Hey, guys and gals. I started reading Einstein's Dreams and I generally liked it, although I was surprised at the author's brevity. I read the Prologue, and two of Einstein's "Journal Entries" and it turns out to be very interesting. The aforementioned brevity, however, does not daunt my interest in the book the slightest bit, so don't be discouraged. It already delves into "Einstein's Dreams" in an original, stylistic way, and the ideas it covers are amazing already; it already blows my mind. Einstein's Dreams looks like a fun book to discover and I'm looking forward to sharing ideas and reading your comments!
Thus far the book is quite enjoyable based on it's sheer depth.
The discussion of time as a cycle, I found to be very relevant. Lightman writes, "The world repeats itself, precisely, endlessly" (6). This seemingly is a true statement but more importantly it presents the reader with what I percieve to be a cynical attitude. According to Lightman's Einstein, no actions are ever unique/original, and failures are ultimately repeated. This doesn't seem to agree with the Einstein we all are familiar with. Further, the nuances within the chapter - ie, Lightman's descriptions of how time is orbicular, adds to the philosophical aura of the book.
Yet, the idea of time travel is a bit too fatastical even for me. Even so, Lightman's comparison between the time travelers and what I perceived to be homeless (although it's debateable) was quite clever on his part.
It is apparent that these ideas concerning time will eventually affect Einstein's theory of relativity. However, it escapes me how. Any ideas on this connection?
"It is apparent that these ideas concerning time will eventually affect Einstein's theory of relativity. However, it escapes me how. Any ideas on this connection?"
Well, I took a look at the title, and then at the way Lightman titles his chapters, and I'm just guessing that Lightman is creating his "dreams" based on Einstein's works on the corresponding date Einstein proposed say a theory. In the prologue, it said that the "young patent clerk" has "dreamed many dreams about time," so I'm guessing that the young patent clerk is Einstein and the chapters we're getting are his dreams about time. So, for example, suppose Einstein proposed in his journal that time is a circle on April 14, 1905. Lightman reads that journal, and then creates a "dream" based on that hypothesis.
Basically, I'm saying that there's a "real world" in the book that we aren't reading about, which would be from the "young patent clerk's" point of view, the view we are given at the prologue, and that we've only been reading about Einstein's dreams. While life is going on for our young Einstein, we're only getting glimpses of his life through his dreams.
Let me clarify myself a bit, I posed my ambiguous question as an invitation to those who may know something about Einstein's theory of relativity, since I personally know nothing on the subject. I was more or less curious how his dreams connected to his theory of relativity not what they were technically. I do appreciate the insight however.
On a completely different note, the interludes that Lightman includes seem to be the only places in the book where the reader is met with the "real" Einstein. As opposed to just the assumed. That means that the reader never really learns about the actual protagonist. I find this to be very interesting. Lightman keeps the reader at a distance from Einstein.
Ultimately, Besso, Einstein's comrade mentioned, his "passion for closeness seems odd". It's actually contradictory of the fact that he's a "recluse" (41). This inconsistency will probably have some bearing on Einstein's studies in the future I'm sure.
So far as I'm reading the book i realize that you have to read every sentence slowly because there is so much to take in if you miss one sentence becuase you werent paying attention to it or something then the rest of the chapter won't make sense. I've had to read plenty of chapters twice.
And as for Tzivia, i have no idea either what Einsteins theory of relativity is. But I think that his dreams are definatly going to connect and effect this theory. If no one knows how it will connect to the theory then most likely the connection is going to come up further into the reading.
I also had a question.I didnt understand how the chapter "8 May 1905" had to do with any of his other dreams. All of his other dreams had to do with different types of time and the examples of those different types of time, like the one with the whole group of people that go out to eat, and the one with that guy who is debating whether or not he should go see that women in the next town.This chapter doesnt talk about that and i dont understand its importance. Any ideas?
I also wanted to say my opinion about the book so far. I am almost to page 72 which is i think the page we are supposed to stop at. I think that this book is extremely interesting, it makes me think a lot and wonder if all those different types of time could really be occuring. I am amazed how the author got these ideas and put them together. Like kevin said, he most likely writes the dreams corresponding to the date einstein proposed the ideas.
Coincidentally, I was just reviewing the May 8th dream. The dream discusses how people act as time diminishes from 1 year until the world ends. Although it does not specifically discuss time as many of the other dreams do, this particular dream more focuses on the actions of the civilians- another focal point of Lightman. It seems that in every dream Lightman discusses time and how the civilians act subsequently. The focus has only shifted a bit in that dream as far as I'm concerned.
Further, I have come to the conclusion that Lightman takes accepted ideas and manipulates/exaggerates them to correspond to different theories of time. I find that this is the most interesting aspect of the book.
I should also like to add the fact that I've thus realized that this book pushes the bounds of credibility. Obviously, it's fiction, I'm well aware of this fact, yet at the same time how likely is it that Einstein not only dreamed every night or so but all his dreams involved a rich view of time. Impossible? I should say so.
Wellllll I just accidently hit the back button on my computer so this is my SECOND time writing this entry and I doubt that I can get it to sound like I wanted it to sound like in the first one but here it goes.
Anyway, so this is my first blog and I see that the intense conversation is already under way. I think that what everyone is saying really relates to what I've been thinking as I have red the book so far. The book does propose many thought provoking ideas and new ways of viewing time.
So being the geek I am, I was having a talk with my friend the other day about the chapter/dream on April 14, 1905 (the same one tzivia previously qouted from). Here it states that "people...will live their lives over" (6). As my friend and I discussed this idea and the examples that are given throughout this chapter/dream/entry, we decided that the idea presented here provides a very strong backbone for what we know as deja vu. This is true because not only does the book say that people realize "The world repeats itself", but it also states that they begin to feel hopelessly trapped knowing they are stuck in time and required to repeat the same actions over and over again. Another chapter I found to be my favorite so far was on May 3,1905. The idea for this chapter was that there is "a world in which cause and effect are erratic". I found this chapter very interesting because it brought up some very great examples on certain situations where,in fact, it is really confusing to tell which part of an event comes first if you had not known what had occured prior to that. In the case of the Zurich police banning pistols, for example, it can easily be seen that either one of the events could be switched in time and still make perfect sense. As to what everyone else has been saying I do agree that it appears that perhaps Einstein had a journal which he recorded ideas and that each dream is based off of an idea, either that or the author does a very great job of bringing up some very great ideas of time on his own because some of these ideas brought up in the story are just like "whoa" and seem to blow my mind away with the amount of thougt needed to put into each word that is written throughout the book. It figures the Kevin was the first one to post...
