Reading 1001 discussion

Review thread: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Questions from Bookey.app
As always feel free to pick and choose what questions you would like to answer.

1. How do the contrasting feelings of luxury and chaos in the castle reflect the deeper themes of the story?

2. What elements of classical mythology are reflected in the Knight's interactions and ultimate punishment?

3. What can be interpreted about the role of female figures, like The Popess, in the alchemist's journey?

4. How does the card imagery enhance the storytelling throughout the tale?

5. What does the tale of the grave-robber symbolize about choices and consequences?

6. How does the card 'Justice' relate to Roland’s journey and his eventual understanding?

7. How does the Ascension theme woven into Astolpho's journey shape our understanding of life’s challenges?

8. What does the interweaving of stories from different guests in the square symbolize about human experiences?

9. How does the author illustrate the tension between silence and the need to communicate?

10. What overarching theme is presented through the youth’s journey?

11. What does the story of the Forest’s Revenge teach about the conflict between nature and civilization?

12. What does the story reveal about the complexity of identity in the face of conflict?

13. How does the gravedigger's perspective on death and the living contribute to the story's themes?

14. What can we learn from the comparison between the alchemist's and the knight's approaches to solving their respective problems?

15. What is the overall message conveyed about the nature of storytelling?

16. What does the conflict between youth and age reveal about familial relationships?

I finished listening to this (short) novel earlier this afternoon. While I did enjoy it, I don't know that I picked out deeper meaning in it - so don't know if I can answer the questions.

Here is a stab at a couple:

4. How does the card imagery enhance the storytelling throughout the tale?

I got the most out of the imagery with the first few tales, since this is when Calvino spent the most time describing them. The imagery was helpful and interesting. I was doing uninteresting work in the garden (weeding) so the descriptions of the cards (and the people) really stood out for me.

8. What does the interweaving of stories from different guests in the square symbolize about human experiences?
15. What is the overall message conveyed about the nature of storytelling?

These two questions seem to be related, in my mind. My understanding (from the note at the end of the novel) is that the novel had pictures which would have aided in understanding the layout of the cards. However, I (obviously) did not know this or have this visual aid. So, it took me a while to understand and visualize the pattern that Calvino was building. I think Calvino was saying a few things - we are intertwined in each other's stories; other people's stories can allow us to see or interpret ourselves differently; storytelling is fluid depending on what the focus is and who the teller is.

1. How do the contrasting feelings of luxury and chaos in the castle reflect the deeper themes of the story?

The opening gives the reader a sense of comfort, or rather that the narrator and possibly even the author is well taken care of, and well nourished. However, the chaos signals the inner workings of the narrator's mind, and by extension the inner workings of all the characters. The key theme is of course, the inability to convey meaning through their voices. For a writer/storytelling to not have a voice would be a terrible nightmare.

2. What elements of classical mythology are reflected in the Knight's interactions and ultimate punishment?

The book reflects many aspects of classical mythology and other known and well loved foundational stories including Shakespeare and those starring Biblical characters. Many of the first stories reflect the classic "quest" framework. The character, somewhat innocent and untried or tried and found heroic, such as Roland, set out into the forest and find their way tripped up by beautiful and bewitching damsels, or a greed for power and "coins", or simply by overplaying their own strengths and finding that they had lost their human attributes.

3. What can be interpreted about the role of female figures, like The Popess, in the alchemist's journey?

In general, one could easily come to the conclusion that our author, Calvino, doesn't like women. They may start out as beautiful and innocent, or they may grant the male characters (including the alchemist) a certain amount of power or love, but they all tend to become witches and harpies or at least a cause for everything good falling apart.

4. How does the card imagery enhance the storytelling throughout the tale?

I can't imagine this book without the images. At first it is a puzzle, that the narrator is attempting to understand another character's story through. It very quickly becomes a puzzle that the reader takes over and layers their own interpretation on top of. The narrator may contrive one story, but the reader does not have to believe that interpretation. The images are there to be interpreted as anyone would like. The stories that Calvino comes up with in his meta structure based on the tarot cards, are not all that good in regards capturing one's imagination or having dramatic impact but they do reflect the whole nature of how one structures a story, how one builds a whole artifice out of one image or one event or one character.

5. What does the tale of the grave-robber symbolize about choices and consequences?

Our grave robber decides to risk all on finding riches both in the graves and in the wish granted by the Archangel. Unfortunately for him, he received what he deserved instead of what he desired.

6. How does the card 'Justice' relate to Roland’s journey and his eventual understanding?

Roland was waylaid along the path of righteousness by a passionate and unreasonable love that caused him to become a fool with no clarity of thought or any specific aim. Justice here stands for the attempt to get Roland back to the fold, i.e. recover his reason and therefore continue to fight for Charlemagne.

7. How does the Ascension theme woven into Astolpho's journey shape our understanding of life’s challenges?

Astolpho's ascends up to Heaven to get back Roland's reason for the King but instead he finds a barren horizon. The moon is nothing but craters. One doesn't find reason by leaving this earth but by confronting one's problem on earth.

