J.G. Ballard

[Fried Egg]

I just read "Unlimited Dream Company" and rated it four (out of five) stars. Here is my short review:

I picked this up on the basis of an unusual and interesting premise but until near the end I didn't know what to make of it. Full of Ballard's verbose and symbolic imagery, this story explores some very adult themes and is not for the easily offended. As the protagonist increasingly believes that the "sins of this world are metaphors for virtues in the next", he proceeds to break down taboos in the town of Shepperton as the reader is left to ponder the meaning of this idea.

As we follow Blake's transformation into some kind of messianic figure, biblical metaphors abound and the town of Shepperton becomes a kind of garden of Eden until realisation of his and humanity's ultimate destiny finally dawns on him.

My high rating of this book reflects more my intellectual appreciation of what the author was trying to do more than my emotional response and personal enjoyment which otherwise would have led me to rate this book lower. Take from that what you will.

 

[D_Davis]

Nice review; I haven't read this one yet, but it's on my shelf. I need to read more Ballard this year.

 

[hitmouse]

Unlimited Dream Company is good. Very psychedelic, and although it is recognisably Ballard, it is a bit different from his other books.

Drought, Drowned World and Crystal World are fantastic, with Drowned World the pick of the bunch. The Wind from Nowhere is early Ballard and is interesting, but not as strong.

Crash is wilfully perverse (even more so than the rest of the oevre) and infamous, and not my favourite.

High Rise, Cocaine Nights, Super Cannes are all about luxury society going off the rails (something Ballard thought was a Good Thing) and are very good.

Of the short stories I would urge anyone to read Vermilion Sands, one of the great short story collections in SF.

I think it helps to understand Ballard in the context of New Wave SF. Try reading the Cornelius Quartet (Moorcock), Bug Jack Barron (Spinrad), The Mueller Fokker Effect (Sladek), Dangerous Visions (ed. Harlan Ellison) as well. Even contemporary reportage from that time is useful e.g. Dispatches (Michael Herr), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (Hunter S Thompson)

 

[Extollager]

If any of you haven't yet read Ballard, I would first ask why, and secondly I would encourage you to do so. He is an author who 1) makes you think, a lot, 2) really understands western culture, 3) will challenge you at each and every turn, and 4) could possibly change the way you think about literature, and, perhaps, life itself.

Why haven't I read Ballard? (I've read two or three short stories, but...)

Well, my sense is that a lot of his writing after his early books wallows in obscenity. Great writers can write about horrific stuff (e.g. Dostoevsky's Ivan Karamazov reciting accounts of cruelty) without relishing it. I have the sense Ballard seems to relish it. So: no thanks, better things to do with my time.

Secondly, I'm not interested in self-conscious literary "experimentalism" as a rule.

 

[D_Davis]

Well, my sense is that a lot of his writing after his early books wallows in obscenity.

Interesting. What gives you this impression? From what I've read, which isn't everything, but a lot, there is not much that I'd call obscene. He does comment on and make use of some perversions of modern society (preoccupation with sex, crass commercialism, media politicians and their thirst for power/fame), but only does so to make a thematic point. He definitely doesn't relish in it in any kind of gratuitous or superfluous way.

Secondly, I'm not interested in self-conscious literary "experimentalism" as a rule.

There are only one or two stories, and maybe one novel, that I would classify as experimental, at least in the definition as applied to something like The Atrocity Exhibition. He does experiment with tone and execution, but rarely is it in opposition to the narrative. On the contrary, when he does experiment it is most often a boon to the narrative and thematic qualities of the piece. A great example is "The Index." There is no other way to make his point than to write it in the way that he did; it's not experimental for the sake of experimentation.

 

[j d worthington]

Interesting. What gives you this impression? From what I've read, which isn't everything, but a lot, there is not much that I'd call obscene. He does comment on and make use of some perversions of modern society (preoccupation with sex, crass commercialism, media politicians and their thirst for power/fame), but only does so to make a thematic point. He definitely doesn't relish in it in any kind of gratuitous or superfluous way.



There are only one or two stories, and maybe one novel, that I would classify as experimental, at least in the definition as applied to something like The Atrocity Exhibition. He does experiment with tone and execution, but rarely is it in opposition to the narrative. On the contrary, when he does experiment it is most often a boon to the narrative and thematic qualities of the piece. A great example is "The Index." There is no other way to make his point than to write it in the way that he did; it's not experimental for the sake of experimentation.

