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Tue, 14 Mar 2023 23:05:22 GMT

What similarities are there in the works of Lovecraft and Douglas Hofstedter?

H.P. Lovecraft and Douglas Hofstadter are two very different authors with distinct styles and subject matters. Lovecraft is known for his horror fiction and cosmic horror, while Hofstadter is known for his work in cognitive science, artificial intelligence, and mathematical logic. However, there are some similarities that can be drawn between the two authors.

One similarity is their interest in exploring the limits of human knowledge and understanding. Lovecraft often wrote about the dangers of encountering knowledge that is beyond human comprehension, while Hofstadter has written extensively on the nature of consciousness, the limits of artificial intelligence, and the mysteries of the human mind.

Another similarity is their use of intricate and complex language. Lovecraft was known for his verbose and ornate prose, often using archaic language and obscure words to create an otherworldly atmosphere. Similarly, Hofstadter is known for his playful and witty writing style, often incorporating puns, paradoxes, and wordplay into his works.

Finally, both authors have been influential in their respective fields and have inspired others to explore similar themes and ideas. Lovecraft's horror fiction has inspired countless writers and filmmakers, while Hofstadter's work has influenced the fields of artificial intelligence, cognitive science, and philosophy of mind.

While Lovecraft and Hofstadter are very different in many ways, their work shares some common themes and ideas, making them both significant figures in their respective fields.

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Tough Guy Writers of the Thirties, edited by David Madden

Sun, 10 Sep 2017 23:07:24 GMT

A 1968 collection of essays on the the Tough Guys of 30s fiction by diverse authors, primarily academic (including Carolyn See of UCLA (Extension at the time) - her dissertation was on the Hollywood novel, and her essay here explores the well-populated cross-section of Hollywood and tough guys). I picked it up at an estate sale on a whim.

Probably the best of the bunch and a good primer on the topic is "The 'Black Mask' School" by Edgar-winning UCLA Professor Philip Durham, focusing on the origins and contents of the eponymous pulp magazine.

Some essays are insightful, others veer off into academese, others display a surprising distaste for the whole topic:

"Although the novel is atrociously written, with ... a tone I can describe only as illiterate archness, it does contain some of the important elements of gangster fiction: an Italian hero, an unbelievable amount of brutality ..., quite a bit of very rapid and decidedly unexciting sex, a Robin Hood sort of romanticism, and some fairly knowledgeable accounts of the methods of criminals."

Of a different novel: "Chase apparently took all the elements he found striking in gangster fiction and magnified them as far as his imagination and the censors would allow; the result is one of the rarest of rare birds, a truly horrible book."

One interesting insight that caught me eye is the epigraph to an essay on Hammett, quoted from Angus Fletcher's Allegory: "[The 'daemonic agent'] will act as if possessed ... He will act part way between the human and divine spheres, touching on both, which suggests that he can be used for the model romantic hero, since romance allows its heroes both human interest and divine power. His essentially energic character will delight the reader with an appearance of unadulterated power. Like a Machiavellian prince, the allegorical hero can act free of the usual moral restraints, even when he is acting morally, since he is moral only in the interests of his power over other men. This sort of action has a crude fascination for us all; it impels us to read the detective story, the western, the saga of space exploration and interplanetary travel."

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Journal of No. 118

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Tough Guy Writers of the Thirties, edited by David Madden