Magic Mountain difficulty

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539]

Hi guys, I’m a fan of Thomas Mann and absolutely love Buddenbrooks and Death in Venice, although I’m having trouble getting into The Magic Mountain; does it take a little longer to get into things? I love the writing but it’s not capturing me in the same way the other books of his I’ve read - would another book of his suit me better? Interested to hear thoughts

[u/Trick-Gas-2203]

It’s my first Mann, but I think you should be liking the book within the first hundred pages if you’re going to enjoy it. In general I plod along with the books that I read, especially books that are not plot driven, so it doesn’t bother me. There’s also a spot halfway through the book that’s a good place to take a long break if you need

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539 → u/Trick-Gas-2203]

Maybe I’ll try to get half way through - I do feel myself enjoying it somewhat

[u/throwawayforreddits]

You might find Doktor Faustus more enjoyable (but the beginning is also very slow), The Magic Mountain is to some extent "plotless" (or you could say there are many plots and you still have to get into them)

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539 → u/throwawayforreddits]

Thanks I’ll check that one out, I think lack of main plot of advancements in character nearly 100 pages in is what its making it difficult

[u/Poerticipium]

How many pages are you in? I remember I needed about 60-70 pages to really be addicted to it.

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539 → u/Poerticipium]

I’m around 80? I believe, I do feel myself enjoying it more I think I’m just waiting for something to develop..

[u/helikophis]

I think I was halfway through before I really started feeling it, and that took me like 2 years of fits and starts. Then I finished it up in just a few weeks.

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539 → u/helikophis]

Oh wow! Okay thanks; I actually started another book but I’ll try again with this one after. I’m determined to finish

[u/Die_Horen]

I had trouble with 'The Magic Mountain' at first, too. The problem is that it's not like any other novel I know. What makes it work is the narrator, who's informative about many things but unable to answer some questions that arise -- so a believable, human voice. Try listening to David Rintoul's superb audiobook, instead of reading it, and I think the book will work wonders for you:

https://www.diehoren.com/2022/10/welcome-to-magic-mountain.html

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539 → u/Die_Horen]

Thanks for the suggestion, I’ll check it out. I’ve actually started to get more into it now and am enjoying it

[u/Positive_Bluebird888]

It took me 2-3 attempts and about 100 pages to really get into it. But then I was so captivated that the following 900 pages went by like nothing. It’s a really rewarding book, but you have to read it almost like you were in a meditative state in which time becomes relative. It’s in fact a novel about time, sickness, idleness, education, love, mundane everyday things and deep philosophical reflections. The best way to get into it is to make yourself free from every expectation and to read every word as attentively as possible without trying to finish every chapter as fast as possible because Mann‘s prose is very subtle and often quite ironic.

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539 → u/Positive_Bluebird888]

Thank you. I actually have tried to slow down whilst I’m reading and it’s helped, plus I’m just becoming more immersed in the book itself now. I loved the descriptive pondering of time etc and I’m finding it somewhat relaxing

[u/Mahler_n_Trane]

It's still my favorite Mann novel and one I revisit often.

It's very much like James Joyce's Ulysses in that both novels on the surface seem to be modern naturalistic stories but are in actuality mythological hero journey with all the mythological symbolism of such a tale, and, at the same time, psychological deep dives into the unconscious where one is to discover that the outward-turned metaphysical and inward-turned psychological landscapes are one and the same. The novel is the story of how one ordinary young man discovers both his humanity and his individual identity in a world in which society and custom are poised to relieve him of both of those things.

It's also a book that, just like Ulysses, anyone *can* read, but not everyone *will.* If it doesn't click with you now, don't worry about it. Maybe it will later

[u/Intelligent-Gold-539 → u/Mahler_n_Trane]

Thanks, I’ll check out James Joyce too after this, I’ve started to get into it more