I have not actually read this book but so many boys have talked about it on dates that I feel like I have. that's why I can't rate this book but the boys were about 2/5 stars on average

" 'Επρεπε να του πει, όσο προλάβαινε ακόμη, πόσο άδικο είχε εκείνος και πόσο δίκιο είχε εκείνη. Πόσο άδικο είχε να μην την αγαπάει περισσότερο, πόσο άδικο που δεν τη φρόντιζε και δεν της έκανε έρωτα με κάθε ευκαιρία, πόσο άδικο επειδή είχε αφιερώσει τόσο πολύ χρόνο στη δουλειά του και τόσο λίγο στα παιδιά του, πόσο άδικο που υπήρξε τόσο αρνητικός και τόσο πεσιμιστής, πόσο άδικο που είχε απαρνηθεί την ουσία της ζωής, πόσο άδικο όταν έλεγε όχι, ξανά και ξανά, αντί για ναι. 'Επρεπε να του τα πει όλα αυτά, έπρεπε να του τα λέει κάθε μέρα. 'Εστω κι αν δεν άκουγε πια, εκείνη έπρεπε να του τα λέει."

Ένας μεγάλος Φρανζεν γι' αλλη μια φορά, ένας βαθύς, υποδόριος, μουδιαστικός Φράντζεν που μιλάει για πράγματα που δεν λέγονται, που μόνο νιώθονται και μένουν ανείπωτα. Τα μικρά μυστικά, τις μύχιες ελπίδες, τις απέλπιδες προσδοκίες, τις ηχηρές απογοητεύσεις.
Το νυστέρι της χειρουργικής του ακρίβειας φτάνει βαθιά ως το συναίσθημα, αλλά δεν πονάει. Ενοχλεί μ' έναν αόριστο τρόπο, όπως κάθε καλοακονισμένο ξυράφι, σαν αυτό της επιδέξιας γλώσσας του, που εισχωρεί στο εσωτερικό σου- αφήνοντας πίσω ίσα μια γραμμούλα αίμα. (Μάντεψε: το δικό σου αίμα). Αυτά που έχεις ζήσει. Αυτά που είχες σκεφτεί, αυτά που σ' είχαν αφήσει θλιμμένο και μισό, αυτά που σε σκότωσαν λιγάκι παραπάνω μέσα σου, αυτά που σε διαμέλισαν, αυτά που ποτέ δεν είπες. (Γιατί, αλήθεια ποτέ δεν τα είπες;)

Η Αμερικάνικη Οικογένεια εδώ αποτελεί απλώς το παράδειγμα μιας οικουμενικής οικογένειας.
Το Αμερικάνικο Όνειρο είναι τελικά λιγότερο αμερικάνικο απ' ότι νόμιζες, και περισσότερο ένα παγκόσμιο - ίσως και ατομικό όνειρο.

Οι νευρώσεις, οι ψυχώσεις, ο έρωτας, η πείνα του έρωτα, η κατάκτηση, ο σπαραγμός -ο αλληλοσπαραγμός όσο ακριβώς και ο αυτοσπαραγμός- τα παιχνίδια εξουσίας σε κάθε πιθανή τους έκφανση, η απάτη, η εξαπάτηση, η απιστία και η πίστη, ακτινογραφούνται και εκθέτονται στο φως γυμνά, χωρίς ίχνος αιδούς.

Για πάντα θα θαυμάζω το τεράστιο ταλέντο του Φράντζεν να χτίζει τέτοιους πολυπρισματικούς χαρακτήρες, μόνο και μόνο για να τους γκρεμίσει μπροστά μας. Να φτάνει σε τέτοια ύψη λογοτεχνικά και τέτοια βάθη ψυχαναλυτικά.
Να έχει αυτή την εκπληκτική ικανότητα του να γράφει πολλά και να γράφει αχόρταγα χωρίς να γράφει φλύαρα.

Κι αυτό που ανέφερε ένας φίλος συγγραφέας, πως ο Φράνζεν είναι από τους 4-5 Μεγάλους εν ζωή αυτή τη στιγμή, τριβέλιζε συχνά το μυαλό μου καθ' όλη την διάρκεια της ανάγνωσης. Τελικά συμφωνώ, Δάνη :)

_________________

"Η ζωή, σύμφωνα με τις εμπειρίες της, είχε ένα είδος βελούδινου λούστρου. Κοιτούσες τον εαυτό σου από μια οπτική γωνία κι ο,τι έβλεπες ήταν διαστροφή. Μετατόπιζες το κεφάλι σου λιγάκι και τα πάντα φαίνονταν εντελώς φυσιολογικά."

I enjoyed reading this book. It is one of those rare instances when I fully agree to all those blurbs written in the front and back covers of a book. No wonder that The Millions (Reader's Choice) voted this book as #1 novel of this decade (2000-2009) that is now about to end. It is also in the 501 Must Read Books, 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die, Time 100, Oprah Selections and won the National Book Award.

