Barnes's The Sense of an Ending
 

Has anyone read this? The more I think about it, the scarier its concept gets. What if I got it all wrong?

Sam,

I haven't read it. But I like this line: “History isn’t the lies of the victors … It’s more the memories of the survivors, most of whom are neither victorious nor defeated.”

I used to think I could remember everything, just as it was. But now I realize I almost always get even my sense of the present wrong, so how could I possibly have any accurate remembrance of things past? No matter how many Madeleines I eat... ;)

Thanks,

Bill

Well, Bill, if you're wrong about "Pale Fire" you could be wrong about any number of things.

Sam,

Exactly! Back then, I was convinced I *was* the shadow of the waxwing slain, but now, I wonder if maybe I *am* the shadow... ;)

Or, as the poet himself put it:

"I cannot understand why from the lake
I could make out our front porch when I'd take
Lake Road to school, whilst now, although no tree
Has intervened, I look but fail to see
Even the roof..."

By the way, that lake is trouble! I should make a mental note not to try to cross it at night! ;)

Thanks,

Bill

Check my poem on the Deep End.