The guide of time
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Arts
are a formal phenomenon, thus style is its most important feature, but also jeopardize
its inner sense with superficiality; that explains why flaws are not so
important, and even a way to improve development and evolution. That said, The guide of time could be as mediocre
literature as it's been the norm; with a very simple argument, mixing mysticism
and adventure in a proved formula; granting a little success without mannerisms
or shrillness, as it's been the expectative over the market for arts.
Truth
is that The guide of time comes to
more than this, even if this was what it looked for; because with that modesty,
the author doesn't interfere with the real function of literature, and gives us
a perfect reflection over the reality. Nobody need to believe in mysticism, you
could be a scientific investigating quantum and discover its relationship with the
old philosophies; and then understand that literary traditions were not constructed
over a problem of style and form, but as a reflection (thinking) to understand
reality. That's why the more important books of antiquity are not those of
history but mythology, and religions were developed to work with that.
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Then,
the value of this book is to get back that function of literature as a reflection
of reality; even if that wasn't the idea of the author —which is irrelevant—
and its multiple flaws of style and argument. None of that is important,
because the book success is that construction of a perfect parable about reality
and its inner determinations; no matter if that metaphysical statement is a real
fictional history or a way to rationalize the dynamic of quantum. Indeed, it is
so complex as a subject that still philosophers argue about it, from Hegel
(dialectic) to Heidegger (Dasein); as if early cultures have had the time and
the experience to explain all that, as we don’t have it today.
It will be a great mistake to try to read
this book with that in mind, since its success depend on the naivety of the reading; but it’s still good to know
why this book is so good, besides the experience of follow the plot, which is
beauty in its naivety. So, when you come to a flaw as the end of the first book
to jump to the second, give it the space to flow; at the end, when you summarize
the whole book you’ll smile with gratitude and joy.