This book was published in 2001 at around the same time as when 9/11 happened. Since this book is about a dysfunctional (that needed "corrections") American family, each of the American readers - critics included - was probably able to see him/herself in at least one of the many characters of this book. Franzen wrote every page beautifully with all his characters well-developed that you could almost see them moving, talking and breathing. I had to hold my breath on its last few pages this morning as Franzen put the conclusion "The Corrections" closing the life story of Alfred (who refused to eat so he died) and Enid (who still sees hope despite being a new widow at the age of 75).

There was a handful of other books that I got reminded of while reading this novel. The Prince of Tides by Frank Conroy is also about a dysfunctional family of 5 with 2 sons and a daughter. The way it tackled the history of a contemporary American family also reminded me of American Pastoral by Philip Roth. The subject of dementia reminded me of two novels I recently enjoyed: Herzog by Saul Bellow and Surfacing by Margaret Atwood. Related to the last novel, I am always fascinated on how these (Franzen and Atwood) exceptional authors were able to write the thoughts of a demented person. Do they really have an idea on what is going on inside a crazy person's mind?

When Franzen refused to show up for an Oprah interview (because his book was chosen), he explained that he did not want this book to be seen as "book that mothers read" or something like that. I agree. This is for everyone, including non-Americans (like me).

One misleading small point is the picture of a child on the front cover of the book. He must have been Jonah who does not want to eat his vegetables. However, the picture seems to be in a Christmas table and I was sort of expecting that Jonah would be there in the last Christmas part. This book was collecting dust in my bookshelf but I picked it up as I thought it was about a child attending a Christmas dinner. Tricky picture, huh?

Last point to admire: the many, many small characters during the cruise were made to speak all at the same time without confusing the reader. I saw this in some of Jose Javier Reyes' movies: 2 or more characters talking at the same time but you could still understand them as they are in different tone and decibels. It's a wonder that this could be put in a prose by Franzen. Brilliant...

Cât mă bucur pentru faptul că închei anul 2021 cu o carte de 5 stele! Un adevărat răsfăț intelectual!

”Trebuia să îi spună, cât mai putea, cât de mult greşise el şi câtă dreptate avusese ea. Cât greşise pentru că nu o iubise mai mult, cât greşise petrecând atât de mult timp la serviciu şi atât de puţin cu copiii, cât greşise fiind atât de sceptic, cât greşise fiind atât de mohorât, cât greşise fugind de viaţă, cât greşise  spunând nu, iar şi iar, în loc de da. Trebuia să îi spună toate acestea, zi  de zi.  Chiar dacă nu o asculta, tot trebuia să i le spună.”

Citiți Franzen, nu veți regreta!

Benim için hem yorucu hem de doyurucu bir okuma deneyimi oldu. Bazen detaylardan o kadar sıkıldım ki kitabı bir kenara fırlatmak istedim ama kitabı bitirdiğinizde, bu süreçten geçtiğinizde bu kitabın neden bu kadar övüldüğünü, neden iyi bir çağdaş edebiyat eseri olduğunu çok iyi anlıyorsunuz.
Lambert ailesi, bir ailenin çöküşünü anlatıyor gibi gözüküyor fakat her bir aile üyesi kendi başına hayatlarını sürdürebilen bireyler. Ne zaman aile değerlerine ve ahlaki normlara uymaya çalışsalar bocalıyorlar, hayattan bir tekme yiyorlar.
İki saatlik bir dram dizisi izliyor gibi hissettim bu kitabı okuduğum süre boyunca. Enid karakterinin bir anne olarak roman boyunca çırpınışını izlemek beni en çok etkileyen şeydi. Franzen’ı bir de şu konuda takdir etmek gerek; okuma sürecinde beş aile bireyinin Noel’de bir araya gelmesini bekliyoruz fakat yazar olay örgüsünü öyle bir kurgulamış ki her bireyin geçmişine, yaşadıklarının en derinine kadar iniyoruz, çatlakların sebebi öğreniyoruz ve sonunda beklenen Noel günü ve Düzeltmeler bizi karşılıyor.

2011 F.A.B. Bookclub pick # I.❤️. F.A.B.

DNF- this book was not good. If there was an option for zero stars, that’s what I’d give it.

The title of this work is apt. It represents many things Franzen wants to talk about. The big thing though is that we are always making corrections in our lives. Large corrections: a divorce, moving residences, quitting a job. Smaller corrections: becoming more selfless, cutting calories, drinking one less martini at dinner. Children are sometimes seen as corrections of and for their parents. What is a holiday or a vacation if not a time to stop thinking about and planning more corrections?