I would second what DD has said here. Ballard can be a challenging writer, it is true -- especially with something like The Atrocity Exhibition, which is one of my personal favorites... and, in fact, save for "The Recognition", in Dangerous Visions, chapters of this were my first exposure to Ballard. But he is a very controlled writer, and does darned little gratuitously. If he utlilizes something which is disturbing, shocking, or "obscene" in the usual sense, it is because it is the best way to approach, metaphorically, what he is addressing. By which I mean it has exactly the sort of resonances on varying levels which allow him to convey, in brief compass, the complexities of the subject. On the other hand, he can often be quite lyrical, as well (as in some of the tales in The Voices of Time or The Terminal Beach... or even portions of The Drowned World or The Crystal World).

In a very real sense, Ballard reminds me of a quote by Edgard Varese: "My experiments end up in the wastebasket, not the score".....

 

[Toby Frost]

My only problem with Ballard is that after a lot of very good short stories and some good novels he ended up saying the same things over and over again. Thrill-seeking middle classes go berserk, anyone?

 

[Extollager]

Thanks for the comments... maybe I will try something from early in his writing again sometime.

 

[D_Davis]

Thanks for the comments... maybe I will try something from early in his writing again sometime.

Check out The Best Short Stories of JG Ballard. It's actually my single favorite collection of short fiction from any author.

 

[D_Davis]

My only problem with Ballard is that after a lot of very good short stories and some good novels he ended up saying the same things over and over again. Thrill-seeking middle classes go berserk, anyone?

This is somewhat true. However, what he had to say was very important, and his singular voice and vision was masterful. Ballard possessed a great understanding of modern culture, and intensely focused his lens on modern humanity.

 

[hitmouse]

Well, my sense is that a lot of his writing after his early books wallows in obscenity.
Secondly, I'm not interested in self-conscious literary "experimentalism" as a rule.

Crash is a deliberately pornographic novel and is pretty obscene. None of the other stuff comes close. His characters and societies often end up doing perverse things, but there is nothing particularly obscene about the descriptions of these acts.

Also, there is nothing particularly experimental about most of Ballard's writing. In fact the style is not dissimilar to John Wyndham: quite conventional middle-class, possibly a bit repressed.

 

[D_Davis]

His style is often times quite cold and clinical, or perhaps detached is a better word, stemming from his early days of wanting to be a medical doctor. It perfectly mirrors the overriding them of his body of work - modern alienation - which when combined with creates what we now call Ballardian.

 

[j d worthington]

Yes, it's a very deliberately chosen mode of writing, perfectly suited to the sort of disturbing worldview of so much of his fiction. On the other hand, Ballard's own voice was quite warm and genial, even generous, as you can see by reading his autobiographical Miracles of Life....

 

[dask]

A friend gave me Ballard's collection LOW FLYING AIRCRAFT as a gift many years ago and every story was stunning. "The Lost Leonardo" and "The Comstat Angles" (if I remember the titles correctly, I'm not sure where the book is at present) left me dazed with admiration.

 

[D_Davis]

Yes, it's a very deliberately chosen mode of writing, perfectly suited to the sort of disturbing worldview of so much of his fiction. On the other hand, Ballard's own voice was quite warm and genial, even generous, as you can see by reading his autobiographical Miracles of Life....

I'm really looking forward to reading that this year. Finally picked it up awhile ago.

 

[Dave]

A Point Of View: JG Ballard and the alchemy of memory

This asks how the memories of early trauma influenced and shaped his fiction and why the same scenery recurs throughout his writings.

Rather than "relish" the memories though, he is quoted as saying that "It took me 20 years to forget, and 20 years to remember."

 

[Nerds_feather]

One of my all time favorite authors, though I prefer his short fiction and novellas to the full length novels.

 

[Harpo]

Today I am reading "High Rise", which is set in a concrete tower block in East London, just north of the river. If I stand up right this minute, my view from the concrete tower block I live in is of the Thames to the south, and Canary Wharf slightly to my right. I strongly suspect I am sitting in the very building which inspired the book I am reading.

 

[Nerds_feather]

Today I am reading "High Rise", which is set in a concrete tower block in East London, just north of the river. If I stand up right this minute, my view from the concrete tower block I live in is of the Thames to the south, and Canary Wharf slightly to my right. I strongly suspect I am sitting in the very building which inspired the book I am reading.

I love that book. I'll never think about trash collection in the same way.

 

[Fried Egg]

Just read "Hello America" and, like D_Davis, was somewhat disappointed. Although I'm not sure if it's entirely for the same reasons. If like D_Davis you are expecting something more scathing of the American Dream, it is actually was more simultaneously scathing and loving. Ballard, like many people growing up in the mind twentieth century, was heavily influenced and in awe of American culture while even if he has gone on to see its flaws. The sentiment of this novel reflects that.

For me it just all felt a little too contrived, too preposterous (bot the premise and plot/character developments). I think Ballard knew what story he wanted to tell but not quite how to tell it.

Certainly not one of my favourites.