(Posted by Ben)
(If you’re wondering what this is all about, click here.)
In many ways a counterbalance to D H Lawrence, but also perhaps a complement, the second member of my Guest Blogging Dream Team is Alan Bennett.
Whilst Lawrence fluctuates in his work between humanism and misanthropy, Bennett’s writings retain a basic warmth and reverence for people, but one which never lapses into nauseating and false Hollywood schmaltz and sentimentality.
In contrast to Lawrence’s heated prose, his would be a more restrained and comforting voice.
And, whereas Lawrence frequently professed an antipathy towards the general public and popular cultural forms, Bennett, as someone accustomed to working on screenplays for TV, would be more inclined to credit such forms with artistic value and significance in the way that the majority of bloggers do.
The foibles and idiosyncracies of English life – whether presented sympathetically or critically – are very often Bennett’s subject matter, and, as a keen observer and commentator upon human interactions and the minutiae of daily life, he seems ideally suited to the job.
I can picture him charming readers with amusing anecdotes from the present, poignant tales from the past and beautifully delicate and proportioned fictional vignettes from the imagination – a sort of amalgamation of I Don’t Believe It, Joe. My. God. and Londonmark, if you will. Just think how good that would be.
So, the Guest Blogging Dream Team so far: D H Lawrence and Alan Bennett.
Member #3 to be unveiled on Monday.
troubled diva 