The book's star family is the Lamberts: Alfred and Enid, the parents of Gary, Chip, and Denise. The author's greatest feat is carving out five very whole individuals. The book's cast is not overly abundant. The minor characters are mostly unimportant. But what Franzen does with the five main players is remarkable. He shines plenty of light on their faults, but he shows us their humanity as well. They can all be infuriating, but we see that they are trying to be okay, usually. Like in the real world, almost no one is all bad, and absolutely no one is all good.

Alfred's younger self is presented as a bigot. The older version may still be that way, but he is too busy trembling and hallucinating with Parkinson's Disease to go on many racist tirades. And like many old men in many stories, he is stubborn.

Enid is insufferable when we first meet her. But she is not merely an archetype for the aging, embarrassing, Midwestern mom. Her lines are perfect. Her needless worries are evident in every sentence. She has a grasping, clinging, insinuating way of saying even the most benign things. Later though, she becomes probably the most admirable Lambert. She is as real as your high school friend's mom.

Gary is a well-dressed, successful banker; however, he is depressed. He has a wife and three sons who serve as the novel's most important minor characters. He is faithful to his wife, but he's an alcoholic. He wants to be a good father, but his two oldest boys don't seem to care for him much.

Chip is a former professor, the intellectual. He becomes a cliche, though, and has an affair with a student. When we meet him he is broke in New York trying to sell a script even he knows is awful.

Denise is intense, hardworking, and competitive. She becomes an acclaimed chef. She is also a homewrecker, never failing to pick a married man or woman when beginning a tryst. She's impetuous and, like her father, stubborn.

Back to the title: it is not only about the corrections humans attempt to make in their lives. It is about the coming stock market correction after the dot com boom. "Late Model Western Capitalism"!

Schopenhauer is, sort of out of nowhere, quoted multiple times. Some of the quotes have to do with life being like a penal colony--a correction facility. More meaning for the title.

The limits of corrections are touched upon: "What you discovered about yourself in raising children was not always agreeable or attractive."

Franzen's style is the effortless type that makes the reader forget about his excellent writing and focus on the story. We get enough time in the personal lives of each of the Lamberts to understand their personalities pretty thoroughly. There is drama. There is humor. There is even a heartwarming Christmas reunion, though the cheeriness is put to an end quickly by the pragmatic jerk, Gary. Alfred and Enid's sex is described as repressed, to say the least. Late in the book, Alfred attempts suicide, "I gotta get outta here." We know he doesn't only mean the old folks' home.

An irony in the novel is that Alfred, with the weight of growing up during the Great Depression, had been overly conservative with investments. He and Enid missed out on a lot of the money flying around in the late 90s. When the crash comes, their annuities and other low-risk funds leave Enid better off than many of her previously more affluent friends.

In the end, the only casualty is the one we expected. Everyone else goes on with their corrections.

Aslında çok yorgunum. Üç gün elimden hiç düşürmediğim ‘Düzeltmeler’ bitti. Biterken de benden bir sürü şeyi götürüp, yerine ötelediğim; mış gibi yaptığım bambaşka şeyleri koydu gitti. Üzgünüm.

Üzerimde yarattığı yıkımdan bahsetmem zor ama en temelinde ‘Düzeltmeler’, roman gibi bir roman. Öylesine ayrıntılarla ve muazzam derecede gerçekçi bir şekilde örülmüş ki insanın herhangi bir duygu birliği yaşamaması imkânsız gibi geliyor. Ailesinde tozpembe bir dünyaya sahip olanlar var mı aramızda, bilmiyorum. Eğer öyleyse kitap size biraz ‘fazla’ gelebilir. Fakat ben çoğunluğumuzun bu hikâye karşısında ortak bir utancı ve mutsuzluğu paylaşacağına inanıyorum. Öylesine tam ve kusursuz hissediliyor ki Franzen’in anlatımıyla Lambert Ailesi’nin yaşadıkları, tanıklığınız bir süre sonra herhangi bir duygu birliğinden öteye gidiyor ve kendi tarihinizdeki minik ayrıntıları anımsayıp, analiz edip, onlara dertlenir buluyorsunuz kendinizi. Bir de henüz yolun sonuna erişmemişler için çok acımasız bir kehanette bulunuyor yazar. Herkesin hem haklı hem de haksız olduğu bir masal var karşımızda. Bir varmış bir yokmuş… Lakin var olanda, yok olan da acıtıyor. Zaman zaman maskelediğimiz, üzerine bir perde çektiğimiz her ayrıntının aslında ilerdeki kararlarımızda nasıl büyük puntolarla söz hakkı sahibi olduğunu gösteriyor. Hatalarımızın, geçmişimizin elinde nasıl sinsice örüldüğünü ve her şeye en nihayetinde insan olmak diyip, işin içinden çıkabildiğimizi.