I just made a connection while i was reading and it sounded just like a movie i had saw. The chapter is 20 May 1905, this chapter is about how people lose their memories everyday and have to keep a "book of life" so they can remember what their lives were like previous to when they start reading. If you have ever seen the notebook, this women gets a disease and permananly loses her memory but her husband wrote her a book about her life. Everytime the husband reads her this book(which is everyday) she remebers her life again and that the man reading her this book is her husband. Eventually she forgets and and the husband has to read her the book again. This is exactly what these people do.
So far i have found every chapter to be interesting and mind blowing except 29 May 1905. This chapter, to me, is just silly. I dont think there is a need for it. I dont undertstand why the author includes it. I think it is a stupid, unecessary chapter.
Oh ya and I'm so happy that i found out like a half hour ago that we were supposed to have 10 post-its for the Bookclub tomorrow. First of all i already had most of this section read and second i dont have any post-its. Oh ya and third its a little late and I'm going to bed. GOODNIGHT.
Firstly, I would like to completely agree with David's comment in having to read each line meticulously. The narrative not only reflects the precision and accuracy of a mathematician, but also of the density as well. Four to five pages would translate to about fifty pages in a conventional novel. However, one of the greatest aspects of this book, despite the book's relative brevity, is that the book sacrifices none of the enjoyment one would find in a book like Sophie's World. (I haven't read the book, but I have seen the dictionary-thickness and heard that it's a good book about philosophy and human nature.)
"...this particular dream more focuses on the actions of the civilians- another focal point of Lightman. It seems that in every dream Lightman discusses time and how the civilians act subsequently."
I agree with the above statement, and I would like to take it further and say that Einstein's dreams are used to explore human nature as well. In all of the entries, some aspect of humans is seen as a reaction to each theory of time. Especially in the entry "26 April 1905", Lightman's illustration of life through that aspect of time seems to be a microcosm (Hehehe) of society.
Also, Lightman appears to stress on perspective in his entries, just like Einstein's Theory of Relativity. (Theory of Relativity is based on one's perspective of what is "at rest")For example, in the entry "24 April, 1905", the end of the chapter states that "each time is true, but the truths are not the same." Two truths, each true. The only difference lies in the person that looks at each truth; perspective. But what point is the author trying to make?
Interesting query. Personally, I have to agree with the idea of perspective being explicetly discussed by Lightman. To further that idea, I believe that perspective addresses two intricately connected points. First, perspective ties into all the different types of time; that is, that all times exist but in different forms. And second, that each civilian experiences different perspectives in their own specific time. This idea of perspective that Lightman so blatantly conveys seems to give the reader a broader view of the world he is painting.
I'd also like to comment on the June 10, 1905 dream. Lightman begins by discussing time as "not a quantity but a quality" (95). This was an interesting point to me. Perhaps, by discussing time as a viewable, describeable object it helped Lightman's Einstein distance himself from it. Perhaps, by doing so, it aided his studies -in the theory of relativity. I'm not very cultivated on the subject, but as far as I know, time too really isn't measured so much as described. Thus, this dream may very specifically allude to his findings.
I've made the discovery that the "little cafe" is mentioned frequently if not in almost every chapter. Even though all the humans may act differently in response to their times, the cafe was always there, always the same. It suggests stability in each time and further that people will always remain people no matter how they ultimately act.
Can you (tzivia) elaborate on the "little cafe?" It just never occurred to me and I haven't been completely convinced by your evidence.
On a side note, I'd like to look at the 27 June, 1905 chapter, and, more specifically, the last paragraph of the chapter. That last paragraph stuck out because I have actually thought about it before. I think that the passage explores the existence of the past, or lack thereof. For example, "In time, the past never happened. But who could know?" (Lightman 134) And, exploring this thought, I came to the conclusion that the past indeed does not exist substantially, which I thought was cool and oddly satisfying (One of those moments where you go "Oh, that's cool!" and suddenly your day becomes brighter). In fact, the only place that the past has in our lives is in our foggy memory, which is, as Lightman puts it, unreliable because the past may "alter with a glance" and therefore "lose reality" (Lightman 134). With such a unique "past", who can really say theirs is the correct one? Thus, the perspective of one's individual take on life becomes important (Sorry about the weak vocabulary, couldn't remember the word I was looking for)and unique.
I just might subconsciously support that view that the past is more or less fake just to send a message to those excruciating History assignments.
Oh, on another side note, you might want to digest this if you want to learn something about Einstein's Theory of Relativity. (Digest in the respect that you'll have to expend some energy swallowing it down)
Second post YAY now that I am way behind everyon else. I'd just like to say I hate these blog entries because this is the second time my entry hasnt gone through and I've had to retype the whole thing...oh well guess its not your problem now is it?? Stupid me. Okay anyway now for the book. I agree with what everyone has been saying (only I prefer smaller words, hehe) and I do think that this book does add some new ideas about time and some very great ideas about the "perspective" of time. So Tzivia, I am with Kevin, could you possible back up the "cafe" idea alittle more. I do agree that it comes up alot, but so do some other things like, does it seem to anyone else that there seems to be alot of people riding bikes?? And the dreams mostly take part in the same cities. Maybe you are on to some bigger connection between all of the dreams and with alittle more details, we could find the answers, but I will keep looking for it in the reading! Which brings me to my next topic. Does anyone seem to find a connection to all of the dreams? I understand each one provides a new and different way at looking at time, but I was just thinking these can't all be random dreams and they must have some greater purpose to them. Also I find that I really liked the "Time exists, but it cannot be measured" (95) dream because I like the idea of time being flexible and that it can be suited to fit human needs. The example of the quarryman is the example I found interesting and it would be very reassuring to people if they new something was always there for them if they needed. But i guess life doesn't work that way. Which may be a reason to this book, to tell people that although these are fun things to think about, life just doesnt work that way and time is unyeilding. Maybe not...just an idea. I just really feel like imnot getting out of the book what it was truly meant for. Something tells me I'm not going to read this book only once...
It was merely a thought I had. I don't really have suffient evidence to make a firm conclusion per se. Most likely, I'm just bloviating. However, one must admit that the presence of such a cafe so frequently is suggestive of a symbol. My assumption was that it suggested uniformity and stability in a world ravaged with contrasting perspectives. Take that for what you may.
I would also like to add that as much as I enjoyed the novel, I was disappointed that nothing was revealed to me by way of Einstein's Theory of Relativity at the conclusion of the book. Consequently, the overall ending did not impress me. However, I did find Einstein's last dream (concerning the bell jar) to be the most powerful.
In response to Danny's question about HTML tags, it's quite simple. Say you want to bold this. To do that, just do < b >this< / b > (without the ridiculous spaces). The first one tells the computer to start bolding, the second tells it to stop.
