Discussion Group--A LACK OF ORDER IN THE FLOATING OBJECT ROOM George Saunders

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HollyGolightly

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Sep 6, 2013
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Heart of the South
I got more of a commercialism vibe.
Yes - but I think it was intended to illuminate the ridiculousness of commercialism.

Yes. I was going to mention this. It felt similar to my first experience reading The Dark Tower books.
Exactly how I felt!!

Shall we do one more discussion reading ( 12/12 )before the holidays, or hold off until Wed.January 2, 2019 ?

I think the week of the 19th most will be busy with travel or last minute plans for Santa.
I'm in whenever!

GNTLGNT Yes- a fever dream!! I got that too.

Very helpful to me to read everyone's comments.

All that on Metarealism is way above my thinking ability tonight. I will have to read those couple of sentences in the morning with coffee. Spideyman - that's some deep thinking.

Oh Gan, y'all - my kitchen. Can it keep for the night? Are the dogs OK if I just veg here for a bit?
 

fljoe0

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Shall we do one more discussion reading ( 12/12 )before the holidays, or hold off until Wed.January 2, 2019 ?

I think the week of the 19th most will be busy with travel or last minute plans for Santa.


I think we should be good next week but you're right, we probably should skip the 19th and 26th. Who's up next? Neesy and the Giant (sounds like wrestling tag team partners :)) haven't picked a story yet.

EDIT - I just read the posts above, so it sounds like we want to skip the 12th too.
 

Spideyman

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I think we should be good next week but you're right, we probably should skip the 19th and 26th. Who's up next? Neesy and the Giant (sounds like wrestling tag team partners :)) haven't picked a story yet.

EDIT - I just read the posts above, so it sounds like we want to skip the 12th too.
fljoe0 I think many are just way to busy, however please pick a story you enjoyed -- post it hear and those who can will read and discuss for the 12th.

I'm game if you are.
 

HollyGolightly

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Heart of the South
I got a futuristic vibe from it. People being studied in the room. Rules and regulations about what is and is not allowed to take place there. A very controlled society type feeling. But why? What happened for that to be necessary?
I got that too, cat - it felt like it might be socialist. Many of his stories have that vibe, and maybe what I really like about them is that there is no clear reason - you get to ponder and come up with your own reasons.
 

fljoe0

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fljoe0 I think many are just way to busy, however please pick a story you enjoyed -- post it hear and those who can will read and discuss for the 12th.

I'm game if you are.


Lets do the 12th. Would Neesy or GNTLGNT like to pick this week?

If we don't hear from either of those two by tomorrow afternoon, I'll pick one.
 

Dana Jean

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Apr 11, 2006
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I kept getting the feel that this was like some second-string Disneyland sort of experience. Maybe for the rich and bored; maybe for people on Ectasy and LSD; or maybe in the future.

Have you gone to Disneyland and gotten on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and as your little vessel pulls away from the station, you look up and you can see behind dark glass, a person in a booth, watching? Something about that is unsettling. He's probably the one loading and unloading the cars in the white zone, keeping things moving along.

Big Brother is always watching. And his trip with them into the desert was very Jack Kerouac.

Interesting, surreal and a great mind exercise.
 

Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
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Apr 11, 2006
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I kept getting the feel that this was like some second-string Disneyland sort of experience. Maybe for the rich and bored; maybe for people on Ectasy and LSD; or maybe in the future.

Have you gone to Disneyland and gotten on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and as your little vessel pulls away from the station, you look up and you can see behind dark glass, a person in a booth, watching? Something about that is unsettling. He's probably the one loading and unloading the cars in the white zone, keeping things moving along.

Big Brother is always watching. And his trip with them into the desert was very Jack Kerouac.

Interesting, surreal and a great mind exercise.
And forgot to add, I also got the feeling that they were a science experiment. Being observed for whatever reason with minimal interaction but with very definite boundaries the participants must stay in. Only being interacted with when needed. And as we see, not always being called out when the participants cross the boundaries.

So the observer "intruded" somewhat into the experiment by becoming something more than just a scientific observer -- he became a voyeur. Probably a fine line in distinction -- but different.

Or this was a museum -- look but don't touch. The guy playing museum guard, watching the exhibits and the people walking through?
 

Doc Creed

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Nov 18, 2015
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I kept getting the feel that this was like some second-string Disneyland sort of experience. Maybe for the rich and bored; maybe for people on Ectasy and LSD; or maybe in the future.

Have you gone to Disneyland and gotten on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and as your little vessel pulls away from the station, you look up and you can see behind dark glass, a person in a booth, watching? Something about that is unsettling. He's probably the one loading and unloading the cars in the white zone, keeping things moving along.

Big Brother is always watching. And his trip with them into the desert was very Jack Kerouac.

Interesting, surreal and a great mind exercise.
This whole post:
:clap:
 

Doc Creed

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Nov 18, 2015
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And forgot to add, I also got the feeling that they were a science experiment. Being observed for whatever reason with minimal interaction but with very definite boundaries the participants must stay in. Only being interacted with when needed. And as we see, not always being called out when the participants cross the boundaries.

So the observer "intruded" somewhat into the experiment by becoming something more than just a scientific observer -- he became a voyeur. Probably a fine line in distinction -- but different.

Or this was a museum -- look but don't touch. The guy playing museum guard, watching the exhibits and the people walking through?
I wondered about this, too. Was it ever plainly stated? I thought him more of a safety monitor (for both clients and expensive equipment- he warns one guy who is leaning on the screen which acts as a window) than a scientist.
 

Dana Jean

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Apr 11, 2006
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I wondered about this, too. Was it ever plainly stated? I thought him more of a safety monitor (for both clients and expensive equipment- he warns one guy who is leaning on the screen which acts as a window) than a scientist.
I don't think it's stated. Yes, he could be a safety monitor of sorts. It felt scientific to me because of the parameters of the environment set up. Watching these people interact with their space, but only intervening to protect them or the "props."

Until they started having sex and for his own reasons, which aren't really clearly stated, he allows them to complete and then involves himself in their conversation. Which gets his ass beat down.

I think this is one of those stories that is left to the eye of the beholder. What do we each see?
 

Neesy

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May 24, 2012
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Lets do the 12th. Would Neesy or GNTLGNT like to pick this week?

If we don't hear from either of those two by tomorrow afternoon, I'll pick one.
I'm having a hard time putting into words what this story (A Lack of Order in the Floating Object Room) meant to me.

If I get to choose, I would pick Big Driver - would that work for everyone or is it too dark for this time of year?