Hello! This feels, in a way, conceited but it’s my question! I have been reading a lot lately, some very intelligent authors, with very thoughtful characters, Like Dostoevsky, Camus, Baldwin, Morrison… It does seem though these characters fall into the realm of my own binary reasoning, where i tend to agree with them on most things and, I’m not sure if the things i disagree with are based in reality… i wonder if there are books, (i like literary fiction but for this sake i would read nonfiction), that glimpse into the world that I don’t quite understand, the world of thoughtless and selfish people? To help my understanding of what the heck is going on in the world around me.
I hope this question makes sense! Thank you for reading this!
The Sound and the Fury
I think the most obvious choice is Lolita, but that’s a choice on the more extreme end of the spectrum and can be a hard read (though still an excellent book).
As I Lay Dying has a multi-POV structure with characters ranging from a young woman to a confused child to a grieving father to a dead mother. Might give you that variation you’re looking for!
I’m a bit at a loss.
Are you equating “thoughtless and selfish people” with unintelligent people?
Are you saying there are no “thoughtless and selfish people” in Dostoyevsky etc?
Are you looking to disagree with the author or their characters?
Are you claiming you are so selfless you don’t understand selfish people?
The Joke by Milan Kundera might be a good one
There are many authors who write in a style that reserves judgment…and what I mean by that is they don’t tell you how you’re supposed to feel about the characters or their actions. They read almost like unbiased journalism.
I recommend checking out Little Children by Tom Perrotta.
Hmm, maybe try to read writers/characters that you disagree with politically.
A lot of humorous characters can be dumb as shit, in some ways at least. Don Quixote and Sancho Panza are dumb in different ways, and thank god they have each other. Ignatius from A Confederacy of Dunces is dumb. Ebeneezer Cooke from The Sot Weed Factor is naive in the extreme. These characters are well-read, eloquent, and intelligent in one way, but their own inflexible worldviews and belief in their own intelligence make them essentially unable to function in the real world.
Brown Dog by Jim Harrison is an interesting character. In a conventional sense he is unintelligent. He’s a hillbilly who scrapes by in life. If he happens to get some money, he’s basically guaranteed to blow it within a day. He does some extremely stupid (and entertaining) things. But, he has this deep sort of folksy, humane wisdom, and you almost get the sense that he needs to be conventionally dumb in order to have it.
There are some very dumb characters in Suttree, by Cormac McCarthy. Harrogate is mind-numbingly stupid. The narrator, Suttree, is presented as very intelligent, but you could probably interrogate the aptness of that perspective as well.
Ayn Rand is good for that; Thomas Sowell; can’t think of any others offhand
Okay so the main character in this book is intelligent, but you also asked for selfish or thoughtless characters and I think Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively would fit this. It’s from the point of view of an elderly lady reflecting on her life and various relationships. She’s not a completely terrible person but she does make choices that hurt other people, and she’s not even always aware of the consequences of her actions. What I liked in particular was that throughout the book she recalls particular moments and things she said or did, but then the author will rewrite the same scene to show what happened in reality, usually with some subtle changes which reflect poorly on the MC. You also get the POV of another character telling their version of events that contradicts what the MC believes. I thought it was quite an interesting take on the nature of a flawed individual and how she sees herself, vs how the world around her sees her.
That sounds exactly like what I was hoping for, I really appreciate this recommendation! Reading your comment, I’m reminded of The Stranger by Camus, where you get perspectives from other characters about their perspective of situations where you initially had sided with the main character, it would be wise for me to reread it with this idea of disregard for the people around him, (instead of only disagreeing with him at the very end, as was how my first read went).
I am excited to read this now! Thank you : )
A Confederacy of Dunces.
where I tend to agree with them
Infantile reading comprehension if you agree with (most) Dostoyevsky and Camus characters.
If I’ve understood this right, you’re particularly looking for recognisable, everyday nastiness? A really neat fit for that might be women writers from socially conservative settings where women had to be adept at navigating human foibles, and consequently produced brilliant descriptions of them.
The first that comes to mind is Jane Austen! She’s brilliant at drawing flawed characters that feel like real people you might meet today, not just caricatures that would only make sense to Regency readers. Emma is probably the most flawed of the heroines themselves, but every novel has a strong cast of deliciously awful and often rather daft people.
Some early 20th century Chinese writers would fit the bill too, particularly Eileen Cheng. I’d recommend Sealed Off as an introduction - it’s a stunning, very short story about two self-absorbed people meeting during a transport blockade. Love in a Fallen City and Lust, Caution are also amazing. She has a very bitter view of human relationships but it’s always well-observed and compelling.
Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan Quartet looks at an intense, complex friendship between two women in mid 20th century Naples. In this one both leads are academically brilliant, but it might still be a good fit (there are many different ways to be stupid after all!) There is again a large cast of very human, sometimes awful characters.
The main character of the third book of three body problem (their name is not worth remembering). Thoughtless, and also selfish in the sense that their morals are more important than the survival of the human race, literally. Whatever message the author was trying to convey, it’s the worst message a book has ever tried to shove down my throat.
I love this review of a book, i never expected to read “it’s the worst message a book has ever…” and have my brain follow it up with yep im gonna have to read this ! Haha, thanks!
I’ve been re-reading the Scott Pilgrim comics lately (fans of the series will know why), and that’s a prime example of very smart literature about a very dumb person. Much as I love the protagonist, he definitely provides a glimpse into the world of thoughtless and selfish people, and it works so well.
I am a piece of shit. Just go through my comments!