When I first
started reading The Mezzanine, I was expecting a book that followed the normal
plot line, suspense increasing until we reach a climax, after which the tension
is resolved. After two or three chapters, however, I began to suspect that
Baker was not merely setting the scene for some future event, and I resigned
myself to 135 pages of unnecessarily meticulous description of the lunch hour of
an ordinary guy who I didn't even care about.
As it turns
out, I was in for a bit of a surprise. Baker’s narrative was insightful,
engaging, witty, and altogether remarkably enjoyable. How, then, was he able
to create such a successful novel with such a seemingly humdrum vehicle to drive his plot?
There were many factors, of course, that played a part (e.g. his juxtaposition of
arcane adjectives and run-of-the-mill objects, or his use of footnotes to allow
the reader to really experience his train of thought), but I think the one that
truly lifted The Mezzanine to its
current status as an extremely successful experimental novel is Baker’s, or
rather his main character, Howie’s, relentless passion for absolutely everything,
no matter how prosaic.
From the very
first page, his passion for escalator rides in the sun spills over into the
first footnote, as he proclaims that he “loves the constancy of shine on the
edges of moving objects.” Such observations of the various undocumented aspects of day to day life
continue throughout the rest of the book, and his devotion to detail often
brought up vivid memories that I never knew I had. Another thing that really
emphasized the passion he had was his extensive research on questions that I
had never thought about, but also didn’t know the answer to myself, such as why
shoelaces snap, or why some plastic straws float. I often found myself trying to improve upon
his hypotheses, and that lead me to read more and more. Even things he talked
about that I couldn’t relate to, such as records or CVSs, were interesting, and
his passion for each one came across in spades.
All in all,
while this wasn’t exactly what I expected at the beginning, I found that reading
it a few pages at a time prompted some really interesting ideas, and not only
did I enjoy the book, but I also learned a lot. I have a feeling that future
readers, while perhaps not understanding everything he discusses from the
1980s, will still be able to connect with and appreciate his passion, and will
find themselves intrigued by the myriad viewpoints and theories he postulates.
I wonder how The Mezzanine would have worked with a main character NOT like Howie and one that didn't find such passion in objects/theories/life. Would it still be possible to create a novel out of thoughts that weren't so "thought out" and documented? It would be extremely interesting to see if Baker could make that much out of a lunch-hour if his character didn't have such an overwhelmingly positive and intriguing view towards the seemingly trivial aspects of life.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious (although I agree) as to why you think that Howie is the key factor in making The Mezzanine an interesting novel. You mention that Howie's passion for seemingly commonplace items makes the book interesting, but imagine someone telling you, "Hey, here's this great book about a guy spending pages and pages describing straws and paper!" In all honestly I feel like that description of The Mezzanine really wouldn't sell it for me...
ReplyDeleteReading your blog post and various others, it seems like many people's expectations were confounded by the lack of plot in The Mezzanine. It makes me think about how stories were first told, and how plot was the easiest and most important thing to remember in older narratives because they were a) oral tradition and b) many times fashioned as cautionary tales with less emphasis on character or other aspects of writing; It is only with today's prevalence of text, leaving the modern author infinite canvas, that the subversion of plot can be achieved such as in The Mezzanine which relies heavily upon the fixed nature of written language to add anecdotes that aren't terribly related to the main action or even the main tangent. It stands as a good example of the power of "modern fiction" as conceived by Woolf.
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ReplyDeleteThe Mezzanine certainly was a surprise to all of us! It's quite a unique novel. I especially liked the point that you brought up at the end, the possibility of future readers comprehending this book. I know I would be completely intrigued by The Mezzanine if I had not been born reasonably close to its publishing date. It made me start to think: what if a century from now, historians used this as a primary source?Baker gives immense amounts of detail on everyday life. If someone wanted to know what it was like to live in the 1980's (culturally, technologically, socially) as a white middle-class male, this would certainly be a great document to study!
ReplyDeleteI share many of the same sentiments--the Mezzanine is really unique in how its crafted from observations on typical life and that you can learn a bit of information from it that you normally wouldn't seek out. Your mention of aspects you couldn't relate to brings up an idea I hadn't really thought of before. A lot of the enjoyment that can be derived from this book is founded on relatability and while all of us have gone to a restroom or used a milk carton, the experience of reading this book is different for every person because of their own personal experiences. I can relate to enjoying records while other people might not, but then other aspects written about in the book I can't relate to while others can.
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