8. What does the interweaving of stories from different guests in the square symbolize about human experiences?

This is one of the key themes of the book, the nature of interpretation, how one visualizes one's own life while not giving much thought to other lives until told "the story". Both life and books find their meaning in the telling, or in the reading.

9. How does the author illustrate the tension between silence and the need to communicate?

The characters all turn into interesting mimes, there is a lot of facial expression and hand waving but they are using the cards to direct the other character's reactions and also investing in each of the images on the cards a huge amount of themselves, a way of saying: I see myself in this image.

10. What overarching theme is presented through the youth’s journey?

Is this question about the Waverer's Tale? He starts out as a youth but he is 'telling' his story as an old man. At any rate, if that is the question, the issue here is that the youth is not capable of making a clear decision. He is stuck and ultimately will be destroyed by this inability. The theme again reflects the author's inability to find one story worthy of presenting in its voiced completeness. He attempts to give all stories their place on the table and by doing so multiplies the possible stories dramatically but also removes any clarity from any of them.

11. What does the story of the Forest’s Revenge teach about the conflict between nature and civilization?

Here computers and digital media jump out. The natural world is overridden by what humans have done but ultimately the natural world is likely to win in the long term as even the computer environment no longer needs their creators.

12. What does the story reveal about the complexity of identity in the face of conflict?

Most humans contain multitudes of selves that they have collected over the years in different environments and under different circumstances. They carry their youth as well as their potential old age. To find one image that is then given to others, that can contain all that is most important to convey, is very difficult. When each of the character's ventures into the forest they almost all lose something that is their very essence, they become old, weary, without the spirit that they started out with. Also, a writer, in making decisions about what to present in their characters, and what to leave out, must lose some of the potential that they initially saw in that character.


15. What is the overall message conveyed about the nature of storytelling?

Calvino presents us with a wonderfully visual interpretation of the nature of storytelling. It is about making choices, it is about losing potential and perhaps as a reward for that loss to gain reason, or clarity. It is about characters that are not what they seem. It is about a structure that ultimately will allow or betray the process and having to know which of those is preferable. Writing or storytellling is something that is built on all the other stories ever told and yet there is always a new way to interpret an old story.

1. How do the contrasting feelings of luxury and chaos in the castle reflect the deeper themes of the story? It was two views; castle or tavern. The themes were around communication.

2. What elements of classical mythology are reflected in the Knight's interactions and ultimate punishment? A knight is a symbal of chivalry and honor. A knight is a person on adventure but also likely to experience hardship and loneliness. Archtype of human struggle.

3. What can be interpreted about the role of female figures, like The Popess, in the alchemist's journey? The Pope's is a high priestess. She has hidden knowledge. The Alchemist is a Faust like character.

4. How does the card imagery enhance the storytelling throughout the tale? There are multiple interpretations leaving tales as ambiguous.

5. What does the tale of the grave-robber symbolize about choices and consequences? putting material gain before other choices

6. How does the card 'Justice' relate to Roland’s journey and his eventual understanding? Justice is about consequences for choices

7. How does the Ascension theme woven into Astolpho's journey shape our understanding of life’s challenges? I had to look this one up. "Astolfo, a character from Ariosto's poem Orlando Furioso, appears in Calvino's work, with his story retold using tarot cards. His adventure involves a journey to the moon to retrieve Orlando's lost reason. This trip, a literal "ascension," can be interpreted as a symbolic ascent to gain wisdom or a new perspective."

8. What does the interweaving of stories from different guests in the square symbolize about human experiences? interwoven

9. How does the author illustrate the tension between silence and the need to communicate? in the very beginning he brings this out. Inability to communicate demonstrates isolation and disconnection.

10. What overarching theme is presented through the youth’s journey? choices and anxiety

11. What does the story of the Forest’s Revenge teach about the conflict between nature and civilization? Human's are basically destructive and at some point nature does push back.

12. What does the story reveal about the complexity of identity in the face of conflict? this is a central theme. Being unable to speak is a conflict, They are forced to use cards to try to put fragments of their identity together.

13. How does the gravedigger's perspective on death and the living contribute to the story's themes? Life and death and consequences of choices

14. What can we learn from the comparison between the alchemist's and the knight's approaches to solving their respective problems?
Knight is themes of honor, The Alchemist is bargaining for Powere

15. What is the overall message conveyed about the nature of storytelling? The main vehicle in the book was the use of the tarot cards as storytelling

16. What does the conflict between youth and age reveal about familial relationships?
Both young and old are seeking identity but from different perspectives.

Two of you listened to this, and as little as I cared about most of the stories, without seeing the cards, I cant image just listening to this book. My hardback copy had plates of the medieval cards that inspired the first half and they are beautiful. I mostly didn't think much of the individual stories, more about the structure of the book.

15: I cant remember anywhere does it tell you that people are laying out the cards in rows and that then some other person's story is told by tracing the cards back along the row in the the other order, or by laying a pattern across until all the stories are overlapping in one big block of cards? This, and the chapter where the author tells his story about writing and inspiration, were what I found to be the most interesting about the book overall - it is about finding inspiration in rules, in beauty, in a puzzle. The actual stories I thought were mostly conventional - and in the second half they actually ARE mostly conventional stories being retold using the rules, with some witty writing resulting.

