Some questions regarding Choke.
I'm still reading the book (Finished chapter 12). Still, I got a couple of questions...
First of all, is the book "appropriate" for the age 14? Kind of stupid, I know. Not that I'm gonna stop. Just interested.
Second, since Choke is about sex, how is it "represented" there?
SPOILER
At the end of chapter 2, Victor didn't seem to be a big fan of the idea, in mind.
SPOILER
I'm not really think it's some "sex is evil" stuff. I just want to know the attitude towards it.
By the way, please try to answer without spoilers. No need for examples. Thanks.
I actually think I can take it. Well, if it gets too hard, I can put it away, obviously.
Regarding the second one, so Choke isn't erotic? I see. What I really meant is pretty much what it makes of it.. For example, 1984 seems to "praise" it. In Choke, since it's an addiction, I think it's more made fun of, no?
It totally depend on the person, although 14 sounds a little young, but no harm in trying anyway.
I like hamburgers
if your mature enough to handle and comprehend the content then yeah its appropriate, and its a great book so for sure recommend it to people you think can understand it. the sex (his addiction)and what he says the point of an addiction is (to escape the realm of what is known) all go into the idea that the world has been made into a chaos free environment and he wants to get away from that because of the whole not being able to attain true peace without access to true chaos
It's worth noting I finished Choke already. I love it. It's my favorite novel for now, and I pretty much got my answers. I'll try to get other people to read it.
Choke is probably my favorite CP novel.
"Tuffy, you're a Dalek, but only because you're only being kept alive by metal, science and hatred." - ScubaSteve1729
My friend read it when she was 13, and me, 14. Some stuff is pretty graphic and detailed, so it depends on you, really.
What struck me the most on the whole sex thing in Choke, is that Chuck truly manages to describe the various sexual acts in a "non-exciting" way... This truly builds up to the whole sexual compulsion idea, ie that's it's not 'sexy', but a pretty deranged obsession. Something pathological. Maybe if you're 14, the whole sex thing still gets you to wanting to beat off, but in my experience, reading the way Victor regards sex gives a really bleak, depressing picture of it.
"All I do is track a profane route to something (I hope) profound. Like swimming a river of shit for a kiss."
I think age doesn't really matter in what books you read if you can understand it. For me at least. I grew up on A Clockwork Orange. Favorite movie and book from childhood. And I mean as a child. I always hated when people put age limits on books and movies and music. What is appropriate for what age.
Content always comes down to what a person can handle though. I don't see any problem with a 14 year old reading it. And the thing is, if someone of that age chooses to read that book, they must be prepared to read it. They most likely read what the book was about before starting it. It's a situation of choice. Kids are choosing to read it because they can understand it and are comfortable with it. It might be different if it was required summer reading for school.
I am biased though. I don't believe age limits should be observed on books if a person of any age is competent.
Good arms vs bad arms will win hands down.
it's probably not really "appropriate" for a 14 year old, but then again it really depends on the kid. There's plenty of 20-30 year old that aren't mature enough for it either.
as for the other part, i'm not entirely sure what you mean by "represented." Like is the sex in there as some sort of erotica or something? I'd say no, it all does seem to have it's place and build who the character of Victor is.