In response to Tzivia's vain search for any direct mentioning of Einstein's Theory of Relativity: I don't think that Lightman should've directly mentioned any of Einstein's theories directly. These are, after all, his dreams and not his works. Besides, it's a novel, not a science book, right? But, regardless, if you know little bit about Einstein's works, you'd see the similarities instantly. Like, for example, the one about all of the houses moving (29 May, 1905) is referring to the concept that people who travel at the speed of light age slower. Also mentioned is the basic idea of perspective (If your on a train that's moving, and the trees whip by your view, it can be said that you are at rest while the trees are the ones moving).
But, on a side note, Einstein at the beginning said that there was one "compelling" dream, one that was more 'correct' than the others. Which one do you think, out of all of these dreams, is the most fitting one?
In response to both Tzivia and Kevin's entries, I also think that it was somewhat deliberate that Lightman didnt directly relate the book to Eistein's theory just because of what Kevin said, you really can find the relation without an explanation. I do agree with Tzivia, however, that I wish there was at least a little explanation, at least on where the crazy dreams were coming from, just so as to be certain because of course we all have our own ideas on what they mean, and their importance.
I also found that I was very captivated by the bell jar entry and to answer Kevin's question, I think that this may be the most correct dream, simply because it contrasts how the young live compared to the old. It does make a lot of sense, at least compared to some of the other dreams.
On the subject of the bell jar and the nightingales (28 June 1905) I have an interesting tidbit on the ending paragraphs of the novel in the Epilogue.
I thought that the fact that the book ended mentioning "the tiny black speck" and "the Alps" (Lightman 140) had to be significant in some way. Prior to this the Alps were mentioned in the Interlude on page 76. Here, Einstein is shown looking at the Alps, but it then goes on to say that he is not looking at the Alps, but looking out into space instead. And as for the "tiny black speck", also described vaguely as a "bird", it could be referring to the nightingales. So what could this mean?
Well, before I go into that, I will bring up the question earlier of the "compelling dream." So, with this in mind, as Einstein looks into space, he also sees the nightingale at the same time. What this could mean is that the nightingale is, in fact, Einstein's compelling dream.
P.S.: I have an extreme question that I thought of while eating dinner one day. I was thinking about the "Is it true?" kind of question, and this popped up. But before I get to the question, here's a quote:
"I want to understand time because I want to get close to The Old One." (Lightman 40)
Here, Einstein tells Besso in the first Interlude that he wants to understand time in hopes of shedding some light on God. However, in exploring time, I believe he has gone further away from God. I think this because I asked myself this: How can there be so many perspectives, so many 'truths', and one God? Einstein's Theory of Relativity points out that there are so many truths, all defined by one's unique perspective. And this idea ultimately goes against the idea that there is one truth and one God. This might explain why Einstein was "empty" in the Epilogue. His original goal of getting closing to God may have been refuted by his math, and he then becomes uninterested in pursuing his studies.
What are your thoughts? What do you think Einstein's dreams and Einstein's works saying about God?
Well being someone brought up in a somewhat religious family I do agree with what you have said so far about Einstein, his goals, and his relation with god. In this way, I would like to connect myself with Einstein simply because, as I live life everyday and view the world as a more scientific one, I often times question the existence of god. Now this isn't uncommon these days with so many theories out and about, but I was wondering how this may relate to Einstein. As far as I know, back in his time, if you beleived in God you were most likely very religious and discovering that he may not be real, or even that you were distancing yourself from him might be a huge emotional let down, to say the least. Well to answer the "if its true" part of the question all I can say is that perhaps it is true that the more people seek the way of science the more they distance themselves from the religious world.
Kevin I think you have brought up a very great point because as I read this book I also wondered why there was alot of discussion about God if Eistein was creating is theory of time. I understand he hoped his theory would bring him closer to Him but it just seemed like that was not going to happen. I think you made a great point about the multiple time zones, but to play the "devil's advocate", maybe all of these dreams were bringing him closer to God simply because as he searched through each one of them he realized that only one was correct, the nightengale one, and that is why he looks into the Alps at the end, because he has discovered the truly correct one that connects him with God. Not sure if I'm stretching it, but just a thought?
I would like to give some of my personal response on the book, while I wait for you all to comment back on the God portion of the conversation.
I really liked the book and I felt that it was very deep. I found that each dream could have some connection to real life and I thought maybe this could be one of the purposes of the book, which is to look at the reactions of humans when placed in a new "experimentel time zone". We touched upon this in class but I think this is a very important aspect to notice because if this is true, then we can say that one goal of the book is to discover and observe the ways of human nature. We could possibly connect this to The Lord of the Flies and compare what each book is saying about human nature and how people react when placed in certain situations. For example how some people just cried at night trying to escape their futures even though they saw what was to become of them. If anyone disagrees that this may be one of the ideas of the book, then feel free to argue with me.
I obviously have missed a great deal, having been absent from this site for a while..
I also share the belief that the entry discussing the bell jar was the most "compelling". It seemed to lend closure to all ideas concerning time with a very general theme perhaps. To merely quote from myself (from a post-it) Lightman seems to suggest that "time always must move as you must move on from time" and further that "all have their time".
The fact that there is perhaps a nightingale fluttering about at the end of the book (as Kevin pointed out) seems to be suggestive of time itself, always moving. It was a clever way to conclude the book I should say.
In addition, I don't share the belief that Einstein "has gone further away from God". I find that the ideas presented are quite enlightening yet I can't say that I agree, based on the fact that I have consistently found a relgious backdrop to the novel. There were allusions to afterlife, ie, the June 2, 1905 dream where "time flows backward" (Lightman 79). The end of the chapter discusses an instance where a man will meet his deceased friend again, which to me, alluded to some sort of afterlife. It is my belief that either Einstein was intricately connected to God or wasn't at all and was attempting to be based on what I consider to be blatant displays of religious allusions.
To just comment on Danny's observation, I find that I agree only to an extent. Obviously, I agree that Lightman's purpose is to study human nature and that Golding similarly comments on this. However, Lord of the Flies only focuses on one very dismal aspect of human nature, in effect, Golding's opinion that there is evil in all. I don't believe that Lightman is really giving an opinion so much as describing a multi-faceted view of people, and I wouldn't concede that he is quite as cynical as Golding. Rather, he is more satirical than anything else. The fact that Lightman is more reporting rather than commenting on the actions of the civilians differentiates him from Golding.
On Danny's comment about the existence of God waaay back then, I'd have to point out that if Einstein felt that he was getting closer to God, he wouldn't just discontinue his work like he did in the Epilogue. But, he does, and from this we can assume that something is bringing his hopes down, giving him no motivation.
