It's complex
Posted by Arnessa on April 29, 1998 at 16:33:57:
In response to hmmm... this is a difficult one., written by Kate on April 27, 1998 at 17:22:45
Not to be a Stella apologist, but sometimes it's hard to say what are an author's feelings and what's just a function of keeping in character. Having read other Stella books, I've noticed other anti-Semitic strains. But it is revealing that in one book, Nightingale Wood, the characters of the upper crust tend to have this strain more than other characters. And when the daughter of a wealthy family is forced to live rather poorly in London, she is befriended by Jewish people and speaks rather highly of her companions' intellect and their warmth as opposed to her family who cast her off with hardly a thought. It's hard to say whether Stella's views changed of if with the casual anti-Semitic remarks she was trying to accurately portray and certain class of people in a certain time in history. Anyway, I can understand that the remarks are upsetting, (especially since we all like to see authors that we like as having similar views as ourselves), but since they are not central to the book's story, they are hardly enough to spoil my enjoyment of it.
- yes, and... Kate 08:30:19 4/30/98
(0)
Posting followups to old messages is disabled; instead go to the main index and post a new message which mentions this one.
