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PaperclipPerfector  4d ago (text post)   1768 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for November 29, 2024

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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I just finished reading The Cider House Rules by John Irving. It’s a great bildungsroman — a coming-of-age novel — with a large and lovable cast of side characters and subplots. Irving has a wry sense of humor, and is a keen observer of human psychology. I appreciated the non-judgmental, philosophically nuanced way he treats his characters; this is not a plot-heavy, action-packed adventure story, but rather a cozy and thought-provoking journey through the minds of people making the best of highly suboptimal situations. Irving’s carefully-researched attention to detail lends the book authenticity and a “lived-in” vibe.

That being said, abortion is a central element of the story, including graphic descriptions of both the procedure and the reasons why women seek abortions. Although some of the characters are morally-conflicted about the practice, ultimately the book presents a persuasive case for the necessity of abortion access, even given that some characters avail themselves of it for selfish or bourgeois reasons. The author’s boomer-leftist/soft-socialist sympathies shine through at times, filtered through the perspectives of his point-of-view characters.

For those here who have strong pro-life beliefs, and/or those who would be made squeamish by frank and explicit depictions of abortion and dead fetuses, I would definitely not recommend this book. I have not yet watched the film adaptation (featuring, from what I understand, stellar performances by Michael Caine, Tobey Maguire, and in-her-prime Charlize Theron) but I gather that it tones down the graphic nature of the book somewhat.

Irving's prose I always enjoyed, and I remember reading A Prayer For Owen Meany and thinking it could have been a timeless, beautiful novel if not for the constant intrusion of his politics (Iran Contra and Reagan). I still enjoyed it, and the Dickens influence on Irving is evident.

I've never read that book, but I read somewhere that this song, which I love, was inspired by it.

I saw the film back when it came out, and I think it gets about as graphic as a mass-market Oscar-bait film can get away with, i.e. not very. From what I recall we see a doctor sit down to perform an abortion and we see someone revolted after looking into a bucket implied to contain an aborted fetus, but there's very little actual blood on screen.

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