Reading 1001 discussion
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The Radiant Way
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The Radiant Way by Margaret Drabble. December 2021 Buddy Read
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I put in my ILL request for this one tonight, so hopefully it will arrive soon at my library.1. I have read several Drabble books, and this is the last one I need to read for the Boxall 1001 and Guardian 1000 lists. I've so far read The Witch of Exmoor, The Red Queen, The Millstone, and The Dark Flood Rises. My favorite was the first half of The Red Queen.
2. I am guessing I'll enjoy The Radiant Way, and usually her characters are somewhat relatable for me, so I expect I'll at least be somewhat engaged with the characters. Beyond that I'll have to find out when I read it, since each book I've read of Drabble's has been a bit different.
Pre-questions:A. Have you read anything by Drabble before? If so, what?
No, none but, I have heard about The Red Queen
B. What expectations do you have going into this novel?
None LOL
Mod
A. Have you read anything by Drabble before? If so, what? I read The Red Queen. I found it a good read but it wasn't something I could plow through. I agree that she can be a bit like Henry James which I also find to not be a fast read.
B. What expectations do you have going into this novel? I thought the description sounded quite good. And 1980s isn't that long ago for me so it should be interesting to revisit.
I started reading last night.
A. I have also read The Red Queen, which was not a favorite. Like Jamie, I found the first half better than the second half.B. I am looking forward to this book about intelligent, educated women.
Jamie wrote: "My favorite was the first half of The Red Queen..."I liked the first half of The Red Queen but hated the second half. I'm glad I'm not the only one who found a big difference between the quality of each half. This book is much better, in my opinion.
Mod
Kristel wrote: "I read it so long ago but now that you all are mentioning it not being so good second half. I do recall initially liking it but I don'remember the second half. I think there is some magical realism..."I do think there was some magical realism, but I typically like that. If I recall, the first half was historical fiction and about the Red Queen. That part was interesting. The second half was set in the current time with an either super dull and/or annoying main character.
Mod
The second half if I recall right, the dull woman had something like visitations from the red queen.
from my review; It is like a story in a story. It starts with the story of a long sense dead Korean girl. She is telling the story from the other side. The second story is the story of the female who is reading the story of the Queen.
I got my copy from the library in late November so I`m ready to read, and also am leaving the province next week so fully intend to read it in the next few days. I haven`t read a book by her before to my knowledge (I guess I`m the only one here who hasn`t read the Red Queen yet lol). But, I am interested in how this one will go. I feel like I`m either really going to vibe with it, or feel pretty meh about it (essentially can`t wait to see if it`s a good commentary on gender and success and classism, or if it`s going to be another dull upper class problems book).
Kristel wrote: "Diane wrote: "Kristel wrote: "I read it so long ago but now that you all are mentioning it not being so good second half. I do recall initially liking it but I don'remember the second half. I think..."The second half is a modern woman channeling the soul or spirit of the Red Queen. The premise could have been good, but in practice it was just awkward and dull.
1. The Radiant Way is a novel about relationships. What were the relationships found in the book and how did they change over time?The primary relationship is that of the three women who met at Cambridge and how they relate to each other throughout the years depicted. However, there are relationships between mother and daughters, mothers and children, other friends and people met through work, and these women and their spouses and romantic interests. Plus there is the relationship of these three women to their culture and the society around them. The relationships shift through time but the biggest shift appears to be the shift toward their own society as the political and economic situations change and they are forced to deal with this change in their individual ways.
2. Many of the 1001 list books feature women as secondary characters. How is this book different from other list books written in the 20th century? How does Drabble evoke the female point of view? How does she make the female character’s voice heard? Would you consider this a feminist novel? Why or why not?
The women of this novel are truly the primary characters as the narrator brings a women's voice to the overview and then each of the women is seen from the point of view of a sympathetic intimate. The narrator is not neutral. The women themselves are very capable. They have vulnerabilities and challenges, but they are each very able to take care of themselves by themselves and yet depend upon their relationships for strength.
I am not good with labeling such as "feminist" literature. In the 1980's this may have been considered a feminist novel by virtue of the relative independence of the primary characters. Today, this may be considered feminist by virtue of the arguments surrounding the disintegration of what had been a male dominated society.
3. How does Drabble use speech rhythms and patterns to make her characters unique? How does this contribute to the story?