Gail wrote: "15. What is the overall message conveyed about the nature of storytelling?

Calvino presents us with a wonderfully visual interpretation of the nature of storytelling. It is about making choices, it is about losing potential and perhaps as a reward for that loss to gain reason, or clarity. It is about characters that are not what they seem. It is about a structure that ultimately will allow or betray the process and having to know which of those is preferable. Writing or storytellling is something that is built on all the other stories ever told and yet there is always a new way to interpret an old story."

Nicely said!

Jenna wrote: "Two of you listened to this, and as little as I cared about most of the stories, without seeing the cards, I cant image just listening to this book. My hardback copy had plates of the medieval card..."

I picked up a paperback of the book today because I agree that this book is more about structure than the stories but this paperback does not have "color", the cards are black ink sketches. I wish the cards were in color.

1. How do the contrasting feelings of luxury and chaos in the castle reflect the deeper themes of the story?
I’m not sure how this connects to the deeper themes of the story (Gail makes a good point in her answer). The main idea that I took from the book is that all narratives – from classical mythology to Shakespeare to our own experiences – have a common origin. The tarot cards themselves are part of this ancient need to organize experiences into prose and, in telling stories, to find some meaning in human existence.

3. What can be interpreted about the role of female figures, like The Popess, in the alchemist's journey?
They can be vengeful (e.g. “The Tale of the Ingrate and His Punishment”). In “The Alchemist’s Journey,” the Popess is a witch, basically. I felt like they transformed a great deal, i.e. the Queen of Swords turning into a corpse in “The Tale of the Doomed Bride.” And of course, there are the “vindictive queens” of “The Surviving Warriors Tale” and the vampire sorceress of “The Tale of the Vampire’s Kingdom.” I agree with Gail’s assessment that women don’t come across very well.

4. How does the card imagery enhance the storytelling throughout the tale?
I listened to the book but also had got a copy from the library that has both black and white and color illustrations. At first, it was helpful and interesting to see the cards after listening to the story but by the time I got to the “Tavern” section, it wasn’t necessary. I got the gimmick.

5. What does the tale of the grave-robber symbolize about choices and consequences?
The grave robber is given the choice between riches, power, or wisdom. He chooses riches. For that he is given “clubs,” which I guess is punishment for being greedy…?

6. How does the card “Justice” relate to Roland’s journey and his eventual understanding?
Gail’s answer seems right. Roland sacrifices his mission and his faith to pursue Angelica, who then leaves him for another man. As, the next story indicates, he has lost his mind. That was my understanding of this tale. Justice would be a return to sanity, I guess.

7. How does the Ascension theme woven into Astolpho's journey shape our understanding of life’s challenges?
So, I took it to mean that humans dream of better places than where we are currently, e.g. heaven, nirvana, a reincarnated life, etc., depending on your beliefs. But that dream may turn out to be nothing but a desert covered with craters, so enjoy earth while you’re alive.

8. What does the interweaving of stories from different guests in the square symbolize about human experiences?
See answer #1, above.

9. How does the author illustrate the tension between silence and the need to communicate?
Everyone has been struck dumb, but are impelled to tell their stories and to hear the others’ stories, using whatever means at their disposal. Again, I think it comes back to answer #1, above.

11. What does the story of the Forest’s Revenge teach about the conflict between nature and civilization?
Nature may temporarily be defeated or ruined by humans, but in the end, it will outlast us. Human inventions such as machines and computers may persist, but humans themselves are mortal… “Man was necessary; now he useless… now computers and butterflies suffice.”

13. How does the gravedigger's perspective on death and the living contribute to the story's themes?
Here is my guess: the living are always thinking about the dead and coming to the cemetery to make sure they are dead because 1) they are aware that they will someday die; 2) they need to be reassured that they are still living. Again, I think this relates to the idea of finding meaning in existence.

15. What is the overall message conveyed about the nature of storytelling?
See answer #1, above.

I have been reading a paperback library copy of the book. I've finished the first part, Castle of Crossed Destinies, and am into the 2nd, Tavern of Crossed Destinies. I think we were intended to read both parts? "Tavern of Crossed Destinies" isn't listed on the cover so it's simply a second part of the novel it seems. I found it interesting that Calvino said that for some time he intended to write a third part.
I liked the creativity of using the cards' images to create stories and the idea that a certain card could have more than one meaning for the story. I think I would have to re-read the individual stories with the questions posed in mind to be able to respond to them.

Kristel wrote: "Jenna wrote: "Two of you listened to this, and as little as I cared about most of the stories, without seeing the cards, I cant image just listening to this book. My hardback copy had plates of... . "...this paperback does not have "color", the cards are black ink sketches. I wish the cards were in color."

Calvino said the Ricci publishers had published the first part with color tarots, which must be what Jenna got. Ricci published a monthly art magazine with very high quality reproductions of artwork and my wife had about year's worth of copies- she was an Art History major.