Jul 27, 2024
Books that satirize the Bildungsroman?
This is the best I can come up with: — The Poor Mouth, Flann O'Brien. Primary satire is of the Celtic Twilight stuff/romanticising of rural life, but it is a satirical bildungsroman. — The History of Mr Polly, H.G. Wells. A comic bildungsroman which I think can be read as satire, and my favorite thing by Wells. Severely underrated. — The Fall of Kelvin Walker, Alasdair Gray. This is short and only about the "young man meets big city" aspect of the bildungsroman but it might qualify. Ages since I read it so not sure. — A Touch of Mistletoe, Barbara Comyns. If a bildungsroman full of bad choices is in itself satirical of the form, this counts. — My Idea of Fun, Will Self. I think this does parody many aspects of the bildungsroman, especially the "influential father-figure" and "discovering your hidden power" stuff.
Thank ypu so much for the recs!
might be a stretch but could confederacy of dunces work? main character's a complete but endearing manchild who, if i recall correctly, has a silly "maturation" at the end of the book.
Time for me to admit I haven't read it yet. Added to my TBR
Great question, I feel like I've read several such books but can't remember OTTOMH. Beckett's "Murphy" perhaps? Young man doesn't learn anything and gradually goes crackers. I'll think about this tomorrow.
I agree Murphy could work but a lot of Beckett's works (e.g. Malone Dies) has a similar plot but with adults. This suggests Beckett was just partial to such a storyline rather than primarily focused on subverting the cominf-of-age.
Orlando, Tristram Shandy, Candide, The Catcher in the Rye, and Brooke-Rose’s Remake are some examples of novels that do this to at least some extent with varying degrees of quality. I’m looking for books where the subversion or satirisation is a core part, not just incidental.
The Tatami Galaxy by Tomihiko Morimi. Surreal, is funny and has a very good understanding of what makes you tick from the formative years to the "I am done" years. It's also not afraid to be blunt about the weird shit guys do during these times, but also doesn't judge you for them in a mean-spirited way. One of my all time favourites.
Never heard of it. Thanks!