I'd have to disagree with Tzivia based on some points, one of which is a reflection of the one above: What can explain Einstein's feeling of 'emptiness' at the end of the chapter? Why would anyone feel 'emptiness' or lack of interest to pursue anything? And, secondly, all of these religious references in other dreams--they didn't turn out to be the 'compelling dream.'
Finally, on the subject of Lightman's purpose in discovering the aspects of human nature, I'd have to agree. Like Tzivia said, it's not going so far as to focus on one aspect of human beings like Golding does, which is the prevalence of evil within people. Lightman, like before with the equation idea, basically shifts one variable, the time variable, in a equation and then sees what happens. So, for example, what if time was a circle? Well, then people would react like this, etc, etc. And so, Lightman explores human nature through a reaction of time. And those people who turn out in these dreams--some of them appear to be very similar to people I know in real life today. And those people react according to specific 'perspectives' of time. Say a person who is always hurrying and trying to save time and rushing down corridors and leading a hectic life. In our view, he'd just be a busy man with a busy life that's crammed with things to do. But in this view of time, one of Einstein's dreams, gives us the version of time that the person rushing around is seeing, summed up neatly in the entry 29 May, 1905.
Again just to argue with Kevin even though I am kinda of on his side and therefore probably can't make a strong arguement but, can we not say that because Eistein did in fact find himself close to God, that he stopped pursueing his work? Maybe the fact that he felt so close to God already made him feel that he didn't need to get any closer and that he had completed his goal.
Ok now that thats over... Yes I do feel that the speck in the distance could be a nightengale, but aare ther other possibilities? It seems like we just assumed it was a nightengale and left it at that. What coul be some other objects that it may be and what could they possibly symbolize? Not that I'm aruging against the nightengale idea because I actually like that one alot and I think it adds to the end of the book.
Also, about the Lord of the Flies connection, I do understand they are two very different views on human nature but I was just pointing out that they viewed himan nature, none the less. I totally agree with Tzivia that while Lord of the Flies takes a more pessimistic (totally butchered the spelling of that word) view of humans, Einstein's Dreams looks simply at how the humans react, not really giving on opinion on either side.
Also, I'd just like to say I'm going to China wednesday and this is my sixth post, that doesn't mean that I won't be on but that just means I might be on a little less often. I'll try to get to a computer when I can but by then you all might already be done discussin the book... I hope that Ms. Clapp keeps the blogs up after we are done so that we can still discuss the book further if more comes up. Anyway I think this was alot of fun and I hope you guys keep posting, I'll try to check the blog as much as possible.
Wellllll... When you get closer to something like God, I'd expect a different reaction as opposed to feeling empty. Enlightened or jubilant or satisfied comes to mind.
And on the nightingale: I thought of it first because it was the freshest memory of a bird in my mind. That's probably because its tribute is one chapter preceding the Epilogue, but also because I think that's the only 'bird' dream that has been that developed.
And, finally, I'd like to say my goodbyes and best wishes to your trip to China. I'm a little bit envious, as I want to go to China because I have never been there. Though I'm slightly piqued at the price and the fact that I'm not fluent in Chinese. I know that going to someplace far from the little confines of Malden will enlarge your experience, which is more vital than any textbook could offer. Learn a lot of things while you're there, but have even more fun.
I would just like to offer my concluding thoughts on the book in relation to the nightingale. As Kevin was discussing, the nightingale was in fact the only bird truly emphasized in the novel. Further, the fact that Lightman chose to place such a bird at the very end of the book in such conspicuous position suggests its importance. Thus, I doubt it was merely some passing bird. However, Lightman may have just been using a nameless, undistinguished bird as a device to represent the movement of time rather than a specific bird to allude back to one of the other dreams.
Out of fear of sounding trite, I will merely add that I greatly enjoyed the book.
Sorry about the "A". Ok so this book is interesting and I'm saying this now becuase i havent posted a comment in soo long and i need 3 more so im gunna go back and talk about like the middle of the book and then the end. So by this time in the book at around 17 June 1905, i feel like i keep reading the same thing. I know the theories of time are all different but at this point i have read soo many that its almost getting boring, dont get me wrong they are interesting. But nothing seems to be building up to any climax or conclusion. I first thought that the climax and conclusion and all that would come in during the interludes but it hasn't and I"m starting to get bored just reading about time. I want to know the deeper meaning here or the theme but this book is so cleverly different than any other book i have read.
I was also thinking about one chapter that really caught my attention. The chapter was 17 June 1905. In the chapter time skips but only in microseconds. People dont even notice that it skips becuase the time that it skips is so small. I know its not possible but again this book makes me think about these types of time. It made me think about how things would be if our world was that way. It says that a women made a slight change in her smile and the man she was with noticed it. He noticed it, but he didnt know the true reason why she did that. This caused him to think that she didnt love him like he loved her. He left her and never spoke to her again, even though that may have been his soulmate after all. It made me think about how even the smallest amount of time can affect someone on such a large scale. A microsecond can decide whether someone lives or dies, if they are in a situation like a car accident, a microsecond is enough time to change your life forever, it can change in a good way or a bad way. But its amazing how something so tiny can have such signifacant effects.
Now, like Tzivia, I will state my opinion about the book. It is definatly easy to read but requires much time and thinking. It is interesting for the most part. The book, in my opinion lets the reader down at the end. I felt like there should have been more, like the book wasnt finished. But i guess it relates to every chapter in the way it is created to probably make you think. I think its a book you should read twice because one time isn' enough to get every little detail from the book, which i think is neccessary in order to get a good understanding and meaning for the book.
Over all it was enjoyable and it was definatly better than standing around at work doing nothing. I would recomend it to people who are willing to take time to read and who are not lazy. To people who want something to think about and to people who somehow like TIME.
This is a rather late post, but I will post anyways.
On the subject of the nightingale symbolism, I have unearthed interesting information about the bell jar through a little research.
"It [the bell jar] can be sealed, which allows it to be used in a classroom science experiment involving an alarm clock and a vacuum pump. The air is pumped out of the sealed bell jar, and the noise of the alarm clock fades, thus demonstrating that the propagation of sound is mediated by the air. Deprived of its medium, the sound cannot travel." -Wikipedia
What quality of this quote I decided to highlight is the "vacuum" part. In the book, the nightingale is cut off from the flow of air, the "vacuum" in the quote is now created, and the nightingale's song "diminishes to silence" (Lightman 138), the fact that sound cannot travel with a medium, or in this case air.
In this chapter, the nightingale takes the characteristics of memories, or a fragment of time. And when the bell jar is upon them, they are cut off from air, or the flow of time. Being such, the nightingale's song fades, just as when memories of the past too fade and lose their luster.
What this symbolism may show is that the author believes that memories are just like sounds in the respect of their evanescence.
