Claude Simon's "The Grass" (L'herbe)

Challenge #20 in the Nature from Around the World series. Hosted by vqueen.

Challenge has finished

Very simple: just submit your picture that best expresses your personal interpretation of Claude Simon's novel "The Grass" (L'herbe)

Show full rules

Announced:

Thursday, 24th November, 2011 (GMT)

Submissions:

Thursday, 1st December, 2011 – Wednesday, 7th December, 2011 (GMT)

Voting:

Thursday, 8th December, 2011 – Wednesday, 14th December, 2011 (GMT)

Processing rules:

No major photo-shopping
Minor editing such as exposure, contrast and such for small fixes is acceptable
No HDR

Capture date rules:

No restrictions.

Additional rules:

Photo entries must be the original work of the challenger (poster)
Only pictures not entered in previous dpr challenges please
Please abide by dpr rules re nudity etc

Maximum number of entries per user:

Maximum number of entries in challenge:

submission
phase has

ended

44 entries

voting
phase has

ended

411 votes

Voting results: 44 entries Slideshow of 4 4 Page: 4 Rows:

49^th

(joint)

49^th

(joint)

4 / 4

Challenge comments

Total comments: 12

Just some quote from the internet "The emphasis on visual perception started to dominate Simon's work from L'Herbe (1958), set in the year 1940 when German invaded France. The book, which took its title from Pasternak's poem ("No one makes history, no one sees it happen, no one sees the grass grow") was an attack on the traditional writing of history. Nothing actually happens in the story. The tale about an old woman, Marie, who is dying, is filled with descriptions of houses and gardens. For Simon history is everyday occurrences, and Marie represents the unwritten side of the past".Unqoute
This maybe explain some of the pictures

Comment edited 57 seconds after posting

1 upvote

all but one of these so far don't portray what the book meant to me and so far are all .5's for missing it. There is one with a bottle that almost nails it and will score high as this person got the real meaning of the novel and how the combination of nature and mans desire to alter his reality affects people in profound ways.

0 upvotes

But isn't that the problem with themes like this? The challenge says "...best expresses your personal interpretation..." I have no idea what someone's personal interpretation of a novel is unless we have a long discussion about it; but I'm pretty sure it will be different from mine. Should I score a photo low or high based on whether a person's interpretation is the same as mine? Some of the "grass" photos do seem to be just shots of grass, but others seem to express a sense of countryside, rural landscape, season, etc. that seem quite valid interpretations...

Joe

3 upvotes

But it's not even a theme of the book. It's just your interpretation of the title. I'm pleased that you have at least gone to some effort to defend the entries, but Mike is right. Most of the entrants here would not have even THOUGHT about why they submitted a picture of "grass" other than thats the title of the book. That is our whole point.

0 upvotes

You are probably right; but for me, assuming that I know what a person was thinking when they entered a photo makes me uncomfortable. If I voted in this challenge, I would base the scores purely on the quality of the photograph, grass or no grass...

2 upvotes

Which totally defeats the purpose of the theme. The host in this case should have just made the theme "grass". The rest is just window dressing for the sake of it. And once more proves my point.

0 upvotes

the end to all discussions: as the host, I will be ending this series as there will never be a way to make this right: if explanation over how the picture relates to the novel is mandatory, many will react with "photopgraphy is an art and does not need explanation" argument as it was the case in the first challenge of the series; if no explanation will be mandatory, we will end up with entries and voting process based on the literal meaning of the name of the novel.... so the best is to skip to a less controversial topic.... I thank you all for all your comments. Best regards

0 upvotes

If I choose to enter a Deep and Meaningful photo in the theme of the storyline rather than the title, then the voters would mark my entry down down down, since they too won't have read the book, and only vote on the title! There's the dilemma.

0 upvotes

I was in the same quandary, especially as the host has left it so open with "personal interpretation" Being a purist though, and in the spirit of the challenge I entered a picture based on the the theme of the storyline. I know I will probably get ranked low, but then I haven't won a challenge yet.
BTW how did a buffalo/bison make it into this, even the most extreme interpretation would not set this story in the US. :)

0 upvotes

This novel tells of a post-World War II family in France, a dilemma the main character is facing and 10 agonizing days she spends to take a decision and the souvenirs and thoughts that dominate her mind during those 10 days. The name of the book, according to my personal interpretation, comes from the very strong lyrical description of nature, of countryside, of flora, of insects and birds etc which covers the background of the whole plot....

2 upvotes

Especially as the novel really has nothing to do with grass. I am amazed at how little effort people put into these challenges. Even a brief synopsis of the novel would tell you what it is about. Shame really

1 upvote

interesting challenge

1 upvote

Total comments: 12

Shortcut keys:

p previous

n next

Editorial content

Product database

Community

Finishing today
Multiple Modes of Transport	48/100 entries
1 day left
-All Dressed Up~Couples in a Photo Shoot- (Full Colours Only with Border)	12/35 entries
Power of Play	34/100 entries
2 days left
Men who eat quiches	6/ entries
My Camera Bag! (Capture Date Rule)	11/ entries
3 days left
Catalog filler: Summer picnic	0/100 entries
Wndy	53/70 entries
4 days left
- National Parks I- (Full Colours Only + Border, Title, Date)	35/55 entries
Australia 1 : Nature	20/35 entries
Rainbow in the Sky	33/100 entries
5 days left
View from the top - Forests	6/60 entries
Hugs, hugs and HUGS	15/ entries
National Food	17/100 entries
Art made from old electronics	1/100 entry
Wooden Statues of deities	12/100 entries
Chasing	21/50 entries
6 days left
Beetles	18/100 entries
Wind Turbines	26/100 entries
Everyday Life: MACRO	42/100 entries
Full challenges
Music people	100/100 entries
New Life - Spring Flowers	50/50 entries
At the zoo	50/50 entries
Bubbly !	50/50 entries
Colorful: Red and Yellow	75/75 entries

Finishing today
Bluebonnets	129 votes, 6 entries
Scorching !	919 votes, 49 entries
Betta Fish	120 votes, 11 entries
1 day left
-The Migrant Worker- (Full Colours Only with Border, Title and Date)	132 votes, 13 entries
Silence	1720 votes, 99 entries
Candle people	298 votes, 33 entries
Cell Phones: Dog faces only (1 or more)	419 votes, 33 entries
New Life - Newborn Animals	478 votes, 50 entries
Lover of the Light	511 votes, 49 entries
2 days left
English Springer Spaniel... (Capture date rule)	14 votes, 1 entry
White trash	133 votes, 14 entries
3 days left
Plastic Fantastic	815 votes, 70 entries
Magazine editorial: A test of faith	343 votes, 61 entries
Blenders	57 votes, 10 entries
Texture: Detail	1202 votes, 70 entries
Underwater	364 votes, 40 entries
4 days left
- The River - (Full Colours Only + Border, Title, Date)	395 votes, 67 entries
Singapore	473 votes, 30 entries
Mushrooms in Nature	1287 votes, 100 entries
5 days left
The World of Sweets	484 votes, 79 entries
Simulated flight	13 votes, 4 entries
Patterns in wood	982 votes, 100 entries
Corkscrews	126 votes, 22 entries
Old telephones	193 votes, 29 entries
Children with mirrors	31 votes, 10 entries
Natural Light	547 votes, 60 entries
6 days left
Circles in Nature	465 votes, 99 entries
Flowered Balconies	188 votes, 38 entries
Everyday Life: Morning routine (Capture Date Rule)	44 votes, 11 entries


	Voting results 44 entries My entries Login required My votes Login required