Autobiography of Red by Anne Carson

Poetry. Art. Mythology. Queer.

Rating: Doesn't Really Apply, but 5/5?

Started: 6 January 2022

Finished: 8 January 2022

Summary:

    Anne Carson's Autobiography of Red is bizarre reframing of the Greek myth of Herakles where he goes to kill Geryon. Both whimsical and intrinsically human, the book looks at a fictional writer and their set of  partially lost poems about Geryon, a red boy with wings, who is also lost. 

Thoughts:

    This book is so far outside of what I normally read that I am honestly at a little bit of a loss. The most that I can say is that the book is art. Not character, not story, but art. It's a startling juxtaposition of myth and the mundane, a snapshot of a man who is okay, with all of the minutiae lyrically explored and all of the important details omitted. 

    Aside from my confusion, I adored this book. I am obsessed with writing that is art, and so the beauty of the word choice and the details that were given in order to create a silhouette of the plot was incredible. Though frankly most lines of the book were phrases that I could read over and over, here are a few of my favorites:

    "Lurch downward to Geryon trapped in his own bad apple."

    "Up on the overpass the night was wide open and blowing headlights like a sea. He stood against the wind and let it peel him clean." 

    "The cries took little nicks out of him. this was when Geryon liked to plan his autobiography, in that blurred stat between awake and asleep when too many intake valves are open in the soul." 

    The sentences are almost nonsense, but the connotation of each word creates such a specific impression. I love it. 

    Another thing that I thought was cool was the way that queer relationships and characters were portrayed. Again, everything was addressed in that peculiar style where a conclusion must be drawn by the details and the omissions of important events, but that just made it feel more personal and private when I understood what was going on. I think that Geryon is aspec, but he was with Herakles for a while, and was maybe romantically attracted to men? I'm not sure, but that might be the point. Anyways, having queer characters in a combination of myth and poetry was really lovely. 

    I definitely want to re-read this book some day. I might buy it, I don't know. All I know was that it was very, very pretty. And that counts for a lot. 

Words

    Epithets (n) an adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned

    Proemium (n) a preface or introduction

    Encomium (n) a speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly

    Metaphysics (n) the branch of philosophy that deals with the first principles of things, including abstract concepts such as being, knowing, substance, cause, identity, time, and space. 

    Bitumen (n) a black viscous mixture of hydrocarbons obtained naturally or as a residue from petroleum distillation, used for road surfacing and roofing

    Facile (adj) especially of a theory or argument, appearing neat and comprehensive only by ignoring the true complexities of an issue; superficial

    Nullity (n) a thing of no importance or worth

    Denotes (vs connotes) (v) be a sign of; indicate or represent exactly, whereas to connote is to imply a meaning or condition

    Ataraxia (n) a state of serene calmness

    Pittance (n) a very small or inadequate amount of money paid to someone as an allowance or wage

    Pampas (n) fertile South American lowlands

    Gaucho (n) a skilled horseman, reputed to be brave and unruly

    Lignifying (v) become rigid and woody bythe deposition of lignin in cell walls

    Highboy (n) a high or double chest of drawers

    Dogma (n) a principle or set of principles laid down by an authority as incontrovertibly true 

    Atelier (n) private workshop or studio of a professional artist