Is “The Clown Puppet” suppose to be funny or am I misreading?

N

nightschoolgrad

Mannikin
Is “The Clown Puppet” suppose to be funny or am I misreading?

Something about how the narrator describes the “nonsense” he’s forced to witness, and how outrageous it is. The conclusion of the story is of course horrific, but the narrator seems so obstinate about everything happening. Something about the narrator’s attitude toward the absurdity of his situation makes me chuckle out loud whenever I read it. Anyone else? Thoughts?
 
Re: Is “The Clown Puppet” suppose to be funny or am I misreading?

Not at all, you're reading it perfectly. I would say it's not funny; it's ridiculous. To me, this story is exhibit A for Ligotti being one of the most effective students of Thomas Bernhard. Bernhard manages to achieve the square circle of literature of being 100% darkly serious and 100% ridiculous at the precise same time. Think that's what Ligotti is doing with The Clown Puppet as well as many other works (e.g., the poem This Degenerate Little Town).
 
Re: Is “The Clown Puppet” suppose to be funny or am I misreading?

Many histories of Teatro Grotesco are very amusing. Thomas Ligotti said they are his Thomas Bernhard Stories. Among the ones you mentioned, Severini also falls into this category. When the protagonist screams "Disenteria", "Documentas" I can help but laugh out loud.
 
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Michael said:
Re: Is “The Clown Puppet” suppose to be funny or am I misreading?

Not at all, you're reading it perfectly. I would say it's not funny; it's ridiculous. To me, this story is exhibit A for Ligotti being one of the most effective students of Thomas Bernhard. Bernhard manages to achieve the square circle of literature of being 100% darkly serious and 100% ridiculous at the precise same time. Think that's what Ligotti is doing with The Clown Puppet as well as many other works (e.g., the poem This Degenerate Little Town).
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I’ll have to read Thomas Bernard.
 
I would argue that the humour in Ligotti's work has always been fairly overt—"The Chymist", like "The Town Manager" over twenty years later, is very much a mordant shaggy dog story—but it's generally on the subtler side and threaded with a certain pathos and, of course, nightmarish horror. Teatro Grottesco does lean more towards black comedy overall than much of his earlier work, however; "The Clown Puppet" tilts into a kind of Theatre of the Absurd setup, but the sardonic descriptions of self-important artists and scenesters throughout are delightfully catty.

Incidentally, it has been far too long since I have read Bernhard's work myself. I remember finding it intriguing.
 
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