38 comments:
Hey, guys and gals. I started reading Einstein's Dreams and I generally liked it, although I was surprised at the author's brevity. I read the Prologue, and two of Einstein's "Journal Entries" and it turns out to be very interesting. The aforementioned brevity, however, does not daunt my interest in the book the slightest bit, so don't be discouraged. It already delves into "Einstein's Dreams" in an original, stylistic way, and the ideas it covers are amazing already; it already blows my mind.
Einstein's Dreams looks like a fun book to discover and I'm looking forward to sharing ideas and reading your comments!
Heyy I'm just making sure this works...
Thus far the book is quite enjoyable based on it's sheer depth.
The discussion of time as a cycle, I found to be very relevant. Lightman writes, "The world repeats itself, precisely, endlessly" (6). This seemingly is a true statement but more importantly it presents the reader with what I percieve to be a cynical attitude. According to Lightman's Einstein, no actions are ever unique/original, and failures are ultimately repeated. This doesn't seem to agree with the Einstein we all are familiar with. Further, the nuances within the chapter - ie, Lightman's descriptions of how time is orbicular, adds to the philosophical aura of the book.
Yet, the idea of time travel is a bit too fatastical even for me. Even so, Lightman's comparison between the time travelers and what I perceived to be homeless (although it's debateable) was quite clever on his part.
It is apparent that these ideas concerning time will eventually affect Einstein's theory of relativity. However, it escapes me how. Any ideas on this connection?
"It is apparent that these ideas concerning time will eventually affect Einstein's theory of relativity. However, it escapes me how. Any ideas on this connection?"
Well, I took a look at the title, and then at the way Lightman titles his chapters, and I'm just guessing that Lightman is creating his "dreams" based on Einstein's works on the corresponding date Einstein proposed say a theory. In the prologue, it said that the "young patent clerk" has "dreamed many dreams about time," so I'm guessing that the young patent clerk is Einstein and the chapters we're getting are his dreams about time. So, for example, suppose Einstein proposed in his journal that time is a circle on April 14, 1905. Lightman reads that journal, and then creates a "dream" based on that hypothesis.
Basically, I'm saying that there's a "real world" in the book that we aren't reading about, which would be from the "young patent clerk's" point of view, the view we are given at the prologue, and that we've only been reading about Einstein's dreams. While life is going on for our young Einstein, we're only getting glimpses of his life through his dreams.
Let me clarify myself a bit,
I posed my ambiguous question as an invitation to those who may know something about Einstein's theory of relativity, since I personally know nothing on the subject. I was more or less curious how his dreams connected to his theory of relativity not what they were technically. I do appreciate the insight however.
On a completely different note, the interludes that Lightman includes seem to be the only places in the book where the reader is met with the "real" Einstein. As opposed to just the assumed. That means that the reader never really learns about the actual protagonist. I find this to be very interesting. Lightman keeps the reader at a distance from Einstein.
Ultimately, Besso, Einstein's comrade mentioned, his "passion for closeness seems odd". It's actually contradictory of the fact that he's a "recluse" (41). This inconsistency will probably have some bearing on Einstein's studies in the future I'm sure.
So far as I'm reading the book i realize that you have to read every sentence slowly because there is so much to take in if you miss one sentence becuase you werent paying attention to it or something then the rest of the chapter won't make sense. I've had to read plenty of chapters twice.
And as for Tzivia, i have no idea either what Einsteins theory of relativity is. But I think that his dreams are definatly going to connect and effect this theory. If no one knows how it will connect to the theory then most likely the connection is going to come up further into the reading.
I also had a question.I didnt understand how the chapter "8 May 1905" had to do with any of his other dreams. All of his other dreams had to do with different types of time and the examples of those different types of time, like the one with the whole group of people that go out to eat, and the one with that guy who is debating whether or not he should go see that women in the next town.This chapter doesnt talk about that and i dont understand its importance. Any ideas?
I also wanted to say my opinion about the book so far. I am almost to page 72 which is i think the page we are supposed to stop at. I think that this book is extremely interesting, it makes me think a lot and wonder if all those different types of time could really be occuring. I am amazed how the author got these ideas and put them together. Like kevin said, he most likely writes the dreams corresponding to the date einstein proposed the ideas.
Coincidentally, I was just reviewing the May 8th dream. The dream discusses how people act as time diminishes from 1 year until the world ends. Although it does not specifically discuss time as many of the other dreams do, this particular dream more focuses on the actions of the civilians- another focal point of Lightman. It seems that in every dream Lightman discusses time and how the civilians act subsequently. The focus has only shifted a bit in that dream as far as I'm concerned.
Further, I have come to the conclusion that Lightman takes accepted ideas and manipulates/exaggerates them to correspond to different theories of time. I find that this is the most interesting aspect of the book.
I should also like to add the fact that I've thus realized that this book pushes the bounds of credibility. Obviously, it's fiction, I'm well aware of this fact, yet at the same time how likely is it that Einstein not only dreamed every night or so but all his dreams involved a rich view of time. Impossible? I should say so.
Wellllll I just accidently hit the back button on my computer so this is my SECOND time writing this entry and I doubt that I can get it to sound like I wanted it to sound like in the first one but here it goes.
Anyway, so this is my first blog and I see that the intense conversation is already under way. I think that what everyone is saying really relates to what I've been thinking as I have red the book so far. The book does propose many thought provoking ideas and new ways of viewing time.
So being the geek I am, I was having a talk with my friend the other day about the chapter/dream on April 14, 1905 (the same one tzivia previously qouted from). Here it states that "people...will live their lives over" (6). As my friend and I discussed this idea and the examples that are given throughout this chapter/dream/entry, we decided that the idea presented here provides a very strong backbone for what we know as deja vu. This is true because not only does the book say that people realize "The world repeats itself", but it also states that they begin to feel hopelessly trapped knowing they are stuck in time and required to repeat the same actions over and over again.
Another chapter I found to be my favorite so far was on May 3,1905. The idea for this chapter was that there is "a world in which cause and effect are erratic". I found this chapter very interesting because it brought up some very great examples on certain situations where,in fact, it is really confusing to tell which part of an event comes first if you had not known what had occured prior to that. In the case of the Zurich police banning pistols, for example, it can easily be seen that either one of the events could be switched in time and still make perfect sense.
As to what everyone else has been saying I do agree that it appears that perhaps Einstein had a journal which he recorded ideas and that each dream is based off of an idea, either that or the author does a very great job of bringing up some very great ideas of time on his own because some of these ideas brought up in the story are just like "whoa" and seem to blow my mind away with the amount of thougt needed to put into each word that is written throughout the book. It figures the Kevin was the first one to post...
