Crash
discussion
Too descriptive?
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Chris
(new)
-
rated it 3 stars
Feb 13, 2013 07:55AM
Does anyone else think this was too descriptive? I felt sometimes like i was reading a manual at the DMV. It had so much specific description of the interior of cars and roads i think it took away from teh actual story.
reply
|
flag
I think that's part of the point. Crash tries to show a sort of new pornography and eroticism mediated through all the modern technical and design details of motoring. It's like the repetitive description of the specific details of penises, breasts, positions, lingerie, etc. in pornography. I agree it makes the book pretty dull.
Yea it was definitely fetishized but I found myself having trouble creating the scene in my head. I was too busy trying to figure out how a steering column could buckle lol. I liked the idea but like we both agree it made it dull. There were parts that weren't victim to this specificity but those spots were few and far between being that most of it took place on teh road and or in a car.
I didn't mind the detail, it's a trademark of Ballard's unique, surreal style.
I didn't mind it in most parts. His usage of certain terminology left me sometimes clouded with a jumbled scene of parkways and garages. Maybe also the fact that it took place in london and I had no real reference point to paint a mental picture.
Part of the repetition also speaks to the obsessive nature of the characters he is portraying, much akin to Bret Easton Ellis' 'American Psycho'. Ballard always has these deranged protagonists suffering from strange fixations. While admittedly, Crash with the idea of the erotic car crash is the most absurd of the obsessions but weirdly the most compelling.If Crash wasn't your thing I would recommend his 'Millennium People' or 'Super Cannes'.
Yes, I agree 100%. I understand that the author was making multiple points with this writing style, but it was just unbearable to read. This was my 1st book by this author and I just don't know if I will be able to force myself to pick up another. Hopefully I am wrong.
Crash is easily his most odd work, don't let it put you off Ballard. Empire of the Sun is his most well known work and probably the most accessible. His short stories aren't great, but most of his novels are well worth the read.
Just checked out the synopsis of Empire of the sun, and I will probably give it a shot. I sure hope it is completely different in terms of writing style. Can't judge an author by a single book, just like you can judge a man by a single day. We shall see...
Great book, all of the things that repel the majority of its readers from the overt graphic nature and the almost technical descriptiveness of the text present a familiar unease which I find (for me) is precisely the point of the book.
