Help Wanted

Sorry to post this on our blog, but does anyone have the Professor's e-mail address? I tried to e-mail him but to no avail. I have received a message failure notification and I'm wondering whether I have the correct e-mail address.

Thanks Guys,

-Perry

Dead or Alive?

For me it was a surprising ending to Platform. To think that a terrorist attack was bound to happen is true. But for Michel to return to the "Scene of the crime," that being the place where he lost Valerie is surprising. As Michel explains he has pretty much given up on life. His catatonic state and mental disjunction did not prevent him from recover. He could still see what was going on, such as his visits from Jean-Yves and Marie-Jeanne. He seemed to be living in a surreal existence which for some reason felt to me as it was Michel, pre-Valerie. If he was "Paralyzed" by the terrorist attack the lost of Valerie ended up "Killing him." It is a tragic "Loss of life" but despite losing Valerie he felt loved finally recognizing as the saying goes "Tis better to have loved..." It is as if Houellebecq already wants us to forget about the book and move on to the next one, as he has.

Conversely, the "Non-innocence" of the victims does not appear to have numbed the libido of pot-bellied western men. As evidenced by the Irishman's experiences with Englishmen and Frenchmen, the global fantasy lives on.

What's Your Pleasure?

Michell Houellebecq has a palpable talent to alarm you. I use palpable because this strategy entails most things that are tangible that you can feel and touch. They are not all of a sexual nature either but involve other creatures. It is a kind of literary pestilence that he uses to disgust or attract the reader. At the same time the reader is forced to make a decision about what kind of writer Houellebecq is. Also, you are encouraged to dislike him by this same method of writing. The writing is in your face with a cake mixer full of shit. Either you like him or you don’t. But even if you don’t like him you are forced to laugh at some of the absurdity that he uses. Are they coming from him or the protagonist? Who can tell?

On page 50 he reveals how “It was just the right time for a cockroach to make an appearance in my life.” Then he proceeds to juxtapose their mating customs with ours. As if he has been studying them over time and simultaneously comparing us to cockroaches. In the next paragraph he “Pays homage to Oon and all Thai prostitutes.” His way of shocking and upsetting you but also keeping you interested because you have no idea what he’ll say next. On page 54 he talks about how farmers “Desperate violence” was displayed by “Gutting pigs” and “Dumping tons of slurry” in front of Palais Bourbon and Esplanade des Invalides. So it should not surprise us when he meets Valerie, the one girl he likes and calls her a “Slut.” On page 56, as if trying to confirm this he talks about Valerie’s lesbian tryst with Berenice at age fourteen.

I find it ironic that Houellebecq’s voice is one that does not allow you as a reader to “Relax” and “Take pleasure” in his words. Whether you enjoy his writing style or not, as the reader and having purchased the book you feel you are “Entitled” to said pleasure. And yet as you read you are kicked off balance and must be “On your guard” for the next expletive or “Pussy” that he’s about to spit out. Simultaneously ironic, is that people who patronize resorts or patronize countries that offer “Sexual tourism” in their repertoire feel they are entitled to satisfaction as well. This evidenced by the slogan used, page 256 “The right to pleasure.” Stating that the use of this phrase “The right” hits a nerve with western civilization and its foundation of hypocritical and democratic tenets. The other exploits the misfortune of one in the name of Hedonism and Republicanism.

What lies Beneath

I find Houllebecq's writing style to be very honest and unapologetic. I find it comforting to know that someone is being curt for the reasons of full disclosure. Often times we find writer's (and people alike) dancing around words just to be overly illustrious for literary sake.

It may not be what you want to hear or may be too much information, but the truth of the matter is that there are people in this world who think exactly like this. How can we be honest with each other if we do not allow an open platform (no pun intended) to express everyone's views? Personally, I like to take part in a the whole plethora of mindsets whether they be- timid, appropriate, lewd, crude, eloquent, and so on. I think art inspires, but it is important that art be controversial as well. Controversy gets topics of interest or of non-interest stirring so we can pick apart the psychology of our society.

Houllebecq's protagonist has lived his life seemingly in his head and out of his pants. He finds himself seeking visceral gratifications that he can grasp emotionally. He hasn't had the time or the gumption to further analyze his unwillingness to do so. Hopefully, by venturing abroad he will start to meditate on these issues... we will have to see.

The Platform

I finished The Platform this weekend, and I was really surprised by its ending.  The novel came full circled with Michel ending up in exactly the type of place and situation that it seemed his destiny to inhabit at the start of the novel.  His relationship with Valerie was the only thing that brought any fire or color to his world, and it appears that her death has left him just as gray and pointless as he was before, if not more so for losing his enthusiasm for the female body.  He has no ambition, no real desire, nothing left.  If the novel is centered around the theme of love, what is Houellebecq saying about love? 

I also found the idea that it is Michel's suggestions put into practice that "explode" the novel very shocking.  He is a character with no real life of his own, and it is odd that his observations of humanity become integrated into cultivating a market as a part of the capitalist system.  Is Houellebecq making a statement about the "Westernization" of sexual tourism?  Without a doubt it is already a part of the capitalist system, but is the world ready for it to become a large-scale mainstream operation?  

I’ve been thinking about yesterday’s class and how we discussed the overall theme of globalization and its portrayal in Pattern Recognition in different ways but mainly through cyberspace. That theme is pretty obvious when you think about how so much of the communication in the book is through email or blogs. The footage is discussed on the blog, Cayce uses email to contact the maker of the footage etc. Because this was the central theme I liked how the last chapter of the book was called mail, you find out what is going on in everyone’s lives through emails. We find out that Cayce’s phobia is gone through the email with her therapist etc. This seemed a bit predictable but fitting that the theme was cyberspace.

Gibson also described things in a technology/cyberspace/digital way. On page 187 (paperback) Cayce is describing how Marina looks, “She looks like, Cayce decides, like a prop from one sequel or another of The Matrix; if her boobs were bigger she could get work on the covers of role-playing games for adolescent boys of any age whatever.” Also the character that Parkaboy and Darryl make up, Keiko, is digitalized, she’s a digitally made Japanese schoolgirl. These are just other ways Gibson tied in his theme of cyberspace.

Michel Houellebecq -- literature and insolence

Please read Julain Barnes's review essay of The Platform published in the New Yorker:

http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2003/07/07/030707crbo_books

You should also post comments about your reaction to the first chapters of this book. Remember that you need to post at least once a week to get full credit for the blog.