| By
Jon Surtees
Will
Self is clearly a very clever man. Will Self enjoys being a very
clever man. Will Self enjoys intimidating people by being very clever.
These
are the three overriding impressions left by this evening at the
Oxford Union, part of the Sunday Times Oxford Literary Festival.
After a slightly snivelling introduction from a local Professor
of English, Self lopes to the podium, clad spartanly in an iconoclastic
leather jacket and assumes a lackadaisical posture, leaning on the
podium as if he is on a terrace at the old Manor Ground.
He
then proceeds to read an excellent short story entitled, 'Conversations
with Aud', in a manner which makes a question he receives later
on about his 'authors voice' very relevant. After fielding a further
flurry of questions, occasionally with thinly disguised disdain,
he stalks out of the chamber to participate in that most tiring
of an authors tasks, the ritual book signing.
The
problem with Will Self is he enjoys being 'Will Self' far too much.
When reading his prose it is impossible not to hear the drooling
voice of the author through every word. His television appearances
only serve to allow him to extend this persona, largely through
the medium of complaint. Tonight he receives a question about the
成人快手 2 series, 'Grumpy Old Men' and uses it as an excuse to extemporise
on his current crop of petty irritations.
There
is nothing essentially wrong with 'Will Self', he is an extremely
lucid and entertaining speaker and possesses a dry wit second to
few. However, it would be nice occasionally to find what truly lies
beneath the surface of his books, unless it is all just one big
post-modern joke that he and Martin Amis find terribly funny.
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