Define Of Books Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles
| Title | : | Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles |
| Author | : | Jeanette Winterson |
| Book Format | : | Hardcover |
| Book Edition | : | Canongate Myths |
| Pages | : | Pages: 151 pages |
| Published | : | October 5th 2005 by Canongate U.S. |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Fantasy. Mythology. Literary Fiction. Retellings |
Jeanette Winterson
Hardcover | Pages: 151 pages Rating: 3.77 | 5427 Users | 557 Reviews
Representaion Concering Books Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles
“When I was asked to choose a myth to write about, I realized I had chosen already. The story of Atlas holding up the world was in my mind before the telephone call had ended. If the call had not come, perhaps I would never have written the story, but when the call did come, that story was waiting to be written. Rewritten. The recurring language motif of Weight is ‘I want to tell the story again.’ My work is full of cover versions. I like to take stories we think we know and record them differently. In the retelling comes a new emphasis or bias, and the new arrangement of the key elements demands that fresh material be injected into the existing text. Weight moves far away from the simple story of Atlas’s punishment and his temporary relief when Heracles takes the world off his shoulders. I wanted to explore loneliness, isolation, responsibility, burden, and freedom, too, because my version has a very particular end not found elsewhere.” -- from Jeanette Winterson’s Foreword to WeightDescribe Books To Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles
| Original Title: | Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles |
| ISBN: | 1841957186 (ISBN13: 9781841957180) |
| Edition Language: | English |
Rating Of Books Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles
Ratings: 3.77 From 5427 Users | 557 ReviewsAssessment Of Books Weight: The Myth of Atlas and Heracles
I very much enjoyed the re-working of the myth of Atlas (and a dumb Heracles was a refreshing change) but did Winterson really have to include the auto-biographical bit? It does nothing to enhance the tale, and anyway if the reader wants to know more about her life, I'm sure there are better places to look...This book takes on the myth of Atlas and Heracles. Heracles (Hercules in Greek), being the only one in Greek mythology that can also carry the weight of the world, approaches Atlas for help in completing a task in exchange for some "time-off" for Atlas. This book is about that myth.And it isn't. It is about the weight of the world. Our own personal burdens, and how nothing can also feel like everything. It's about how we relate to stories.Our own intertwined with others, changing a little every
*5000/5 stars This book is the definition of perfection. I went into this book, basically only knowing that my favourite author Jeanette Winterson wrote it, and that it had something to do with greek mythology. Since it's Jeanette Winterson, I should probably have been prepared for this mind-blowing "my-life-will-never-be-the-same-again" feeling that I now have in my body, but still I'm amazed and shocked. Where shall I even begin? Okay, let's start with saying that this is a retelling of the
What a disappointing book. Almost masturbatory in some areas, and I don't just mean the extended bits where Heracles strums his own trumpet - you can actually imagine Winterson writing this and thinking to herself 'oh yeah, that's for the academics, that's the stuff'. Winterson clearly fancies herself up there with the greatest philosophers of all eras, and the texts she produces just don't merit that belief. This book pertains to discuss Atlas' burden as being not a physical burden, but more a
Will write a review later
Poets across the world groan at the sheer injustice of Jeanette Winterson's ability with words. If ever anyone could turn a phrase, Winterson can, and so as always, I was thoroughly immersed in her language and her compelling take on a story I thought I knew. Unfortunately, - also as usual - I had trouble relating with major aspects of her characters. (For instance, the fact that Heracles is a serious sex-fiend.) Although I tend to find myself wishing Winterson would tell different stories than
Jeanette Winterson is a marvellous writer. There is a delicate, intricate lyricism in her words; a force strong enough to carve out trains of favouritism in the most objective of readers. Her prose is deeply meditative and effortlessly fluid often and infinitely more poetic than most poets can manage. One can not approach Winterson's works with pre-conceived ideas and still manage to successfully penetrate the field of her works; which, all in their own significant ways, subvert the very
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