Ambiguity vs. Clear Message

[[deleted user]]

Having recently finished John Scalzi's Old Man's War , I couldn't help but think about whether ambiguity in a book's message is a good thing or a bad thing. Should a novel expect you to make up a decision for yourself, or is a novel there to express the opinions of the author?

I tend to prefer the latter; I think a good writer, aside from being generally compelling, leaves something of themselves in their work. Rather than trying to prod the reader into making up their own mind, a writer should express themselves. That being said, I can find ambiguity a lot easier to stomach if I don't agree with the writers views.

[Gary]

There's a delicate balance to be had. If the writer expresses too much of himself and/or his views in novel form, there is the danger of the work being too didactic. If the writer only wants to espouse his own opinions, why not just write non-fiction? The writer should have something of his opinion in there but leaving the message open to interpretation makes for a better book, IMO. It comes off less as preaching, and makes for more open discussion of the novel.

[[deleted user]]

I don't really mind a book that preaches if it does it well. Robert J. Sawyer's work is a good example; the message in his books is pretty damn clear. I don't think subtlety is necessary right for everyone.

[Gary]

Preachiness is a hard quality to overcome as a writer. Since the fiction writer is essentially God to his characters, he can manipulate the story to make whatever point he wants, but that often leads to boring, trite or downright unbelievable scenarios. Again, if the author wanted to preach, fiction is not the best vehicle for it.

[[deleted user]]

I respectfully disagree. There are more clever ways to make a point than by a simple essay/non-fiction. You can be simultaneously preachy and clever, a la Ursula K. Le Guin.

[[deleted user]]

Interesting - I certainly don't like too much ambiguity in the plot, and am especially critical of ambiguous endings when there's been a big build-up as I often feel that is mainly due to the author not being able to think up something magnificent enough. Can't come up with an example though, just know this is something I can get irritated by.