What are you reading mark II

[Fellfrosch]

That's true--the commercialization of the spirit is the same reason that bad Mormon music bothers me more than bad mainstream music. I suppose it's the same in books.

[House of Mustard]

On a mildly related note, I've found it's a lot harder for me to get spiritually involved at church anymore.  If I'm in a particularly good lesson, or hear an interesting scripture, the first thing to pop into my head is how that would apply to a book I'm working on.

[MsFish]

Yeah, but there's a difference between expressing the spirit in art and using that expression of it to manipulate people, I think.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

I maintain that knowing someone for three weeks is very different from seeing them for three seconds without *ever* talking to them.  I'm sorry, but I don't believe the spirit works that way.  It might say, "go talk to that person," but at least in my experience it doesn't say, "see that person over there who you've never seen before?  You are going to marry them."  Ridiculous.

Isn't that what happened to Jacob though? And what happened Isaac. Except with Isaac, it wasn't even him, it was his SERVANT. So, yes, yes it CAN work that way. Or else you don't believe the scriptures.

But the fact that it happens so frequently in literature isn't realizstic, and gets quite annoying. It does decieve people into thinking it happened when it hasn't.

[House of Mustard]

But speaking of that: it would be neat for Anita Stansfield to write a novel where somebody's servant sees a girl and falls in love at first sight by proxy.

[fuzzyoctopus]

Mustard, I'd like to complain that your book is too intelligent.  The copy I bought for my mother for Christmas has completely disappeared, forcing me to go to Deseret Book and buy another copy.

How did you do that?

[House of Mustard]

Were I anyone else on this board, I would blame it on the Ninja Monkeys.

However, the truth is that reading the book bores you into a semi-conscious state, and you can't ever remember where you left it.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

It's the Mormon equivelent of Heroin.

[House of Mustard]

If only it were half that addicitive.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

that wouldn't be mormon heroin.

[MsFish]

Hmm...Jacob.  Good point.  So what we have here is an overrepresentation that makes the exception look like the rule.  

One of these days I'm going to have to locate Mustard's book and read it.  It won't be this week, cause I imagine it's pretty hard to find in California.  

[House of Mustard]

I'm not sure where you are in California, but there are Deseret Books in Orange County, Sacramento, and San Diego.  And there are Seagull Books in Los Angeles and Oakland.

Just trying to be helpful...  

[Fellfrosch]

Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

[Entsuropi]

Just to be myself...

But the fact that it happens so frequently in literature isn't realizstic, and gets quite annoying. It does decieve people into thinking it happened when it hasn't.

The equivelant comment would be to say that spys getting betrayed by their superiors in thrillers is an overrepresentation. Its a book, a work of fiction, so it does not have to be statistically correct about how things work - fiction is generally about the exceptions. And having the entire genre do it is just like the whole of the fantasy genre having magic - its an intristic part of it.

[Fellfrosch]

True, but a genre that deals with allegedly real situations is bound to create more real-world expectations than a genre that deals with fantastical worlds and characters the readers will never have to deal with. The fallacy of the evil overlord monologue may be a misrepresentation, and it may lead me into trouble if I ever meet an actual evil overlord and expect him to give a monologue--but that happens so rarely that it's not going to matter. Any misconceptions I have about dating and marriage, on the other hand, are going to cause problems on a daily basis.