Posts tagged with angst.
Five titles to soothe teen angst
Across Canada, legions of high school seniors are struggling with the imminent end of their youth. An uncomfortable transitionary phase, as such, requires fiction. And damn good fiction at that. In lieu of this objective, I've compiled a list of five books that my friends and I employed in coping with this time. I invite readers to post their own below.
The Savage Detectives - Roberto Bolaño
The Savage Detectives was first published in English in 2007. It follows the lives of two poets, one Mexican and one Chilean, from 1976 to 1996. Ostensibly, it's a musing on the importance of poetry. Yet it's also an examination of time, how it passes and how we change in its flow. The book is wonderfully understated, preferring to take a passive examination of the lives of its characters. For the angsty teen, it offers an honest depiction of the process of aging. Or, at least I assume it's an honest depiction. Not yet twenty, I don't think I'm a particularly good authority on the "process" just yet. Ah well, this guy likes it too.
Hamlet - William Shakespeare
Hamlet is over 400 years old. However, it is remarkably relevant to today's teenagers. Hamlet may be a 26-year-old, possibly crazy, Dutch prince contemplating regicide but his indecisiveness, existential wallowing and histrionics (e.g. talking to skulls) are perfectly relatable to teenagers struggling to decide what to do with their post-secondary lives. If you find reading Shakespeare a woolly endeavour, at least rent Laurence Olivier's 1948 performance of Hamlet, if only to hear the profuse dripping of his perfect RP accent.
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger's 1951 classic, has become the standard-bearer of teen angst. The story is narrated by Holden Caulfield, a newly expelled student of a Pennsylvania private school. Following his expulsion, Caulfield recounts his return home to New York City. What follows is two days of drunkenness, cigarettes and extended rants on "phoniness." Caulfield represents typical teenage unease about growing old in an ugly world. Salinger is an incredible recluse, yet the post office in his hometown still receives thousands of letters a year from fans. I imagine the letters are all about how Salinger perfectly realized their fears in Holden Caulfield.
The Dharma Bums - Jack Kerouac
The Dharma Bums is Jack Kerouac's second novel, written after the events of his more notable On the Road. While The Dharma Bums lacks the execution and brilliant representation of the Beat Generation found in On the Road, it's still a deep and important book. Published ten years before his eventual death from alcoholism, it finds Kerouac at a point where he's questioning the substance of his substance-driven life. The Dharma Bums is Kerouac's search for deeper meaning. While his treatment of Buddhism is considered simplistic, he manages to write a story that affirms the potential of a human life and our capacity to determine our own happiness. It's a nice sentiment.
Candide - Voltaire
When Voltaire first published Candide, it was designed to be a satire of the prevailing metaphysical debates of the day. However, the book is largely a vague outline on how to conduct your life in a world largely indifferent to your own personal search for happiness. I say vague because the final and most important line in the book, in which the titular character pronounces "we must cultivate our garden," can be interpreted in different ways. Voltaire was quite the green thumb so you can take the line literally, or you can see it as affirming the dedication of your life to simple and meaningful things ... rather than sitting around with a headache, watching late night TV with a bag of potato chips, and wondering what to do with your life. Not that I've ever done that.
Bonus: TED Videos
Reading a book takes a long time. So if you're looking for the enlightenment found in a good book without the investment of time, watch TED videos. Especially these: this one, this one and this one. TED (stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an annual conference that invites big thinkers to Monterey, Calif., to share their ideas. The links above are to two psychologists and one Buddhist monk. All three are extolling their wisdom on the pursuit of happiness. They clock in at around 20 minutes, so together, it's enlightenment in about an hour!
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literature,
teen,
angst
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