Brighton Rock – by Graham Greene
As an English major (and this applies to any major), I see quite a diversity of people graduating with an English degree. Not everyone that graduates with an English degree is an expert in grammar. Some are, though. Not all of them are experts in spelling. Not all are super literary critics. We all graduate with different strengths and weaknesses.
I compared it to a MMO type game earlier today: there are “tanks,” “healers,” etc. Just like English majors, some people are better at the reading, some at the writing, some at the researching, etc. I know, terrible analogy.
I was surprised to see that most of my English major friends, that are going on to their graduate degrees, are pursuing a literature focus. I’m doing the Comp and Rhet path.
I say all that to say this: I love Brighton Rock.
One major reason I’m not doing a literature focused grad degree is because a majority of the readings we have to read are not enjoyable to me. Mrs. Dalloway, for example, was not as tortuous as I expected, but it was still a chore. I really enjoyed Chaucer’s stuff, and about half of the short stories in my World Literature class, but too much of everything was not my cup o’ tea.
Again, I say all that to say this: I love Brighton Rock.
If half of what I’d be reading for a literature focused grad degree was half as entertaining and enthralling as Brighton Rock, I’d choose that path.
Maybe.
I don’t really want to talk about the story at all, because I don’t want to give anything away. Everyone should read this book. However, it reminded me why I enjoyed to read when I was convinced I only really enjoyed the writing part of English.
