"To summarize: a small group of book buyers formed a screen through which novels passed on their way to commercial success; a handful of agents and editors picked the novels that would compete for the notice of those buyers; and a tight network of advertisers and reviewers, organized around the New York Times Book Review, selected from these a few to be recognized as compelling, important, "talked about." (Ohmann, 1884)
Let me preface this blog by saying that I have a lot of pride for the country I live in. Perhaps this has something to do with the fact that my father has served in the military for over 25 years. Nevertheless, I proud to say I live in America and feel incredibly blessed to be given the opportunities I have been given because I am a citizen of this country. This does not mean I completely agree with every decision our government has made or that I stand behind ALL of the notions America seems to stand for. It simply means I know the cost and weight of the freedom I possess to live the lifestyle that I do. This being said, I have a difficult time with Ohmann's complaint that our capitalist nation has become nothing more than a censor for which only those with the highest degree of wealth of power make the decision of what is popular and what is not. I am aware of the fact that SOME of the books that have been chosen as "best sellers" have been selected by an elite group. I am also aware of the fact that monopolies like the New York Times Book Review do need to do more in order to incorporate a more realistic and balanced view when it comes to deciding what literature is worth being read. However, I also feel that there is not enough emphasis in Ohmann's writing placed on individual decisions. Although we can attribute some of the decisions made about books to the imbalance of power, we cannot forget about human nature and individual will. Yes, marketing does play a part but when I walk into a bookstore I don't find myself at the "20 Top Books" stand but way back in the corners where the books that are not so popular are sold (most of the time this is because I think that the books being produced today are garbage and I am skeptical-and also because I just like to look at the cookbooks-haha). I understand Ohmann's argument but feel it is somewhat unbalanced. After all, we all make choices everyday which determine affects that happen in the bigger picture. Even when discussing society and literature, this fact cannot be overlooked. It is easy for people to complain about America and blame so many factors in our world on Capitalism. To some degree I can resonate with these issues and concerns. However, I also feel that people and the world cannot use capitalism as an area to place the blame for poor individual decisions made. Yes, we are all a community. But each member of the community makes decisions that effect the community as a whole so individual choices cannot be overlooked and blamed on the community as a whole. I don't even know if I am making any sense at this point...but I just wanted to offer a counter-argument to Ohmann's conclusion.
1 comments:
You made perfect sense in your counter-argument. I agree with you... the New York Times Book Review may promote it's Top 20, but when you walk into a bookstore, there are many more books you can choose from to read. The capitalist economy may have a "monopoly" on what books they promote, but a promotion does not ensure success of one book. And a book that goes by the wayside by big-time reviewers will be picked up (and perhaps even enjoyed) by someone... plus, because of the internet and the various means of getting books out there, our free choice to read what we choose is even greater, because we have access to many different reviews, and even more books...
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