I think that an English ear would be better able to answer this question. The characters each reflect an "upbringing" either of their class or of their educational background. Further, Drabble uses her characters to speak to the fragmentation and breakdown of English society in the 80's so they come with a point of view which leans to the pessimistic side. As an American, the one thing that I enjoyed was the way the reader heard what the characters were thinking in a somewhat cozy dialect.
4. How is The Radiant Way narrated? How does Drabble use this narrative technique to give the reader a sense of place and history?
Our narrator, as mentioned above, appears to be intimate and sympathetic to the women in the book and able to give context by describing political and economic events that surround the women. The voice of the narrator is all knowing in regards the women's thoughts but she is never presented as the author herself, although much of the political arguments are no doubt those of the author. Also, the narrator is not constrained by the chronological time line that has been set up for the characters. She will let us know what will happen in the far future and also slips back into the past.
5. Where does the book’s title come from? How does this title reflect multiple meanings?
There is a poem by Somerville that uses the phrase 'radiant way' to describe a coming dawn. Also, the word "radiant" is translated from the Bible as one who has seen the Lord. In this book, the phrase is called out as coming from an early reader primer which everyone at that time evidently read and then later it becomes the title of a documentary film that Charles directs, that depicts a new community of change agents and that was made when Charles was young, leftist and idealistic.
6. The book takes place in the 1980’s over a span of seven years. What ‘80s pop cultural references did you recognize? How were the characters affected by current events of the time?
I am not sure I recognized the pop cultural references but what really stood out to me was that the book seemed to have an historical fiction backbone, but was actually published only a few years after the events. These were contemporary events to Drabble at the time of her writing and yet I read the serial killer theme, the miner strike theme, the falklands, the change of government, the extreme polarization of the right and the left and the general despair that neither the right or the left could solve the problems, as all historical issues. They were not historical issues to Drabble. She was commenting about her now.
Her characters are definitely impacted by all the events of the day.
7. How does literature figure into the story line? What references to other literary works do you recall?
The book is full of literary references because Alix and her husband were students and teachers of English literature and it is also full of art references because Esther is an art historian. I learned a great deal about Crivelli while reading this book. The literary references swing all the way from Dante to Emerson, from Brontë to Sitwell...
8. What did you think of the book? Does it deserve to be on the 1001 list? Why or why not? If you have read any books by Drabble, how does this book compare to the other book(s) of hers you have read?
I liked this much more than I liked The Red Queen as Drabble appeared to be in her element. I found the lives of these three women to be realistic. Esther voices that Jane Austen is "too English" for her but it is in this reference that we find Drabble's motivation; "that depth rather than breadth is of importance, and intimate knowledge of a corner more valuable than a sketchy acquaintance with the globe".
1. I like what Gail said here. I agree the women to their society was itself a big one. Two that stood out to me were Liz and her terrible cheating husband’s degrading marriage which really opens the action of the book, and the escalation of Jilly’s obsession with Alix. 2. I thought the book was just okay overall, but one thing I did really love about it is that the main ensemble is all women, and really the men (and secondary women) in the book exist around them and not vice versa. I actually hoped it would resonate with me more because I did like that aspect of it, which does break from the norm of a lot of 20th century lit (hell even current lit and media- one of the favorite shows is Call the Midwife in part because it is also cast like this). Drabble successfully has their voices heard through making them POV characters with internal monologues. Also I think the fact that she is a woman does help lol (I’ve read some doozies on here with respect to male author’s writing female POVs). I think so little media can simply be called “feminist or not” because I feel like very few things (even labelled as feminist) directly deal with themes of women’s liberation or rights, or social issues that pertain specifically to the female experience. But many books cover women’s lives in different less direct ways (even if it has a women centric POV). I think this book is more of a latter example. It centers women’s experiences and relationships with each other, and their professions. I think that gets points for having feminist themes. But, I didn’t feel the book was explicitly about women’s rights or treatment.
3. Other than the dialogue of some of the characters (like from the jail” seeming “less posh” I didn’t really pick up on this a whole bunch. Maybe I didn’t read as deeply because it wasn’t hooking me, but I felt that this was actually a weakness of the plot that all of the main characters- aside from proclaimed differences- seemed quite middle-upper middle class homogenous.
4. It shifts POV , and like Gail said, allows for the inner thoughts of the characters to inform us about circumstances, time, place, conditions, etc.
