DUE before class begins on Wednesday, Dec. 2nd
In a topic-driven, well-developed
paragraph, create an "annotated BIB" --a summary of Stuart Klawans’
"Extremely."
NOTE: After posting on the blog, open up
the CANVAS assignment (by the same name) and DO copy and paste the URL address
into the CANVAS "WEB URL" text box so that I have record of your
submission on Canvas. Thanks.
Callie Brothers
ReplyDeleteProf. Kirk
ENGL 3353
1 December 2015
Klawans, Stuart. "Extremely." The Nation (2012): 35-37. Print.
Klawan, wrote an article comparing and contrasting the movie and the novel of 'Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close'. He spoke harshly on what he truly thought of the novel and the movie. "In reality, as a mere patron of the movie house, all I got was dry-eyed impatience at discovering the picture was neither awful enough to dismiss outright nor good enough to rise above its essential crappiness." (36) He describes the main character, Oskar. He says that this character is 'insufferable', that he is too clever, claiming that the 'authorial cleverness' was too much for this character. He claims that Foer showed no sympathy throughout his novel and that there was no tact, meaning that there was no understanding of Oskar's character, especially his characteristics. He then discusses Oskar's father, describing the flashbacks and the 'relentless tossing' of the fathers emotions. Foer described the fathers emotions with warmth, sincerity and wisdom. As the emotions his, Klawan then describes the emotions that are seemingly present at the end of the novel and the motion picture. "Into a territory of hugs and sweet tears and universal reconciliation." (36) In the ending of his article, he makes a statement that describes the entire article, novel, and motion picture... " Hello life, Goodbye, life. Just passing through. Swell to be here while it lasts." (37)
It thought this article described the novel perfectly, and his description of the motion picture seems to be accurate. This is a well developed article with a well-driven thesis. Klawan supports his statements with factual advice and evidence. He describes harshly, yet supports Foers work.
Amanda McMahon
ReplyDeleteProf. Kirk
ENGL 3353
1 December 2015
Klawans, Stuart. "Extremely." The Nation (2012): 35-37. Print.
Stuart Klawans wrote a critique of the book turned movie "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" in which he judged the author and director as reaching for moments that did not deliver. His critique focused on the character of Oskar Schell. Of Oskar, he writes, "Oskar Schell is the product of an era in which feeling uncommon is one of the most common experiences going" (36). Klawans described the movie as mediocre, writing, "all I got was dry-eyed impatience at discovering the picture was neither awful enough to dismiss outright nor good enough to rise above its essential crappiness" (36). Klawans ends his critique with this: "I maintain that the real significance of this movie, like that of the novel lies in the way it exploits, rather than explores, a widespread delusion among Americans: a self-involved aspiration toward odd-duck genius" (37). Klawans believes that "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" presents the idea that it is better to rally behind a weird character like Oskar, than to acknowledge the "massness of a mass grave" (37).
Mikkaela Bailey
ReplyDeleteProf. Kirk
ENGL 3533
2 December 2015
Annotated Bibliography
Klawans, Stuart. "Extremely." The Nation (2012): 35-37. Print.
In his article, “Extremely,” Stuart Klawans offers his position on why Jonathan Safran-Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is dissatisfying in the form of a novel and a movie. Klawans finds that the greatest problem with the story is that it is neither wonderful nor terrible; however, it attempts to be great and is held back by its “essential crappiness” (36). One of his main qualms is with the presentation of Oskar, the main character. Oskar is frustrating to Klawans because, in an attempt to give a unique character, both the movie and the book failed to use the opportunity wisely. He believes that Oskar is too quirky in the novel, yet is upset that none of his oddities were transferred to the silver screen. However, Klawans is even more disappointed in what Oskar seems to represent: “I maintain that the real significance of this movie, like that of the novel, lies in the way it exploits, rather than explores, a widespread delusion among Americans: a self-involved aspiration toward odd-duck genius that is as pernicious in its way as the Ayn Rand myth of individualism” (37). Klawans presents the idea that Americans’ obsession with the need to feel like their own experience matters more than that of the whole produces stories like Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close that focus on only one person’s experience and the significance it plays in his life instead of how it has impacted the whole. In the opinion of Klawans, this cheapens the story and holds it back from its great potential.
Sadie Wyant
ReplyDeleteProfessor Kirk
ENGL 3353
2 December 2015
Klawans, Stuart. “Extremely.” The Nation (2012): 35-37. Print.
Stuart Klawans offers a borderline harsh yet very revealing critique of the movie version of the novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in his article “Extremely.” He criticizes Oskar’s character development multiple times, at one point saying that “[Oskar is] the literary product of an era in which feeling uncommon is one of the most common experiences” (36). Klawans expounds upon this idea of Oskar being uncommon, even too much so. He suggests that the author is merely giving characteristics of himself through Oskar, and even implies that Oskar’s character is unrealistic and almost cliché. On the novel, Klawans says, “Oskar is insufferable because he’s too clever a character and because too much authorial cleverness is piled upon him” (36). Klawans asserts that this failure to show Oskar as a realistic character is partially what, in his mind, made Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close fail as a novel and a movie. Klawan’s concluding statement, though not at the very end of his article, states “the real significance of this movie, like that of the novel, lies in the way it exploits, rather than explores, a widespread delusion among Americans: a self-involved aspiration toward odd-duck genius…” (37). Klawans is turning Safran Foer’s work into satire by offering this claim. He asserts that the novel and movie both “exploit” the American delusion instead of exploring it. This claim makes a jab at American society as a whole, whether Klawans meant it to or not.
Klawans, Stuart. "Extremely." The Nation (2012): 35 - 37. Print.
ReplyDeleteStuart Klawans' article "Extremely" harshly critiques Safran-Foer's novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and Stephen Daldry's film version of the novel. Within the first several sentences, Klawans already gives his opinion that "Safran-Foer's talent 'gave him the beginning of a novel'" but, unfortunately, "did not carry him through - not to the end and not to the bottom" (35). He later says that he truly wished it was "the perfect thing-in-itself that God or someone had always meant it to be" (36). In reality, however, Klawans comments that is was "neither awful enough to dismiss outright nor good enough to rise above its essential crappiness." Along the way, Klawans does have some decent things to say about the plot. He thinks that Oskar is a very relatable character, quite possibly even a voice for those who cannot speak out themselves. However, Klawans concludes by calling the film "fundamentally false" and "a self-involved aspiration toward odd-duck genius" (36-37).
Kelsey Wheatle
ReplyDeleteprofessor Kirk
ENGL 3353
2 December 2015
Klawans, Stuart. "Extremely." The Nation (2012): 35-37. Print.
In Stuart Klawans' article "Extremely", he delivers a harsh critique of Safran Foer's novel "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" by comparing and contrasting the elements of Foer's novel to the elements of Stephen Daldry's film version of the novel. Upon viewing the film, Klawans states of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, "All I got was dry-eyed impatience at discovering the picture was neither awful enough to dismiss outright nor good enough to the rise above its essential crappiness"(36), This is how some people felt after reading the novels ending. The novel just ended leaving the reader and Oskar without any fulfillment or any closure about Oskar's dad's death. Because the rest of the novel was good however, the crappy ending was not enough to completely dismiss the novel, or the movie. Although the ending of the book and movie did not end with a lot of dramatic concepts, the ending of both the book and the movie did inspire some hope that Oskar would be able to deal with his dad's death by looking at the reverse flipbook he created. Klawans states that "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is the perfect thing-in-itself that God or someone had always meant it to be"(36). Klawans is saying that although the ending is not miraculous, that the ending is perfect for the book and movie because it ends in uplift