I just made a connection while i was reading and it sounded just like a movie i had saw. The chapter is 20 May 1905, this chapter is about how people lose their memories everyday and have to keep a "book of life" so they can remember what their lives were like previous to when they start reading. If you have ever seen the notebook, this women gets a disease and permananly loses her memory but her husband wrote her a book about her life. Everytime the husband reads her this book(which is everyday) she remebers her life again and that the man reading her this book is her husband. Eventually she forgets and and the husband has to read her the book again. This is exactly what these people do.
So far i have found every chapter to be interesting and mind blowing except 29 May 1905. This chapter, to me, is just silly. I dont think there is a need for it. I dont undertstand why the author includes it. I think it is a stupid, unecessary chapter.
Oh ya and I'm so happy that i found out like a half hour ago that we were supposed to have 10 post-its for the Bookclub tomorrow. First of all i already had most of this section read and second i dont have any post-its. Oh ya and third its a little late and I'm going to bed. GOODNIGHT.
Firstly, I would like to completely agree with David's comment in having to read each line meticulously. The narrative not only reflects the precision and accuracy of a mathematician, but also of the density as well. Four to five pages would translate to about fifty pages in a conventional novel. However, one of the greatest aspects of this book, despite the book's relative brevity, is that the book sacrifices none of the enjoyment one would find in a book like Sophie's World. (I haven't read the book, but I have seen the dictionary-thickness and heard that it's a good book about philosophy and human nature.)
"...this particular dream more focuses on the actions of the civilians- another focal point of Lightman. It seems that in every dream Lightman discusses time and how the civilians act subsequently."
I agree with the above statement, and I would like to take it further and say that Einstein's dreams are used to explore human nature as well. In all of the entries, some aspect of humans is seen as a reaction to each theory of time. Especially in the entry "26 April 1905", Lightman's illustration of life through that aspect of time seems to be a microcosm (Hehehe) of society.
Also, Lightman appears to stress on perspective in his entries, just like Einstein's Theory of Relativity. (Theory of Relativity is based on one's perspective of what is "at rest")For example, in the entry "24 April, 1905", the end of the chapter states that "each time is true, but the truths are not the same." Two truths, each true. The only difference lies in the person that looks at each truth; perspective. But what point is the author trying to make?
Interesting query.
Personally, I have to agree with the idea of perspective being explicetly discussed by Lightman. To further that idea, I believe that perspective addresses two intricately connected points. First, perspective ties into all the different types of time; that is, that all times exist but in different forms. And second, that each civilian experiences different perspectives in their own specific time. This idea of perspective that Lightman so blatantly conveys seems to give the reader a broader view of the world he is painting.
I'd also like to comment on the June 10, 1905 dream. Lightman begins by discussing time as "not a quantity but a quality" (95). This was an interesting point to me. Perhaps, by discussing time as a viewable, describeable object it helped Lightman's Einstein distance himself from it. Perhaps, by doing so, it aided his studies -in the theory of relativity. I'm not very cultivated on the subject, but as far as I know, time too really isn't measured so much as described. Thus, this dream may very specifically allude to his findings.
I've made the discovery that the "little cafe" is mentioned frequently if not in almost every chapter. Even though all the humans may act differently in response to their times, the cafe was always there, always the same. It suggests stability in each time and further that people will always remain people no matter how they ultimately act.
Can you (tzivia) elaborate on the "little cafe?" It just never occurred to me and I haven't been completely convinced by your evidence.
On a side note, I'd like to look at the 27 June, 1905 chapter, and, more specifically, the last paragraph of the chapter. That last paragraph stuck out because I have actually thought about it before. I think that the passage explores the existence of the past, or lack thereof. For example, "In time, the past never happened. But who could know?" (Lightman 134) And, exploring this thought, I came to the conclusion that the past indeed does not exist substantially, which I thought was cool and oddly satisfying (One of those moments where you go "Oh, that's cool!" and suddenly your day becomes brighter). In fact, the only place that the past has in our lives is in our foggy memory, which is, as Lightman puts it, unreliable because the past may "alter with a glance" and therefore "lose reality" (Lightman 134). With such a unique "past", who can really say theirs is the correct one? Thus, the perspective of one's individual take on life becomes important (Sorry about the weak vocabulary, couldn't remember the word I was looking for)and unique.
I just might subconsciously support that view that the past is more or less fake just to send a message to those excruciating History assignments.
Oh, on another side note, you might want to digest this if you want to learn something about Einstein's Theory of Relativity. (Digest in the respect that you'll have to expend some energy swallowing it down)
Second post YAY now that I am way behind everyon else. I'd just like to say I hate these blog entries because this is the second time my entry hasnt gone through and I've had to retype the whole thing...oh well guess its not your problem now is it?? Stupid me. Okay anyway now for the book.
I agree with what everyone has been saying (only I prefer smaller words, hehe) and I do think that this book does add some new ideas about time and some very great ideas about the "perspective" of time. So Tzivia, I am with Kevin, could you possible back up the "cafe" idea alittle more. I do agree that it comes up alot, but so do some other things like, does it seem to anyone else that there seems to be alot of people riding bikes?? And the dreams mostly take part in the same cities. Maybe you are on to some bigger connection between all of the dreams and with alittle more details, we could find the answers, but I will keep looking for it in the reading! Which brings me to my next topic. Does anyone seem to find a connection to all of the dreams? I understand each one provides a new and different way at looking at time, but I was just thinking these can't all be random dreams and they must have some greater purpose to them.
Also I find that I really liked the "Time exists, but it cannot be measured" (95) dream because I like the idea of time being flexible and that it can be suited to fit human needs. The example of the quarryman is the example I found interesting and it would be very reassuring to people if they new something was always there for them if they needed. But i guess life doesn't work that way. Which may be a reason to this book, to tell people that although these are fun things to think about, life just doesnt work that way and time is unyeilding. Maybe not...just an idea. I just really feel like imnot getting out of the book what it was truly meant for. Something tells me I'm not going to read this book only once...
Also...how do you use the HTML tags? ...poor, poor Danny....
It was merely a thought I had. I don't really have suffient evidence to make a firm conclusion per se. Most likely, I'm just bloviating. However, one must admit that the presence of such a cafe so frequently is suggestive of a symbol. My assumption was that it suggested uniformity and stability in a world ravaged with contrasting perspectives. Take that for what you may.
I would also like to add that as much as I enjoyed the novel, I was disappointed that nothing was revealed to me by way of Einstein's Theory of Relativity at the conclusion of the book. Consequently, the overall ending did not impress me. However, I did find Einstein's last dream (concerning the bell jar) to be the most powerful.
In response to Danny's question about HTML tags, it's quite simple. Say you want to bold this. To do that, just do < b >this< / b > (without the ridiculous spaces). The first one tells the computer to start bolding, the second tells it to stop.
