Irving, John: *1942
The World According to Garp, 1978 - Information about the Book
- General Information | Facts | Author | Commentary | Reviews | Explanations
- General Information
- The novel explores the complex life of T.S. Garp, the son of a feminist leader, as he navigates relationships, sexuality, parenthood, and the unpredictable nature of existence in a world filled with both comedy and tragedy.
- Information from Wikipedia
- Information from Encylcopedia
- Irving’s time in Austria during the 1960s influenced several of his works, including Garp. His experience as a writer and his reflections on the challenges of being an artist are mirrored in Garp’s journey as a struggling author.
Irving incorporated personal concerns into the narrative. For instance, Garp’s obsession with safety reflects Irving’s own anxieties as a parent. Additionally, the character Jenny Fields’ feminist ideals and unconventional choices echo Irving’s interest in challenging traditional societal norms.
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- Facts
Some of the notable awards are:National Book Award for Fiction: In 1980, "The World According to Garp" won the National Book Award for Fiction, one of the most prestigious literary awards in the United States. This recognition helped solidify its place in American literature.
The novel has also garnered numerous other honors, including being named one of the 100 best English-language novels by Time magazine and included in The Guardian's list of the 100 greatest novels of all time.
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- The novel received widespread critical acclaim and became a bestseller. Critics praised Irving's storytelling prowess, particularly his ability to blend tragedy and comedy. Irving's narrative style, characterized by its intricate plot and detailed character development, garnered particular attention.
Over the years, "The World According to Garp" has maintained its status as a modern classic. It is frequently included in discussions of important American literature from the late 20th century and remains a popular and influential work in Irving's bibliography.
Overall, "The World According to Garp" was and continues to be celebrated for its originality, emotional impact, and insightful commentary on human nature and society.
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- Author
- John Irving says the title "The World According to Garp" was actually a mistake. CTV
- The Novel Was Never Meant to Be This Timeless: "The novel was always a feminist novel, but in the passage of time I’ve become more of a feminist." John Irving; November 21, 2018
- John Irving on why The World According to Garp is more relevant now than he ever imagined. Author John Irving reflects on the book that made him famous 40 years after its release.
- Commentary
- John Irving's "The World According to Garp" is a masterful exploration of life’s chaos, the unpredictability of human ambition, and the complexities of relationships. Through the story of T.S. Garp, Irving delves into themes of mortality, love, and identity, blending tragedy and comedy in a way that is both poignant and absurd.
The novel captures the eccentricities of its characters, particularly Garp’s fiercely independent mother, Jenny Fields, whose radical feminism and unconventional life choices challenge societal norms. Garp himself embodies the struggle to reconcile personal ambition with familial responsibilities, navigating the unpredictability of life with a mix of humor, passion, and occasional despair.
Irving’s storytelling is rich with metafictional elements, as Garp’s own writings mirror the chaos and beauty of the narrative itself. The book is also a critique of the dangers of fanaticism, as evidenced by the extremists who emerge in response to Jenny’s autobiography.
Ultimately, "The World According to Garp" celebrates the messy, often painful, but deeply meaningful experiences that define human existence. Irving’s ability to balance the grotesque and the tender, the comic and the tragic, makes this novel a timeless and deeply affecting meditation on what it means to live fully and authentically.
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- Reviews
- Capsule Review: ""Garp" is a self-indulgent novel — Irving throws in a long short story and the opening chapter of an entirely different novel, both written by the titular Garp, who’s a novelist — and I felt too often that characters were aggregations of characteristics rather than fully realized people." Josh Philip Ross; December 17, 2022
- Explanations
- Books of the Times: "For all its realism, is not a realistic novel. It is a novel about a writer writing novels--or, more precisely, about the way a sensitive human being communicates his response to reality through the stories he makes up." The New York Times; April 13, 1978
- Garp, Forty Years Later: "Garp is still being read, and Garp’s cis son and the trans woman he married still live, and all that love and affection in the book’s pages still live." The Paris Review; August 23, 2019
- Laughing at the Damndest Things: "There we are, numb with shock and sick with concern, and suddenly we are laughing. And not feeling all that guilty about doing so either." Literary Hub; May 2, 2017
- Podcast
Colin McEnroe and Jim Chapdelaine explain how they felt about Garp when the book came out and how they feel about it now.
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