SU, you could have done better

[Levin]

but still a nice effort by Egan to complain about the lack of respect given Stegner.

http://egan.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/0...ers-complaint/

[SeattleUte]

Originally Posted by Levin

but still a nice effort by Egan to complain about the lack of respect given Stegner.

http://egan.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/0...ers-complaint/

Well, I think this column means the cultural elite has finally embraced him. Now he is a god everywhere except the state of his upbringing and collegiate education. He had Mormon friends, went to M.I.A., some sacrament meetings, but in the end felt like a fish out of water in Salt Lake valley, a feeling some of us from Utah can relate to. Still, the formative experience left its mark. He wrote volumes about Utah and the Mormons. And despite his estrangement from the culture he always applied his formidable genius and artistry to treat LDS culture with dignity and admiration. Ironically, he's virtually unrecognized in Utah though Utah could have claimed him as a son like Mississippi does Faulkner. We all know
why Utah disowned him, because if you're an artist and don't use your artistry to contribute to the myth, if you don't propagandize the de facto theocracy, you're an enemy. Well, Utah has forfeited Wallace Stegner, and it's a damn shame.

Thanks for the link. That was a beautiful tribute.

[Levin]

If the hope is that someday westerners will create a society to match the geography, then a related hope is that Utah will create a culture that appreciates the authors that turned the mountains and red rock into words, like Stegner and Abbey.

There are a few "rebels" at BYU: my Utah history professor assigned us only Abbey and Stegner. You're right about how Stegner wrote about Mormon history: with dignity, admiration, and artistry. Why can't we embrace him? Oh yeah, that's right: we fear honesty.

[MikeWaters]

the reason why Stegner is so unknown, I would venture, is that he is probably rarely read in high school.

Most Americans do as much reading by the time they are 18 as they will do for the rest of the their lives.

[Levin]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

the reason why Stegner is so unknown, I would venture, is that he is probably rarely read in high school.

Most Americans do as much reading by the time they are 18 as they will do for the rest of the their lives.

You're talking about a subclass of people who don't know Faulkner or Hemingway either. They've heard of Shakespeare.

It's a different group Egan is talking about.

[MikeWaters]

Originally Posted by Levin

You're talking about a subclass of people who don't know Faulkner or Hemingway either. They've heard of Shakespeare.

It's a different group Egan is talking about.

there are many educated people who don't read very much. Due to the demands of work and family. Not being included on the classics lists during high school contributes greatly to obscurity.

For example, I feel pretty comfortable talking about Willa Cather. Why? Because I had a high school teacher who forced us to read two of her books.

[Archaea]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

there are many educated people who don't read very much. Due to the demands of work and family. Not being included on the classics lists during high school contributes greatly to obscurity.

For example, I feel pretty comfortable talking about Willa Cather. Why? Because I had a high school teacher who forced us to read two of her books.

One of Ours was a great book. I'm surprised they still encourage people to read her. We read Sinclair Lewis but not Willa Cather. Was One of Ours ever made into a movie?