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Authors rubbishing their own work

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  • 07-09-2012 1:53pm
    #1
    PurpleBee
    Registered Users Posts: 274 ✭✭


    The Green Fool is possibly one of the best things I've ever read but I recently read Kavanagh's own opinion of the work. He was scathing of himself. Beckett has done it too and Kafka, I'm sure there's loads, but I was wondering do such opinions matter?

    I know reviews can easily be cast aside but when the reviewers are the authors themselves surely it makes a difference...


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    #2
    Denerick
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 6,488 ✭✭✭Denerick


    Its a sign of a very critical mind, which is quite useful if you're a writer. I'd be of the opinion that a boastful writer is a bad writer most of the time (Think of Gore Vidal - a terrible novelist but thought he was the bee's knee's. The same goes for Martin Amis. And that guy McEwan. They all have high opinions of themselves and its a pity they are so well regarded.)

    Considering that two of the three writers mentioned were Irish I'd also think it likely that its a part of our national preoccupation - Irish people tend to sell themselves short and humility used to be the cornerstone of our self deprecating form of humour.

    As a sidenote, I loved the 'Green Fool' as well, Kavanagh was a great writer.


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