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I am planning to re-read the series again, some time this year, it will be my 4th time.
I know many of us here have been on the path with Roland for long years. For my part Roland and his ka-tet have been part of my life for more than 15 years.
Have your feelings changed towards the characters significantly over the years?
Somehow I feel that infinite and forgiving love I always felt for Roland is changing. I feel this time it will be much harder to forgive him.
Well, we will see.
Nikolett!!! :rose: :rose: :rose:
I hope you'll be posting while re-reading!!!
And how did your feelings change, Jean? :)
I've read the series 4 times as well. The second time I reconciled myself to the ending. The third time, I changed my opinion of Jake. The first two times through I thought it unrealistic that a 14 year old kid could become that much of a "Bad-Ass", but then I saw the light. Other than that, the character's are cemented in my memory. Except, I still do not like Mr. Flagg's treatment in the story or Mordred's!!!!! Damn shame IMHO
I can't answer this question now. I've read the book only twice, and the last time was five years ago. I want to re-read it some time soon, but first I need the WTtKH disappear from my memory, at least as far as it is possible. As far as impression goes, that extra book nearly ruined my impression of Roland, and it sure messed up the consistency of his character's development.Quote:
Originally Posted by Letti
Jean: Oh, so I am not the only one who would have been totally fine without WTtKH? I love the beginning of the book, though. The first 20 pages or so. And the last 10. The rest is okay, too if I can step over the fact that young Roland is in it (or that's what we are said but I refuse believe it). For me it's not hard to separate it from the saga. The comics were much much worse (at least IMHO) and those images are locked in a tiny box in my brain.
Merlin: And why did your opinion change about Jake? Did you yourself change or did you just really need the re-reads?
My feelings rarely change at all; only under the most extreme circumstances. These people are like family to me. <3
I'd say that yes, my feelings have changed since I had first opened The Gunslinger back in January of 1995. Next year I will celebrate an anniversary of sorts: I will have exactly one half of my life spent on the road to the Dark Tower with Roland et al. It's been a journey from youth to adulthood for me.
I cannot pinpoint exactly what kind of change it has been, but I think with each re-read I take the events in the book more and more personally. I need to read TDT again, now that I'm a parent; and I'm genuinely curious how this change will affect my perception.
This last time I re-read them, I found myself liking Wizard and Glass much more. It's still nowhere near my love for some of the other books (particularly Wolves and The Drawing of the Three) but it was at least more than bearable this time.
Now, whether this is a reaction to the characters more or not, I don't know, but it's such a character-driven portion of the story, it's got to have some influence. I just can't pinpoint where the specific reason is.
Rereading the Gunslinger inspired me to shoot down every one in town in the streets. *sigh*
We had a thread years ago about ranking books in order, and several people stated "My choices will probably change." I remember I had to have that concept explained to me three or four times. At least half of the communication process for me is trying to get how other people look at things. But it's probably better I keep that all to myself and just listen to the direct responses many are able to give, instead of analyzing to death the very premise of each topic. I'm sure that sounds familiar to those of you who've known me long enough. So, yeah, I'm pretty much the same.
Let's see...I've read TWTTK once, LSOE twice, and the rest several times each. Except for Wizard and Glass which I have probably read 6 times b/c it is so awesome. From the get-go I formed my opinions of the characters and believe have stuck with them. I've never liked Susannah (or Detta, or Odetta, or Mia, or whatever else she calls herself) and that hasn't changed. Other than that, it's pretty much according to Hoyle in that I liked the good guys and rooted against the bad guys. Of all the characters, perhaps Jake "grew on me" somewhat upon re-reading.
Exactly how I feel. Even towards the "bad guys":harrier:Quote:
Originally Posted by Brice
Mordred has grown on me. King did a good job keeping Mordred's deteriorating condition consistent so that the spider-child's last stand didn't seem too unrealistic (besides the fact that Roland and Oy were confronted with a spider-child, that is). I love the lore of Mid-World even more after TWTTK. I'd like King to do a Hearts in Atlantis styled anthology following characters through the different eras of Mid-World.
You, who say your feelings have never changed, how old were you when you first read the series?
For my part I was 12 so I guess some of the changes come from this. For example I looked at Roland's love story a bit differently when I was that young. :)
Flagg. His final appearance kinda irked me. The reason I liked him was in The Stand and most of the series you had no idea what the hell hye was. All you knew was that he was evil. Being told his back story kinda took the flavor out of it for me.
I was ten when I first read The Gunslinger. It was the only one written at that time.
I guess maybe I just don't understand what you mean by "feelings." To me, feelings are something which change not just day-to-day but second-by-second. That's why I don't rely on them for guidance. I also have beliefs, which change much more slowly. Most people are afraid of that word "belief." But you can't escape from who you are.
Or possibly I just find it hard to say that my way of looking at things has changed a lot since the first time I finished the series, even though that was so long ago, for the simple reason that it was for me even longer between Volume I and Volume VII.
My feelings (whatever I mean by them), the roots and the bases of them haven't changed much. I think 98% of them are still the same. And the changes themselves aren't significant but they are there and I cannot deny them. Maybe this question came to my mind in the first place because I don't like changes generally. If something is born in my head or becomes part of my life, a feeling, a habit, a belief, an opinion I don't like to let it go.
I still love Roland to pieces, I still respect him, his significance in my life is still the same. But the way I think about him has changed. It is hard to explain it. Well, that's why I started the thread, to see how you all think and feel.
I find this really interesting. Usually details provide the flavors of characters. But I get it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yaksha