Sunday is my day of binge reading. I finish off books I started during the week; read art, literature and philosophy journals; and work through a few pages of longer books (usually unwieldy manuals or textbooks- I’m currently working though Richard Gross’ enormous “Psychology” textbook). In the evening I watch lectures on MOOC sites (Edx, Coursera, Futurelearn and MIT’s online student resources). I understand how this might stress/tire the fuck out of most people, but for me (with my constantly itchy bipolar brain) it is a refreshing process that prepares me for the week ahead. Give it a try! (you never know, it might work for other humans).
Before I discuss the books I have read this week, I would like to also briefly discuss accumulation of knowledge. During traditional courses, the accumulation of knowledge process is pre-organised for you. Teachers teach their subjects in the same order year after year so that knowledge is accumulated gradually, in order of difficulty and referencing only lessons that have proceeded them, avoiding the lessons that are yet to be learnt.
Self-education is by its nature not ordered like this. For me the lack of structure is one of the most freeing things about autodidactism (although I recommend you coming up with a loose structure for yourself to help with motivation). It allows you to follow your interests in as much detail as you want to; and then as a result of looking into one interest, another interest reveals itself for you to pursue. However, without the hand-holding background of a set lecture or textbook to back you up, it is difficult to know where to start.
Start basic. Find a introductory level book (The Very Short Introduction series is great and has good recommended reading lists, but AS/A level school textbooks can also help- remember these are only a starting point, so don’t get bogged down in them- read a little, find something to pursue, then go for it. You can always keep coming back to this introductory book when you’re lost). Otherwise google the topic you’re interested in, or type it into Amazon’s search box and pick out the best book you can find.
The key is to not panic or procrastinate, just START somewhere. The first text you pick (if its not introductory) might be incomprehensible to you at first. Yet after looking up terms or researching themes it references you will be surprised how much you can quickly come to understand. Today I struggled through Tyler Burge’s paper called “Perception: Where mind begins”. I had to keep re-reading it until I got it (he tends to freely come up with new definitions for commonplace words, despite claiming philosophers don’t necessarily need definitions at all) and this is nothing to be ashamed of. You don’t have to be perfect first time, in fact no-one is. Re-reading doesn’t make you any less intelligent.
I also find that reading and learning in other ways about a range of topics can help you accumulate more knowledge on each one, than if you look at one topic at a time. You will spot links between texts that help you to perceive their ideas in new ways, and so build on your understanding. Refresh your brain by feeding it a varied diet of information. The moments when different topics click together is also vital to creative practise.
Struggles when first beginning the self-education journey are definite. Internally it feels like I am scrabbling desperately for information until I gradually build up a rudimentary floor of knowledge, which is only just stable. Then of course I begin scrabbling for the materials for the next floor. Yet the feeling that you have accumulated enough knowledge to be able to carry around a kind of window to see the everyday world through is exhilarating. It is tempting to stop there and observe the world with the analytic power to understand it at various non-immediate levels. But you really do have to USE your knowledge in some way. For me gaining knowledge without using it for some creative (traditional or non-traditional) purpose is a sin.
This week’s books.
The Lost Thing by Shaun Tan
The Curse on Lono by Hunter S. Thompson and illustrated by Ralph Steadman
The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
I have an obsession with graphic novels and kids books at the moment. Mostly because I’m thinking about writing some! I have been asked by a friend to do the pictures for a graphic novel and I am considering doing a short one myself for a Jonathan Cape competition. I’ve been working on a kids book for a while, but Shaun Tan’s work has made me want to work on a picture book. His books are beautiful items that discuss issues such as isolation and depression visually, and with poetic language. He maintains that his books are as suitable for adults as children and I would have to agree. I first discovered Tan through his book The Red Tree and was reminded of him when Katie Green acknowledged him at the back of her memoir (Lighter than My Shadow- also worth a read- explores anorexia and depression visually). This book was no disappointment and explores very themes to his other book. I will be reading more. Here is a photo of the inside of the book:
As you can tell the illustrations are luscious throughout. They have the precision of formal paintings, yet take on surreal subject matter with flexibility. The shape of the lost thing reminds me of Max Ernst’s elephant:
Meanwhile The Curse of Lono (which has just recently been reprinted in an affordable edition) is a late but solid piece of Hunter/Steadman collaboration. Not as good as Fear and Loathing, but that is a difficult act to follow. I enjoy Hunter’s surreal extensions of reality, despite their repetition. His writing has an angry energy that throbs despite time and cultural differences. Every writer and illustrator can learn a lot from this team.
I am re-reading the Sherlock Holmes books. Sherlock Holmes is a character I have been obsessed with for a long time. As a child coming to terms with mood-swings I recognised something in Holmes’ cycle of depression and mania. My only other bipolar reference figure at the time was Stephen Fry who had recently done a documentary on his own bipolar disorder (The secret life of a manic- depressive). This is the first time I have re-read them since the rest of the world seems to have become equally obsessed. I have watched the films, and two modern TV interpretations avidly, and wanted to see if the books lived up to how I remembered them. My childhood copies are so battered they’re practically destroyed so I bought the complete collection of Cumberbatch/Freeman covers. Cumberbatch’s introduction was surprisingly erudite and amusing. However Baskervilles is my least favourite of the books, purely because of the lack of Holmes.
Lastly I read Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn this week- a surprisingly mainstream read for me. I discovered Gillian Flynn by necessity when Gone Girl was literally the only book available in a supermarket when I was on holiday. I was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed it. Flynn’s psychological ability to look at identity and psychopathy in Gone Girl dragged me into the story, and I have read it a couple of times since to re-trace the clues to the end that she diligently places throughout the book. Sharp Objects was even more fascinating to me, mostly due to the themes of self-harm, something I have had an issue with since I was 11 and that I like to write and study about. In the book Flynn’s character Camille has the urge to carve words into her body. I have had this exact compulsion in times of intense hypographia during manic episodes. The fact that Flynn often uses a journalist as the main character is also interesting to me as a fellow journalist, as is Hunter S. Thompson’s repeated portrayal of a very different type of journalist.
Anyway I have to go now. I’m pretty tired (sorry for any typos!).