Blood meridian reads like a funhouse

Submitted by HARJAS200007 t3_11c7dvw in books

So, im a very avid reader, but im having difficulty reading, and im only in the second chapter. So I know this book will get very sickening in terms of the gore depicted and all that, and im 100% i can get through all that, and the symbolisms and what not. It's just the vernacular of this book which is leaving me stumped. I like to think i have an above average vocabulary, but there are plenty of words and phrases that in the first chapter left me either having to rack my brain for a minute trying to remember what they mean, using context clues, or straight looking up definitions.

I see a lot of asthetic choices like synoptic chapter headings, no quotation marks for dialouge, etc. Which I appreciate, but this dialog which reads like a thesaurus is something im having trouble with. I dont want to put the book down thats for sure, I never put a book down, I always finish them, but for this, it's like I cant understand it. The part where the kid fights toadvine by the shitter (at least I think it was toadvine) then goes to the hotel to burn it down, at least I think thats what happened, had to be reread like a few times by me to fully understand what was happening, and I still don't think I understand it.

Not that I have a problem with it, im open to a story that demands just to be read without having full comprehension, im down with that, but im not sure if this is that type of book, like am I just too stupid to read it? Or is it alright if I just power through it without having to Google a word every other sentence? Thank you in advance to all the more seasoned readers!

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[deleted] t1_ja22ifw wrote

I absolutely love that book. I found myself looking up all sorts of the vocabulary all throughout. Though I don't think I had the same experience of not understanding parts as you mentioned. To me it kind of reads like some sort of twisted epic poem. It's worth powering through even if you think you're not getting. It remains among my favorites.

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iso_lotus71 t1_ja24sn3 wrote

McCarthy ain’t easy but very edifying if you stick with it. Probably one of the most impressive American writers in the last 100 years.

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glandgames t1_ja24n4s wrote

I put that book down and restarted 3 times before I read it all the way through.

Save it for when you need something biblical/ complicated.

One of my all time favorites, despite having almost hated it for a long time.

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FlySure8568 t1_ja25rp1 wrote

I wasn't that familiar with McCarthy's peculiar vernacular, certainly didn't get every reference, but he had me at "See the child" and the payoff for going with it was huge. Have you ever read Russell Hoban's "Riddley Walker"? Wonderfully worth the effort of struggling with Riddley's narration. It's ultimately beautifully moving and is an irreducible part of that world and those characters. It's interesting to deconstruct these kinds of mastery of language and, of course, it's subject to critical analysis and no one has to like it or even acknowledge its objective merit. I had the instinct to just keep reading and not be distracted by the elements that I didn't fully understand or deverted into trying to lock in each passage's meaning line-by-line. It's high art, not an instruction manual. I don't imagine I'll ever fully understand Blood Meridian but I look forward to reading it again.

It can be like when someone gets hung up on Vermeer's painting technique - - the quality of the work invites that sort of interest - - but that's not the first or most striking thought when you look at "View of Delft".

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HARJAS200007 OP t1_ja4otu5 wrote

Oh I love Riddley Walker, if im remembering it has some elements from a clockwork orange which is one of my all time favorite stories. I appreciate your point on not getting hung up on trying to understand every minute detail and just trying to just get through the piece which is what I'll end up doing.

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Far-Scientist2887 t1_ja3bfrr wrote

Same as a lot of others here - looked up a lot of words, tried my best to understand when things got opaque, but kept it moving forward for what turned out to be one of the great payoffs in modern literature….strongly recommend powering through if you can.

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ReturnOfSeq t1_ja4cjtd wrote

It takes a little while to get into the flow of how he writes-especially for this book-, but it does start to come more smoothly.

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oryoznmilk t1_ja23eb3 wrote

i powered through the audiobook without understanding everything, had your same issues to the point where I didn't even notice a lot of the infamous gore, then went on to watch explaining videos and I'll probably need to reread the book but honestly maybe in like 10 years when I'm wiser... currently not for me.

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Seeker1904 t1_ja2mdon wrote

One of my favourite books of all time. It is very weird though and I'm pretty sure some of the words are phonetic interpretations of other words. If you can stick with it I do recommend it but no shame if it isn't for you.

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Creepy_Path_1618 t1_ja4wb5x wrote

The notion that you have to understand immediately what you are reading is nonsense. If you don't understand it don't let it hold you back. Great works of art should be enjoyed more than once. Great poetry can leave you confused on the first read but that should invite you to read it more and more. Great poetry sustains thousands of readings. Shakespeare's canon is absolutely endless. The more readings done the better you'll understand and that is fine. Blood Meridian will sustain me for the rest of my life. I will read it at least once a year and keep finding new things to take away from it. Now don't be discouraged and just read the book. Also stay off the internet because it sounds like you know too much about BM before diving into and there is an endless amount of spoilers here. I read it cold, I had no idea what I was in for. And honestly, all books and films, music and art, should be experienced cold.

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HARJAS200007 OP t1_ja50feh wrote

Damn thats really what I needed to hear, thank you bro. I haven't been cognitively challenged by a book in a long while. So reading BM of course what strikes me first is all it's various idiosyncrasies, more so than the other of Mccarthy's work like everything post no country for old men. Especially the vernacular as i said. The main reason I wanted to read this book besides being a fan of the author was because I was looking for a work that would heavily disturb me, and I heard the subject matter of this book along with the character of judge holden would do it, so naturally I was inclined. It's a sort of trait I have to hyper analyze every book I read or every film I watch while enjoying it, and the sort of barrier that prevents me from doing so with this work is what threw me off, it's been a long time since I've just tried to take something in for what it is without deep deliberation, which is something im going to have to relearn as I continue reading.

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TarsesaK t1_ja5lpd2 wrote

Stick with and you shouldn't walk away disappointed. He's the best

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