bookshelf. bwah.

It sounds like you've got some good shit. Keep enjoying your good luck, man. :)]

battery chucka' one · Post by **battery chucka' one** » Wed Aug 08, 2007 2:02 pm

So, I finally finished The Lady From the Sea. Wonderfully written. Ellida was a character that we have all known. It would have been a perfect ending for her to get her comeuppance and, what do we get???? PSU????

A HOLLYWOOD ENDING!!!!

It was worse than the ending to Fight Club. Abyssmal finish. Horrendous. Would you please defend this one, PSU?

John Gabriel Brockman is up next.

battery chucka' one · Post by **battery chucka' one** » Mon Sep 03, 2007 2:45 pm

Just finished the collection with John Gabriel Borkman. Enjoyed the finale, but not enough to hold up the collection. I hold that the first two, Ghost and An Enemy of the People, were rather pointless and that The Lady From the Sea was good until the ending. JGB was good, but I don't think that it saves the collection. Overall, 6 out of 10. Perhaps he has another handful of plays that is better. Dunno. I'm now moving on to The Virginian. Peace.