I think we ought to only read the kind of books that wound and stab us. If the book we are reading doesn’t wake us up with a blow on the head, what are we reading it for? So that it will make us happy, … We would be happy precisely if we had no books, and the kind of books that make us happy are the kind we could write ourselves if we had to. But we need the books that affect us like a disaster, that grieve us deeply, like the death of someone we loved more than ourselves, like being banished into forest far from everyone, like a suicide. A book must be the axe for the frozen sea inside us.
Franz Kafka, Letters to Friends, Family and Editors p.16
68 responses so far ↓
1 Dick Lessman // Jul 7, 2007 at 8:25 pm
ONLY read books that don’t make me happy? I interpret that to mean books that I don’t derive enjoyment from. I think Franz is off his rocker. I read Metamorphasis in college… I’m pretty sure Franz is off his rocker. Yes, I agree it is important to dive into books that make me uncomfortable. But I also like Harry Potter and other novels.
And ice cream. Would Franz also tell me to eat only food that is bitter?
2 Roy // Jul 8, 2007 at 7:46 am
A diet of ice cream and Harry Potter would make you …
3 Dick Lessman // Jul 10, 2007 at 7:39 am
“Yes, I agree it is important to dive into books that make me uncomfortable. But I also like Harry Potter…”
What would Franz think of “The Princess Bride?”
4 Eric Haynes // Jul 11, 2007 at 11:15 pm
What about The Chronicles of Narnia?
I wonder if Franz would carry this argument over to other things we give our time too as well…should we watch sitcoms, or only high dramas?
Sex only in a painful position?
Sports, but only if I allow myself to lose, but never win?
Nature, but only after a devastating hurricane (or only during the hurricane)?
Art, but only if it is focused on angst, betrayal, and negative emotions?
Children, but only when they’re naughty, or bedridden with disease?
Music…no Bobby McFerrin, but only Curt Cobain?
Eric
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