http://www.nehrlich.com/blog/2004/09/26/infinite-jest-by-david-foster-wallace/ Eric Nehrlich, Unrepentant Generalist Thu, 09 Feb 2012 09:24:42 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 http://www.nehrlich.com/blog/2004/09/26/infinite-jest-by-david-foster-wallace/comment-page-1/#comment-317218 Eric Nehrlich, Unrepentant Generalist || Fiction Roundup Sept. 2008 – April 2010 || April || 2010 Tue, 13 Apr 2010 05:46:54 +0000 /?p=127#comment-317218 [...] I thought I’d pick up his first novel from the library. I enjoyed it – I thought it was DFW-esque in its digressions into social observations from side characters. It wasn’t particularly [...] [...] I thought I’d pick up his first novel from the library. I enjoyed it – I thought it was DFW-esque in its digressions into social observations from side characters. It wasn’t particularly [...]

]]> http://www.nehrlich.com/blog/2004/09/26/infinite-jest-by-david-foster-wallace/comment-page-1/#comment-171009 Eric Nehrlich, Unrepentant Generalist || US Open || August || 2008 Tue, 26 Aug 2008 02:22:06 +0000 /?p=127#comment-171009 [...] I’m no David Foster Wallace (who writes extensively about the mental game of tennis in Infinite Jest and in his essays), but it was fun to see so many different styles throughout the day. I watched [...] [...] I’m no David Foster Wallace (who writes extensively about the mental game of tennis in Infinite Jest and in his essays), but it was fun to see so many different styles throughout the day. I watched [...]

]]> http://www.nehrlich.com/blog/2004/09/26/infinite-jest-by-david-foster-wallace/comment-page-1/#comment-47889 Eric Nehrlich, Unrepentant Generalist || Why do we write? || September || 2004 Fri, 25 May 2007 11:39:41 +0000 /?p=127#comment-47889 [...] spent some time over the past couple days thinking about why Infinite Jest annoyed me so much. I went and read several gushing reviews of the book, as well as interviews with [...] [...] spent some time over the past couple days thinking about why Infinite Jest annoyed me so much. I went and read several gushing reviews of the book, as well as interviews with [...]

]]> http://www.nehrlich.com/blog/2004/09/26/infinite-jest-by-david-foster-wallace/comment-page-1/#comment-20709 Eric Nehrlich, Unrepentant Generalist || Generalist || October || 2004 Fri, 09 Mar 2007 09:16:18 +0000 /?p=127#comment-20709 [...] But in this age of increasing specialization, it really is a full-time job to become an expert in a field, to keep up with all the latest journals, to practice your chosen profession, etc. To become a world-renowned expert, you have to pretty much sacrifice everything else in your life to your field. David Foster Wallace touches on that in his descriptions of the tennis prodigies in both Infinite Jest and the essay titled “Tennis Player Michael Joyce’s Professional Artistry as a Paradigm of Certain Stuff about Choice, Freedom, Discipline, Joy, Grotesquerie, and Human Completeness” in his book of essays. And I’m not willing to make that commitment. To anything. [...] [...] But in this age of increasing specialization, it really is a full-time job to become an expert in a field, to keep up with all the latest journals, to practice your chosen profession, etc. To become a world-renowned expert, you have to pretty much sacrifice everything else in your life to your field. David Foster Wallace touches on that in his descriptions of the tennis prodigies in both Infinite Jest and the essay titled “Tennis Player Michael Joyce’s Professional Artistry as a Paradigm of Certain Stuff about Choice, Freedom, Discipline, Joy, Grotesquerie, and Human Completeness” in his book of essays. And I’m not willing to make that commitment. To anything. [...]

]]> http://www.nehrlich.com/blog/2004/09/26/infinite-jest-by-david-foster-wallace/comment-page-1/#comment-17162 Eric Nehrlich, Unrepentant Generalist || Nonfiction Roundup February 2007 || February || 2007 Sat, 24 Feb 2007 17:47:17 +0000 /?p=127#comment-17162 [...] Despite widespread popular acclaim, I was not able to get through more than the first 50 pages of The Corrections the one time I picked it up from the library. So when I saw this short book of essays from Jonathan Franzen at the library, I figured I would give it a try to see if it enticed me into trying the bigger book, much like I did by first reading David Foster Wallace’s essays before tackling Infinite Jest. Alas, I was unimpressed by the essays - they were reasonably well-written, but didn’t have any defining characteristics, such as the dazzling wordplay of Wallace or the humor of David Sedaris. So I’ll move on to other authors. [...] [...] Despite widespread popular acclaim, I was not able to get through more than the first 50 pages of The Corrections the one time I picked it up from the library. So when I saw this short book of essays from Jonathan Franzen at the library, I figured I would give it a try to see if it enticed me into trying the bigger book, much like I did by first reading David Foster Wallace’s essays before tackling Infinite Jest. Alas, I was unimpressed by the essays – they were reasonably well-written, but didn’t have any defining characteristics, such as the dazzling wordplay of Wallace or the humor of David Sedaris. So I’ll move on to other authors. [...]

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