In response to Tzivia's vain search for any direct mentioning of Einstein's Theory of Relativity: I don't think that Lightman should've directly mentioned any of Einstein's theories directly. These are, after all, his dreams and not his works. Besides, it's a novel, not a science book, right? But, regardless, if you know little bit about Einstein's works, you'd see the similarities instantly. Like, for example, the one about all of the houses moving (29 May, 1905) is referring to the concept that people who travel at the speed of light age slower. Also mentioned is the basic idea of perspective (If your on a train that's moving, and the trees whip by your view, it can be said that you are at rest while the trees are the ones moving).
But, on a side note, Einstein at the beginning said that there was one "compelling" dream, one that was more 'correct' than the others. Which one do you think, out of all of these dreams, is the most fitting one?
In response to both Tzivia and Kevin's entries, I also think that it was somewhat deliberate that Lightman didnt directly relate the book to Eistein's theory just because of what Kevin said, you really can find the relation without an explanation. I do agree with Tzivia, however, that I wish there was at least a little explanation, at least on where the crazy dreams were coming from, just so as to be certain because of course we all have our own ideas on what they mean, and their importance.
I also found that I was very captivated by the bell jar entry and to answer Kevin's question, I think that this may be the most correct dream, simply because it contrasts how the young live compared to the old. It does make a lot of sense, at least compared to some of the other dreams.
On the subject of the bell jar and the nightingales (28 June 1905) I have an interesting tidbit on the ending paragraphs of the novel in the Epilogue.
I thought that the fact that the book ended mentioning "the tiny black speck" and "the Alps" (Lightman 140) had to be significant in some way. Prior to this the Alps were mentioned in the Interlude on page 76. Here, Einstein is shown looking at the Alps, but it then goes on to say that he is not looking at the Alps, but looking out into space instead. And as for the "tiny black speck", also described vaguely as a "bird", it could be referring to the nightingales. So what could this mean?
Well, before I go into that, I will bring up the question earlier of the "compelling dream." So, with this in mind, as Einstein looks into space, he also sees the nightingale at the same time. What this could mean is that the nightingale is, in fact, Einstein's compelling dream.
P.S.: I have an extreme question that I thought of while eating dinner one day. I was thinking about the "Is it true?" kind of question, and this popped up. But before I get to the question, here's a quote:
"I want to understand time because I want to get close to The Old One." (Lightman 40)
Here, Einstein tells Besso in the first Interlude that he wants to understand time in hopes of shedding some light on God. However, in exploring time, I believe he has gone further away from God. I think this because I asked myself this: How can there be so many perspectives, so many 'truths', and one God? Einstein's Theory of Relativity points out that there are so many truths, all defined by one's unique perspective. And this idea ultimately goes against the idea that there is one truth and one God. This might explain why Einstein was "empty" in the Epilogue. His original goal of getting closing to God may have been refuted by his math, and he then becomes uninterested in pursuing his studies.
What are your thoughts? What do you think Einstein's dreams and Einstein's works saying about God?
Well being someone brought up in a somewhat religious family I do agree with what you have said so far about Einstein, his goals, and his relation with god. In this way, I would like to connect myself with Einstein simply because, as I live life everyday and view the world as a more scientific one, I often times question the existence of god. Now this isn't uncommon these days with so many theories out and about, but I was wondering how this may relate to Einstein. As far as I know, back in his time, if you beleived in God you were most likely very religious and discovering that he may not be real, or even that you were distancing yourself from him might be a huge emotional let down, to say the least. Well to answer the "if its true" part of the question all I can say is that perhaps it is true that the more people seek the way of science the more they distance themselves from the religious world.
Kevin I think you have brought up a very great point because as I read this book I also wondered why there was alot of discussion about God if Eistein was creating is theory of time. I understand he hoped his theory would bring him closer to Him but it just seemed like that was not going to happen. I think you made a great point about the multiple time zones, but to play the "devil's advocate", maybe all of these dreams were bringing him closer to God simply because as he searched through each one of them he realized that only one was correct, the nightengale one, and that is why he looks into the Alps at the end, because he has discovered the truly correct one that connects him with God. Not sure if I'm stretching it, but just a thought?
I would like to give some of my personal response on the book, while I wait for you all to comment back on the God portion of the conversation.
I really liked the book and I felt that it was very deep. I found that each dream could have some connection to real life and I thought maybe this could be one of the purposes of the book, which is to look at the reactions of humans when placed in a new "experimentel time zone". We touched upon this in class but I think this is a very important aspect to notice because if this is true, then we can say that one goal of the book is to discover and observe the ways of human nature. We could possibly connect this to The Lord of the Flies and compare what each book is saying about human nature and how people react when placed in certain situations. For example how some people just cried at night trying to escape their futures even though they saw what was to become of them. If anyone disagrees that this may be one of the ideas of the book, then feel free to argue with me.
I obviously have missed a great deal, having been absent from this site for a while..
I also share the belief that the entry discussing the bell jar was the most "compelling". It seemed to lend closure to all ideas concerning time with a very general theme perhaps. To merely quote from myself (from a post-it) Lightman seems to suggest that "time always must move as you must move on from time" and further that "all have their time".
The fact that there is perhaps a nightingale fluttering about at the end of the book (as Kevin pointed out) seems to be suggestive of time itself, always moving. It was a clever way to conclude the book I should say.
In addition, I don't share the belief that Einstein "has gone further away from God". I find that the ideas presented are quite enlightening yet I can't say that I agree, based on the fact that I have consistently found a relgious backdrop to the novel. There were allusions to afterlife, ie, the June 2, 1905 dream where "time flows backward" (Lightman 79). The end of the chapter discusses an instance where a man will meet his deceased friend again, which to me, alluded to some sort of afterlife. It is my belief that either Einstein was intricately connected to God or wasn't at all and was attempting to be based on what I consider to be blatant displays of religious allusions.
To just comment on Danny's observation, I find that I agree only to an extent. Obviously, I agree that Lightman's purpose is to study human nature and that Golding similarly comments on this. However, Lord of the Flies only focuses on one very dismal aspect of human nature, in effect, Golding's opinion that there is evil in all. I don't believe that Lightman is really giving an opinion so much as describing a multi-faceted view of people, and I wouldn't concede that he is quite as cynical as Golding. Rather, he is more satirical than anything else. The fact that Lightman is more reporting rather than commenting on the actions of the civilians differentiates him from Golding.
On Danny's comment about the existence of God waaay back then, I'd have to point out that if Einstein felt that he was getting closer to God, he wouldn't just discontinue his work like he did in the Epilogue. But, he does, and from this we can assume that something is bringing his hopes down, giving him no motivation.
