Andrea Tomasetti
asked:
what are the stories mostly about and what characterizes the writing- is it magical realism? Any particular relationship to philosophy or spirituality?
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Labyrinths: Selected Stories & Other Writings,
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Victoria
In man of his stories, Borges builds a world (or even a universe) with a particular set of rules or premises and then explores the implications of this. His work is something like the literary equivalent of M. C. Escher's art - exploring paradoxes and puzzles, detailed, technically very accomplished, but mostly engaging the intellect rather than the emotions. That's not to say that you won't have any emotional response to his work, but I get the impression that he is mainly seeking to engage the reader on an intellectual level. Regarding philosophy and spirituality, great deal of what he writes has to do with how we perceive and respond to the world and about questions of meaning and existence, but he is not writing in order to be 'inspirational'.
Luke Albao
A person can be a philosopher about any particular pursuit. Someone who is an avid swimmer might be able to find some secrets to the universe in the rhythm of the stroke. A runner could spend his every run meditating on how much the human race owes to its evolved ability to run for long distances.
The thing to know about Borges is that he was a librarian. He loved books like Van Gogh loved color, and almost everything he writes stems from that.
The thing to know about Borges is that he was a librarian. He loved books like Van Gogh loved color, and almost everything he writes stems from that.
Cosette
Borges' stories are not magical realism like Marquez or Allende. They are mythological, metaphysical, philosophical, and even fantasy. They are often fables and parables about meaning and creation in the world as well as writing (e.g. criticism, authorship, authenticity).
Linda Kanagawa
Found the book fascinationing. I'll probably read it again. It has rhythm of no time or place. Repetition of scenes and actions with additions and deletions melt into a story with sensuous fabric of the situation. Linda
Maximiliano Jozami
Borges has nothing to do with magical realism, his writings are definitely part of the fantastic.
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