Posted by Peter H on March 14, 2006 at 13:46:26 from 86.130.131.33 user Peter_H.
In Reply to: The important issue of plumbing posted by Prue Eckett on March 14, 2006 at 05:17:26:
you would have hated it should you have the dreaded kiwi'longdrop' inflicted on you
I am sure I would, Prue, but what on earth has that to do with appreciation of Arthur Ransome's novel 'The Picts and the Martyrs'? When detail was necessary in his stories, AR could supply it, in his own economically worded and clear way. He chose not to supply his readers with details of the Beckfoot bathroom, presumably because it would not have advanced or enhanced his plot in any way. Should we not respect this, or do we think we can do better?
If you are emphasising that the plumbing arrangements at Beckfoot mattered to the people residing there, I can only agree with you. However, what about, eg, Mrs Blackett's income tax position, and how much local rate she had to pay. Should we 'empathise' with her over that? Where does it all end? Does this sort of thing contribute to our appreciation of Ransome as a writer?
What disappoints me most is that in discussing the bathroom etc, we are turning our backs on the actual story, which is packed to the gunwales with detail and incident all worthy of comment and discussion. AR must have sweated blood in writing PM, and all we can do is talk about something utterly irrelevant he chose to leave out. 'Important issue' - no way!