I'd have to disagree with Tzivia based on some points, one of which is a reflection of the one above:
What can explain Einstein's feeling of 'emptiness' at the end of the chapter? Why would anyone feel 'emptiness' or lack of interest to pursue anything? And, secondly, all of these religious references in other dreams--they didn't turn out to be the 'compelling dream.'
Finally, on the subject of Lightman's purpose in discovering the aspects of human nature, I'd have to agree. Like Tzivia said, it's not going so far as to focus on one aspect of human beings like Golding does, which is the prevalence of evil within people. Lightman, like before with the equation idea, basically shifts one variable, the time variable, in a equation and then sees what happens. So, for example, what if time was a circle? Well, then people would react like this, etc, etc. And so, Lightman explores human nature through a reaction of time. And those people who turn out in these dreams--some of them appear to be very similar to people I know in real life today. And those people react according to specific 'perspectives' of time. Say a person who is always hurrying and trying to save time and rushing down corridors and leading a hectic life. In our view, he'd just be a busy man with a busy life that's crammed with things to do. But in this view of time, one of Einstein's dreams, gives us the version of time that the person rushing around is seeing, summed up neatly in the entry 29 May, 1905.
P.S.: I sincerely apologize about the length.
Again just to argue with Kevin even though I am kinda of on his side and therefore probably can't make a strong arguement but, can we not say that because Eistein did in fact find himself close to God, that he stopped pursueing his work? Maybe the fact that he felt so close to God already made him feel that he didn't need to get any closer and that he had completed his goal.
Ok now that thats over... Yes I do feel that the speck in the distance could be a nightengale, but aare ther other possibilities? It seems like we just assumed it was a nightengale and left it at that. What coul be some other objects that it may be and what could they possibly symbolize? Not that I'm aruging against the nightengale idea because I actually like that one alot and I think it adds to the end of the book.
Also, about the Lord of the Flies connection, I do understand they are two very different views on human nature but I was just pointing out that they viewed himan nature, none the less. I totally agree with Tzivia that while Lord of the Flies takes a more pessimistic (totally butchered the spelling of that word) view of humans, Einstein's Dreams looks simply at how the humans react, not really giving on opinion on either side.
Also, I'd just like to say I'm going to China wednesday and this is my sixth post, that doesn't mean that I won't be on but that just means I might be on a little less often. I'll try to get to a computer when I can but by then you all might already be done discussin the book... I hope that Ms. Clapp keeps the blogs up after we are done so that we can still discuss the book further if more comes up. Anyway I think this was alot of fun and I hope you guys keep posting, I'll try to check the blog as much as possible.
Wellllll...
When you get closer to something like God, I'd expect a different reaction as opposed to feeling empty. Enlightened or jubilant or satisfied comes to mind.
And on the nightingale:
I thought of it first because it was the freshest memory of a bird in my mind. That's probably because its tribute is one chapter preceding the Epilogue, but also because I think that's the only 'bird' dream that has been that developed.
And, finally, I'd like to say my goodbyes and best wishes to your trip to China. I'm a little bit envious, as I want to go to China because I have never been there. Though I'm slightly piqued at the price and the fact that I'm not fluent in Chinese. I know that going to someplace far from the little confines of Malden will enlarge your experience, which is more vital than any textbook could offer. Learn a lot of things while you're there, but have even more fun.
I would just like to offer my concluding thoughts on the book in relation to the nightingale. As Kevin was discussing, the nightingale was in fact the only bird truly emphasized in the novel. Further, the fact that Lightman chose to place such a bird at the very end of the book in such conspicuous position suggests its importance. Thus, I doubt it was merely some passing bird. However, Lightman may have just been using a nameless, undistinguished bird as a device to represent the movement of time rather than a specific bird to allude back to one of the other dreams.
Out of fear of sounding trite, I will merely add that I greatly enjoyed the book.
a
Sorry about the "A".
Ok so this book is interesting and I'm saying this now becuase i havent posted a comment in soo long and i need 3 more so im gunna go back and talk about like the middle of the book and then the end. So by this time in the book at around 17 June 1905, i feel like i keep reading the same thing. I know the theories of time are all different but at this point i have read soo many that its almost getting boring, dont get me wrong they are interesting. But nothing seems to be building up to any climax or conclusion.
I first thought that the climax and conclusion and all that would come in during the interludes but it hasn't and I"m starting to get bored just reading about time. I want to know the deeper meaning here or the theme but this book is so cleverly different than any other book i have read.
I was also thinking about one chapter that really caught my attention. The chapter was 17 June 1905. In the chapter time skips but only in microseconds. People dont even notice that it skips becuase the time that it skips is so small. I know its not possible but again this book makes me think about these types of time. It made me think about how things would be if our world was that way. It says that a women made a slight change in her smile and the man she was with noticed it. He noticed it, but he didnt know the true reason why she did that. This caused him to think that she didnt love him like he loved her. He left her and never spoke to her again, even though that may have been his soulmate after all. It made me think about how even the smallest amount of time can affect someone on such a large scale. A microsecond can decide whether someone lives or dies, if they are in a situation like a car accident, a microsecond is enough time to change your life forever, it can change in a good way or a bad way. But its amazing how something so tiny can have such signifacant effects.
Now, like Tzivia, I will state my opinion about the book. It is definatly easy to read but requires much time and thinking. It is interesting for the most part. The book, in my opinion lets the reader down at the end. I felt like there should have been more, like the book wasnt finished. But i guess it relates to every chapter in the way it is created to probably make you think. I think its a book you should read twice because one time isn' enough to get every little detail from the book, which i think is neccessary in order to get a good understanding and meaning for the book.
Over all it was enjoyable and it was definatly better than standing around at work doing nothing. I would recomend it to people who are willing to take time to read and who are not lazy. To people who want something to think about and to people who somehow like TIME.
This is a rather late post, but I will post anyways.
On the subject of the nightingale symbolism, I have unearthed interesting information about the bell jar through a little research.
"It [the bell jar] can be sealed, which allows it to be used in a classroom science experiment involving an alarm clock and a vacuum pump. The air is pumped out of the sealed bell jar, and the noise of the alarm clock fades, thus demonstrating that the propagation of sound is mediated by the air. Deprived of its medium, the sound cannot travel." -Wikipedia
What quality of this quote I decided to highlight is the "vacuum" part. In the book, the nightingale is cut off from the flow of air, the "vacuum" in the quote is now created, and the nightingale's song "diminishes to silence" (Lightman 138), the fact that sound cannot travel with a medium, or in this case air.
In this chapter, the nightingale takes the characteristics of memories, or a fragment of time. And when the bell jar is upon them, they are cut off from air, or the flow of time. Being such, the nightingale's song fades, just as when memories of the past too fade and lose their luster.
What this symbolism may show is that the author believes that memories are just like sounds in the respect of their evanescence.
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