M1D25

Merry Christmas! Somehow - and perhaps not coincidentally, as it's the first day of December's final week - something clicked today. I read 92 pages of Deaf Sentence. It's a far cry from the 340 pages a day I initially aimed for at this point, but it's the furthest I've gotten in a day all month.

Deaf Sentence, which I at first took to be a simple, light-hearted piece of humoristic fiction (never judge a book by its cover!) is an unexpectedly insightful read. Each chapter reveals new ways of looking at romance, adulthood, relationships, academia, knowledge, and even geopolitics, all seen through the subtle lens of a deaf linguistics professor's eyes.

I was particularly taken by Lodge's description of London following the July 7th attacks. It was eerily quiet, save the occasional drunk screaming "Fucking Arabs!" It got me thinking about that subset of very angry people who are frustrated by - perhaps even exasperated at - the lack of anger city liberals exhibit towards terrorists.

Alan Moore perfectly captured that relationship in The Watchmen with Rorschach's attitude towards Ozymandias and Dr. Manhattan. The latter two represent different facets of the utilitarian philosophy (where Dr. Manhattan's approach is more passive, Ozymandias' is more active). They act in pragmatic ways that defy any universal ethical code, seeking to maximize good in the situation at hand, acting on a case by case basis rather than referring to a moral compass. Solemnity in the face of egregious violence and hatred is to me such a reaction. It's the best reaction to the situation at hand (terrorism) but definitely not a one-size-fits-all. In general, we have a moral duty to act in the face of hateful wrongdoing.

Rorschach is a moral absolutist, seeking to be fully consistent in the application of his personal code. He simply cannot stand by in the face of any breach of it. So he angrily opposes and fights Dr. Manhattan and Ozymandias throughout the graphic novel. To me, he is the drunk screaming "Fucking Arabs!" It ain't a pretty sight, and it's effectively racism, but I sense that within it lies a frustration at the passive silence some echelons of society show in the face of terrorism.

Ozymandias in particular exhibits the disaffected pragmatism that originates in academic liberal thought, and has alienated so much of the uneducated world.

Forgive me that digression. Deaf Sentence is full of moments that carry away my thinking, and I get the sense that it's intended to be that way. At some point the author hints at the reader being expected to predict certain developments: "It occurs to me that if this were a novel anyone reading it would probably thinking: 'Ah-hah, poor old Desmond obviously hasn't realised that Winifred has a lover...'" (Page 73 - which the book miraculously opened to as I wondered how on Earth I'd ever find that passage again)

That passage got me thinking a lot about how I consume media. For example, when I watch movies, I largely turn off my intellectual mind and let myself be carried by the plot, allowing even the most inane plot twists to fool and delight me. It's hard to find a movie I won't enjoy.

Books are different, I suppose. They're best enjoyed with an active mind, as one enters a conversation with the author. And yet, despite the engagement it expects, reading is surprisingly restful to the soul.

Looking forward to the completion of this challenge. Lest I forget: three 600-page books in three days...