Re: The Deerslayer

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: : : Dear John and MMMMarcia,

: : : Boy, you folks sure know how to bring me out of the woodwork!  Well, now, we've had a lot of fun with Chatty Natty, so he hasn't been a total loss.  Truly, any hunter and scout who talked as much as he did would never have lived long enough to load his rifle unless everybody on the frontier moved in slow motion.

: : : HOWSEVER (as Deerslayer would say), some time when you are in a contemplative mood, try listening to what Cooper is saying through Natty's mouth.  The meat of Cooper's message is in Natty's mouth.  (HAHAHAHAHA!)  Seriously, you really can't understand the story unless you use the workings of Natty's mind to put the whole thing in context.  If you simply want adventure or romance, The Leatherstocking Tales are not for you.

: : : Mann did a masterful job of merging the books with the film and adjusting Cooper's work to a 20th Century audience.  The movie is as much of a classic in our time as the books became in the 19th Century.

: : : So there!  Miss Reliable will sit down again and let somebody else have the floor.

: : : Gayle
: : : She Who Tracks La Longue Carabine

: : ~~~~~~~~~~~

: : Hiya, Gayle!

: : You are SO right that Cooper used the literary device of Natty's ramblings to make his points known to the reader.  And I WAS interested in what Cooper was trying to say.  Myself, I would have preferred a non-verbal journey through the Deerslayer's MIND, rather than having to wonder when he was going to shut up,  pull the trigger, and actually SLAY the DEER!  BUT...it was still an interesting read, and I'm glad you talked me into it. One of these days, I'm going to tackle another of the Leatherstocking Tales...honest!

: : Having said that, I must agree with John that the best parts of the book, for ME, were the lovely descriptions of the forest and the Glimmerglass.  I could just see and feel that lake, with its overgrown, twisting shoreline, and that wonderful hut in the middle.  Lovely!

: : And Gayle, please don't crawl back into the woodwork!!  We need your voice here...your knowledge & wit really help make this Board the special place that it is!  Don't go away!!!  

: : MMMMarcia

: Dear MMMMarcia,

: Thanks for that sweet plea.  Actually, I seldom go away - I just lurk.  You know She Who Tracks - now you see her, now you don't.  I'm just grateful the Board is more reliable than I am!

: Gayle


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