Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Ciara's Wednesday Reaction

The book is a relatively easy read, but the character, on the other hand, are not. I was intrigued by Adrian’s character form the get-go, and I can already tell there is a lot to know about him.  Interestingly enough, a lot of the authors he educates himself on are authors we have read this year (Dostoyevsky, Camus).  As a reader, Adrian is difficult to interpret, but Tony seems to have a limited understanding of Adrian as well.  They were best friends, but based on what I have interpreted so far, Tony and the rest of the boys did nt even skim the surface in regard to finding out who Adrian really is.

Adrian is what Tony, Alex, and Collin always wanted to be: intelligent, insightful, and effortlessly witty.  He seems to have an understanding about life that even their professors lack, but rather than expressing jealousy, they exude pure awe.  He has the ability to silence a room full of people with his words, and they value his friendship because it allows them to be associated with a mental power they only dream of.

I am thoroughly enjoying Barnes’s writing.  He is great at capturing the essence of his characters through specific scenarios, and he is able to sum up complex ideas using few words.  After all, Barnes created Adrian, as well as the ideas he produces. Barnes’s use of wit, even on the most serious situations, prevents the book from becoming too heavy, especially during the part about the suicide, or during one of Adrian’s moments of profound insight.  I am on page 25 and the focus has turned to the development of Tony’s life, but I want to hear more about my boy Adrian.  I am interested to see how his thoughts as a child have transformed as he enters adulthood.




No comments:

Post a Comment