It may help to understand human affairs to be clear that most of the great triumphs and tragedies of history are caused, not by people being fundamentally good or fundamentally evil, but by people being fundamentally people.
Terry Pratchett
I recently had a conversation with someone who has never read the Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett. Hmmm, to be able to read them again, without knowing the humor yet, the perspective on humans … but seriously, they combine a humanistic perspective on humans, on life, on death, especially Death — and much much more. There are lots of novels, which can make start reading a bit daunting. Personally, my favorite novels are “Unseen Academicals”, “Small Gods”, and anything with Susan (“Soul Music”, “Hogfather”, and “Thief of Time”) or Vimes (e.g., “Guards! Guards!”, “Men at Arms”, “The Fifth Elephant”, “Night Watch”, “Thud!”) as main characters.
Pratchett’s humor is sometimes subtle:
‘You know, you should try to speak better,’ Glenda said, to change the subject. ‘With your looks you could snag a man who thinks about more than beer and footie. Just speak with a little more class, eh? You don’t have to sound like-‘ ‘My fare, lady?’ They looked up at the guard, who was holding his axe in a way that was very nearly not threatening. And when it came to looking up, this was not a long way. The axe’s owner was very short.
«Unseen Academicals» by Terry Pratchett
sometimes … you wonder why no-one else saw it:
«Right, you bastards, you’re … you’re geography»
«Guards! Guards!» by Terry PratchettA number of religions in Ankh-Morpork still practiced human sacrifice, except that they didn’t really need to practice any more because they had got so good at it.
«Guards! Guards!» by Terry PratchettIn theory it was, around now, Literature. Susan hated Literature. She’d much prefer to read a good book. Currently she had Wold’s Logic and Paradox open on her desk and was reading it with her chin in her hands.
She listened with half an ear to what the rest of the class was doing.
It was a poem about daffodils.
Apparently the poet had liked them very much.
Soul MusicThe problem with being a god is that you’ve no one to pray to.
«Small Gods» by Terry PratchettIt was reckoned to be very healthy there. Very few germs were able to survive.
«Wyrd Sisters» by Terry Pratchett
and yeah, sometimes he sees humans … painfully as humans:
It was sad music. But it waved the sadness like a battle flag. It said the universe had done all it could but you were still alive.
«Soul Music» by Terry Pratchett‘But my parents still died.’
I COULDN’T HAVE GIVEN THEM MORE LIFE. I COULD ONLY HAVE GIVEN THEM IMMORTALITY. THEY DIDN’T THINK IT WAS WORTH THE PRICE.
«Soul Music» by Terry PratchettMOST PEOPLE ARE RATHER STUPID AND WASTE THEIR LIVES. HAVE YOU NOT SEEN THAT? HAVE YOU NOT LOOKED DOWN FROM THE HORSE AT A CITY AND THOUGHT HOW MUCH IT RESEMBLED AN ANT HEAP, FULL OF BLIND CREATURES WHO THINK THEIR MUNDANE LITTLE WORLD IS REAL? YOU SEE THE LIGHTED WINDOWS AND WHAT YOU WANT TO THINK IS THAT THERE MAY BE MANY INTERESTING STORIES BEHIND THEM, BUT WHAT YOU KNOW IS THAT REALLY THERE ARE JUST DULL, DULL SOULS, MERE CONSUMERS OF FOOD, WHO THINK THEIR INSTINCTS ARE EMOTIONS AND THEIR TINY LIVES OF MORE ACCOUNT THAN A WHISPER OF WIND.
‘No,’ whispered Susan, ‘no, I’ve never thought like that.’
Death stood up abruptly and turned away. YOU MAY FIND THAT IT HELPS, he said.
Death and Susan in «Soul Music» by Terry PratchettAnde Supporting Bandes launched into its first and, in the event, last number. Three last numbers, in fact. Crash was trying for ‘Anarchy in Ankh-Morpork’, Jimbo’ had frozen because he couldn’t see himself in a mirror and was playing the only page he could remember from Blert Wheedown’s book, which was the index, and Noddy had got his fingers caught in the strings.
As far as Scum was concerned, tunes’ names were things that happened to other people. He was concentrating on the rhythm. Most people don’t have to. But Ridcully glared for Scum, even clapping his hands was an exercise in concentration. So he played in a small contented world of his own, and didn’t even notice the audience rise like a bad meal and hit the stage.
«Soul Music» by Terry PratchettThis struck Nutt as inflammatory in the circumstances. Perhaps, he thought, the ritual is that childish insults shall be exchanged until both sides feel fully justified in attacking, just as Dr Vonmausberger noted in Ritual Aggression in Pubescent Rats.
«Unseen Academicals» by Terry Pratchett‘But here I am. You asked why I am strong? When I lived in the dark of the forge, I used to lift weights. The tongs at first, and then the little hammer and then the biggest hammer, and then one day I could lift the anvil. That was a good day. It was a little freedom.’ ‘Why was it so important to lift the anvil?’ ‘I was chained to the anvil.’ They walked on in silence again until Trev, picking each word with care, said, ‘I guess things must be sort of tough in the high country?’ ‘It is not so bad now, I think.’
«Unseen Academicals» by Terry Pratchett
But always with an impressive command of the English language.
Highly recommended.
(BTW, if you have any chance at all, read them in the English original. Translations are bad enough, with Pratchett’s books, they’re devastating.)