Çok şey var söylenebilecek romanla ilgili. Bunların büyük çoğunluğu üzerimdeki tesiri üzerine olacağından fazla uzatmak istemiyorum. Franzen ile tanıştığım için çok mutluyum. Beni yıkıp geçmiş olsa da bazen bir yazarın gelip size cimdik atıp farkındalık kazandırması insanın kendiyle olan kavgası için çok güçlü bir silah olabiliyor. Son dönemde okuduğum yazarlar arasında keşif diyebileceğim ve diğer eserlerini de büyük bir merak ve heyecanla okuyacağım bir edebiyatçı bulmaktan çok mutlu olduğumu da eklemek isterim. Artık böylesi heyecanlar çok sık yaşanamıyor bende. O açıdan da farklı bir değeri oldu.

Mutlaka okumanızı tavsiye ederim.

Un fronte freddo autunnale arrivava rabbioso dalla prateria. Qualcosa di terribile stava per accadere, lo si sentiva nell’aria. Il sole era basso nel cielo, una stella minore, un astro morente. Raffiche su raffiche di entropia>/u>

Questo è l'incipit del controverso romanzo “Le correzioni”.
Una famiglia è la protagonista della storia e fin dalle prime righe, fin dall'esterno della loro casa soffia un vento avverso...freddezza, rabbia...
"Raffiche su raffiche di entropia"???
Lettore, sei avvertito: qui il percorso sarà ostico!

Si entra a casa di Alfred ed Enid e s'intuisce subito un disagio:

In tutta la casa risuonava un campanello d’allarme che nessuno poteva udire eccetto Alfred e Enid. Era il campanello d’allarme dell’ansia.

Ho amato questo libro fondamentalmente per come è scritto.
Franzen gioca con le parole: sminuzza, mescola, amalgama generando nuovi suoni.
Il tema della famiglia disfunzionale unito ad un contesto socio-economico instabile è ritrito nel romanzo postmoderno nord-americano.
L'autore, tuttavia, riesce, anche nel contenuto, ad essere originale; passa dallo zoom sulla vita dei personaggi alla visione più allargata della famiglia.

Correggere è equivalente del tentativo di trovare un equilibrio, una stabilità. Anche in questo senso c'è ambivalenza: si può correggere il proprio ruolo all'interno del nucleo famigliare ma si parla anche di correzione in ambito economico quando si vuole riportare su un piano favorevole un investimento.
Mi piace l’idea che comunque ci possa essere la possibilità di aggiustare il tiro.
Avere l’occasione di rimediare, accomodare…correggere…

PS (a mo' di riflessione personale)- 25/08/17- Sono passati più di due anni da questa lettura e, nonostante le 5 stelle, non ho letto più niente di Franzen. Un’intuizione o. più semplicemente, mi son fatta condizionare dai commenti negativi degli altri suoi libri?

Sono d'accordo in pieno con la (bella, come sempre) recensione di Dagio_maya.
In questo lungo romanzo Franzen tratta magistralmente drammi personali e riflessioni feroci su questioni morali e sociali di ampio respiro, come il rapporto fra genitori e figli, le condizioni di lavoro in USA, l'amore omo- ed eterosessuale, la malattia, l'invecchiamento, l'amicizia. Il risultato è un libro in cui, non senza un moderato umorismo, si lancia uno sguardo disincantato sulla nostra cultura, i nostri dolori e le nostre insicurezze.
E' il primo libro che leggo di questo discusso autore, 500 pagine che mi sono volate via, e questo è un gran pregio detto da uno come me che non ama i libri ponderosi.

Philip Roth was too obscene. Paul Murray is still searching... himself? Jonathan Franzen found the correct measures. Maybe that's why he managed to find commercial success with his intellectual books. 'The Corrections' is the supreme novel about dysfunctional families. The only problem it has is that it may remind you of how angry your family members make you.

n  "You looked at yourself from one perspective and all you saw was weirdness. Move your head a little bit, though, and everything looked normal."n

Isn't what life is like these days? You feel the weirdness and then you start to justify it and make it look okay.

I think every member in this Lambert family excels at this. First they realize how things are wrong about them and then they go on to justify it by blaming others and the situation what brought them to this point. I really love family sagas but this is by far the most dysfunctional family I have ever read about. With each passing year they are drifting apart and yet they blame others for this and doesn't take a step to move towards each other. They tell themselves that they love this family and yet they keep looking for way outs.

I kept thinking perhaps one of these would redeem in my eyes but oh boy things just got messier with each chapter. They did all the wrong things and I kept shouting at them in my mind and when the tables turned I reveled in their misery. There were times when I felt elated, jubilant in their misery and exclaimed, "Yes, you deserved this! @#%$"

In the end, I quite enjoyed this even though I despised every character more when I turned the last page.