Week 5: Labyrinths by Luis Borges
Reading Labyrinths by Luis Borges this week was certainly an interesting piece of work to follow. I first began by reading the text as I was interested in getting a brief understanding of what it was about before watching the lecture, however after the first few stories I was still quite lost and confused and I decided to watch the lecture before I continued reading. This certainly helped me feel as though I wasn't just misreading or misinterpreting the stories, but rather that they were crafted intentionally in a way to make us question and rethink what we have read. I also found it interesting to affirm that the ways in which Borges writes of serious matters, such as death, were also intentional.
One of the stories that is discussed in the lecture titled “ Library of Babel” was one that I found particularly interesting and I credit this to its intense use of visualization. Though I couldn't exactly pinpoint what book it reminded me of in terms of authors intentionally creating blurred distinctions, the way in which Borges writes kept me on my toes and felt almost interactive. Constantly questioning the sentence I just read or the meaning of the story felt like an interactive reading experience that reminded me of when I was a child and I used to read those books where you can choose your ending. I am not sure what they are called, but I remember I used to have a hard time focusing as a child on books, and books that gave me some kind of interaction or uncertainty made me much more inclined to keep reading. Often when reading for long periods of time the mind can wander off, especially mine, however when reading Labyrinths I was motivated to keep going as I was never satisfied with not understanding or not knowing the meaning. Though, in all honesty at the end of some stories I was still left confused and almost upset by that confusion.
Overall the reading was intriguing but I did certainly feel lost in the labyrinth and as though I was being pushed or pulled through it. From watching the lecture it did become more clear to me that Borges plays with genre, something that I would have previously thought would help make sense of a novel. To me genre has always been a funny concept, because in many ways it is simply a categorization tool that seems to have some kind of emotional hold on people. For example, someone may say they love romantic fiction as a genre and therefore enjoy books that are placed in this box. Once I defined genre as a tool that authors use to “aid readers in understanding their plot” it made a little more sense to me why Borges chose to kind of do the opposite of this. In a way it felt like he was challenging the expectations genres typically provide readers with.
What is a genre that you guys noticed throughout the reading or did you notice any at all?
Borges himself might like this idea of interactivity between the reader and the author. If we are intrigued at the end, it seems that we have at least entered the game. Sometimes we are lucky as a beginner and after reading Borges we remember a phrase or an image that resonates with us. In your case, I think it's a good starting point to understand BOrges' ability to visualize spaces in his narratives (something that is a bit ironic). You'll find another try worthwhile after Dr. Beasley-Murray's lectures and what your colleagues have to say.
ReplyDeleteHi Elisabeth! I agreed with a lot of what you said. To answer your question, I really didn't pick up on too many themes throughout. Perhaps mystery, and work that was being done undercover or secretly. I think it would take a lot of dissection and discussion for me to pull out more themes.
ReplyDeleteHi Elisabeth! I appreciate the attention you payed to the stories "intense use of visualization", the descriptive aspect of the story I think adds to the almost interactive nature of the chapter. I had a similar experience while reading through some of the stories and my mind would get side tracked. Thank you for your post!
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