Topic: What makes a piece of fiction pretentious?

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 started this discussion 8 years ago #70,295

Have you ever read or viewed anything pretentious? What was it and made it so?

Anonymous B joined in and replied with this 8 years ago, 10 minutes later[^] [v] #848,395

If you use a thesaurus to make small words larger, then your writing is pretentious.

Anonymous E joined in and replied with this 8 years ago, 38 minutes later, 49 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #848,403

That's a good question. I usually don't keep reading or watching stuff if it strikes me as pretentious, so it's hard to really pin down an example.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 3 minutes later, 52 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #848,404

@848,395 (B)
Is Lolita the novel, pretentious?

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) double-posted this 8 years ago, 20 seconds later, 53 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #848,405

@848,403 (E)
Is Black Swan pretentious?

Anonymous E replied with this 8 years ago, 5 minutes later, 59 minutes after the original post[^] [v] #848,406

@848,404 (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
It's been a while since I read any Nabokov, but his writing never struck me as pretentious.

@previous (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
I think swans, as a species, are extremely pretentious.

Anonymous F joined in and replied with this 8 years ago, 6 minutes later, 1 hour after the original post[^] [v] #848,409

There is fog
And then there fog

Anonymous B replied with this 8 years ago, 57 seconds later, 1 hour after the original post[^] [v] #848,410

@848,404 (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
Yes.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 23 minutes later, 1 hour after the original post[^] [v] #848,415

@848,406 (E)
Oh you never saw Black Swan? What about Ex Machina?

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) double-posted this 8 years ago, 20 seconds later, 1 hour after the original post[^] [v] #848,416

@848,410 (B)
Because it's so descriptive, right?

Anonymous E replied with this 8 years ago, 23 minutes later, 1 hour after the original post[^] [v] #848,421

@848,415 (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
I remember watching it with a group of friends, but I wasn't one of people really paying much attention. I wouldn't be able to really critique it.

I think a work really needs to be pretending that it's something it isn't (especially if it's doing it badly) to be pretentious - student films that pretend to be high art, romance novels where the author is desperately trying to write a racy version of a Jane Austen story, creators making up for a lackluster plot and two dimensional characters with melodrama and pointless detail. That type of thing.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 15 minutes later, 2 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,426

@previous (E)
I see. I feel like I really just need some examples to understand this. Oh Cloud Atlas, have you seen that?

Anonymous E replied with this 8 years ago, 27 minutes later, 2 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,429

@previous (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
I could see someone making a case for that being pretentious. I wouldn't really call it pretentious, but I didn't go into it expecting groundbreaking cinema.

I really feel like the distinction depends as much on the viewer as on the piece of work. If you're expecting something to be more than it is, then it's easy to feel like it's being pretentious when it doesn't live up to your expectations. Sort of like the cheesy movies that get better when you just accept that they're cheesy movies and enjoy the cheese.

Anonymous G joined in and replied with this 8 years ago, 6 hours later, 9 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,462

adjective

Attempting to impress by affecting greater importance or merit than is actually possessed.

Big Daddy Derek !Uvm54ORbmo joined in and replied with this 8 years ago, 1 hour later, 11 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,467

@previous (G)
Thanks, Google!

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 2 hours later, 13 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,491

@848,429 (E)
I see.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) double-posted this 8 years ago, 20 seconds later, 13 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,492

@848,462 (G)
Fuck off or give me an example

Stoic Sam !zQ8ry.WSMk joined in and replied with this 8 years ago, 9 minutes later, 13 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,498

@previous (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)

You shouldn't allow another man's being annoying to cause anger. Other people being annoying is inevitable. What is anger but a judgement that the inevitable is immoral?

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 15 minutes later, 13 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,501

@previous (Stoic Sam !zQ8ry.WSMk)
Give me an example, faggot

Stoic Sam !zQ8ry.WSMk replied with this 8 years ago, 5 minutes later, 14 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,504

@previous (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)

You'll just have to stoically accept that I don't want to.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 34 seconds later, 14 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,505

@previous (Stoic Sam !zQ8ry.WSMk)
Queerbo

Stoic Sam !zQ8ry.WSMk replied with this 8 years ago, 3 minutes later, 14 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,509

@previous (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)

My dictionary doesn't contain that word.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 45 seconds later, 14 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,510

@previous (Stoic Sam !zQ8ry.WSMk)
I wish my topic didnt contain you, bitch

Stoic Sam !zQ8ry.WSMk replied with this 8 years ago, 50 minutes later, 14 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,515

@previous (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)

Wishing for something counter-factual is pointless.

Anonymous G replied with this 8 years ago, 3 hours later, 18 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,565

@848,492 (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
its subjective.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 16 minutes later, 18 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,572

@previous (G)
But what kind of media is pretentious in your opinion?

Anonymous G replied with this 8 years ago, 10 minutes later, 18 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,582

@previous (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
the imitation game

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 38 minutes later, 19 hours after the original post[^] [v] #848,602

@previous (G)
Thank you. And what made it pretentious?

Anonymous J joined in and replied with this 8 years ago, 20 hours later, 1 day after the original post[^] [v] #848,867

This topic is pretentious.

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 4 hours later, 1 day after the original post[^] [v] #848,935

@previous (J)
Why?

Anonymous G replied with this 8 years ago, 1 hour later, 1 day after the original post[^] [v] #848,995

@848,602 (kook !!OPZbEQMT1)
Benedict Cumberbatch

kook !!OPZbEQMT1 (OP) replied with this 8 years ago, 6 minutes later, 1 day after the original post[^] [v] #849,004

@previous (G)
I don't care for him

Minichan