5.It comes from many places (Gail answered this well!) but the obvious one I did immediately pick up on was Charles’ documentary he thinks of when he realizes he sold out somewhere along the way. It seems to give off a vibe of “where we thought we were heading righteously”, contrasted with what the main characters seem to be aiming for now which is more a good fulfilling life without the rut of who they’ve become.
6. I mostly got a sense of a “it’s the Thatcher years and it sucks and makes these women feel like sellouts who thought life would be more beautiful”.
7. Lots, but essentially the ones Gail has already mentioned lol.
8. I thought it was okay. It was more ‘bougie British women with ennui’ problems than brilliant class/gender and culture analysis for me than I wanted, but it had its moments. I’m not sure I’d put it on the list, as there’s a decent amount of mid to late 20th century lit by and about women (even academic women specifically) on the list that just hits better. Especially if Drabble has a more famous book on the list already. Still looking forward to reading The Red Queen though.
Mod
2. Many of the 1001 list books feature women as secondary characters. How is this book different from other list books written in the 20th century? How does Drabble evoke the female point of view? How does she make the female character’s voice heard? Would you consider this a feminist novel? Why or why not? This is a story of 3 women and the men only as they relate or are connected with the 3 women. It is interesting in that these women come out of an age before women's rights of the 70s and takes us through their lives from age 50 on. I liked that the author took the women as middle aged women.
3. How does Drabble use speech rhythms and patterns to make her characters unique? How does this contribute to the story? hmm, I didn't really pay attention to this though now that I read the question I can see it. It does give each character it's own uniqueness and development.
4. How is The Radiant Way narrated? How does Drabble use this narrative technique to give the reader a sense of place and history?
Sometimes it is as if the author is narrating the story. She tells us what will happen.
5. Where does the book’s title come from? How does this title reflect multiple meanings? a grade school reading primer such as Jack and Jill which I grew up reading.
6. The book takes place in the 1980’s over a span of seven years. What ‘80s pop cultural references did you recognize? How were the characters affected by current events of the time? I felt that even though the book is set in the 80s it also had timelessness to it. I did not pick up on any particular pop cultural maybe because it was England and not US.
7. How does literature figure into the story line? What references to other literary works do you recall? There is a lot of literary references, I did not write them down however.
8. What did you think of the book? Does it deserve to be on the 1001 list? Why or why not? If you have read any books by Drabble, how does this book compare to the other book(s) of hers you have read? I liked the book. It wasn't hard to read. I liked that the women were middle aged and I did like the social commentary that reflected the 80s though I think it isn't much different than current times. I am okay with it being on the list. I don't have strong feelings either way.
The Radiant Way is a 1987 novel by British novelist Margaret Drabble. The novel provides social commentary and critique of 1980s Britain, by exploring the lives of three Cambridge-educated women with careers as knowledge professionals.
About the Author (Adapted from Encyclopedia Britannica)
Margaret Drabble is a British novelist whose books are skillfully modulated variations on the theme of a girl’s development toward maturity through her experiences of love, marriage, and motherhood. The central characters of her novels, although widely different in character and circumstance, are shown in situations of tension and stress that are the necessary conditions for their moral growth. Drabble was concerned with the individual’s attempt to define the self, but she was also interested in social change. She writes in the tradition of such authors as George Eliot, Henry James, and Arnold Bennett.
Pre-reading questions
A. Have you read anything by Drabble before? If so, what?
B. What expectations do you have going into this novel?
Discussion Questions
1. The Radiant Way is a novel about relationships. What were the relationships found in the book and how did they change over time?
2. Many of the 1001 list books feature women as secondary characters. How is this book different from other list books written in the 20th century? How does Drabble evoke the female point of view? How does she make the female character’s voice heard? Would you consider this a feminist novel? Why or why not?
3. How does Drabble use speech rhythms and patterns to make her characters unique? How does this contribute to the story?
4. How is The Radiant Way narrated? How does Drabble use this narrative technique to give the reader a sense of place and history?
5. Where does the book’s title come from? How does this title reflect multiple meanings?
6. The book takes place in the 1980’s over a span of seven years. What ‘80s pop cultural references did you recognize? How were the characters affected by current events of the time?
7. How does literature figure into the story line? What references to other literary works do you recall?
8. What did you think of the book? Does it deserve to be on the 1001 list? Why or why not? If you have read any books by Drabble, how does this book compare to the other book(s) of hers you have read?