The sentence was inspired by bohumil hrabals dancing lessons for the advanced in age, a czech novel that consisted of one great sentence. We believe that this is the longest single sentence in the english language, easily outstripping mollys soliloquy at the end of ulysses. Mar 11, 2005 f or all the formal tricks that it allows itself the time shifts and inset narratives, the shifts of viewpoint and narrator the rotters club is a specimen of a traditional english genre. Weak light from a pair of wroughtiron standard lamps. Oct 24, 2015 from wikipdia there have been several claims for the longest sentence in the english language, usually with claims that revolve around the longest printed sentence. Jonathan coe a considerable novelist and the rotters club is an aberration, an aberration with a sequel promised to be called the closed circle, which will take up the story in the late 1990s. The rotters club offers a thick slice of seventies birminghamsharp, acerbic, and menacingly true. However this is jonathan coe and he manages to turn this seemingly innocent plot into a political allegory of sorts. How many possible sentences in the english language. A birmingham author has included a sentence in his new book which is thought to be the longest in the english language. I believe he currently holds the record in english literature. Todd pruzan, the village voice if theres a contemporary novelist who combines sharp. What is the longest coherent sentence ever written.
The new owner of the record for the longest sentence in published. Apr 03, 2007 can anyone find me the 955 word long sentence from jonathan coes the rotters club. All except colin, who is out on business, and has told his wife and children not to wait up. At the new yorkers book club, jon michaud points us toward this long sentence, from samuel becketts watt. The first person to send me a link to this 955 words sentence will win best.
Start your 48hour free trial to unlock this the rotters club study guide and get instant access to the following summary. The rotters club is jonathan coes attempt at writing a coming of age tale. The seattle times the novels many intricate parts manage to mesh and turn with the startling harmony you find in robert altmans movies. The rotters club holds the record for the longest sentence in english literature with,955 words. A thursday evening, drizzle whispering against the windowpanes, and the family gathered in the living room. I prefer hatfield and the norths follow up the rotters club mostly because the tracks are given a bit more room to breathe i think than the random, choppiness so characteristic of the eponymous debut album. Can anyone find me the 955 word long sentence from jonathan. The rotters club quotes showing 112 of 12 sometimes i feel that i am destined always to be offstage whenever the main action occurs. For such a claim to be true there must either be the possibility of sentences of infinite length or there must be an infinite number of words in the language. Its a similar though smaller scale idea to that which motivated our friends in the north, one of the outstanding television dramas.
Can anyone find me the 955 word long sentence from. In his most recent novel, the rotters club 1, jonathan coe treats the reader to a sentence containing,995 words. The rotters club novel project gutenberg selfpublishing. The last section of james joyces ulysses has two long sentences. We believe that this is the longest single sentence in the english language. There is also, apparently, a polish novel, gates of paradise, with a 40,000 word sentence. The booklength sentence is a literary genre in itself, though one few writers have had the nerve to tackle. Jan 29, 2017 a sentence consisting of,955 words in english novelist jonathan coes book the rotters club is believed to be the longest english sentence.
In jonathan coes the rotters club we learn up close and personal about the perils and pitfalls of coming of age in 1970s birmingham. The rotters club is inspired by coes own experiences at king edwards school, birmingham in the 1970s. A sentence consisting of,955 words in english novelist jonathan coes book the rotters club is believed to be the longest english sentence. Feb 22, 2001 the rotters club is a novel set in an england in the early 1970s. The rotters club jonathan coe im reading coes trilogy about the life and times of benjamin trotter the wrong way round, chronologically speaking. Winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. Jul 05, 2014 they are simply five fine examples of the very long sentence in literature.
The rotters club is said to hold the record for the longest sentence in english literature. Aug 21, 2016 the rotters club holds the record for the longest sentence in english literature with,955 words. Theres no need to get rentaquotes to talk about fizz wizz and evel knievel when you have. We believe that this is the longest single sentence in the english. The action of this first part starts in 1973 and covers halfadozen. I discovered today that there was a sentence of such great length, and i assumed that someone would have typed it out sooner or later and post it. Til a novel called the rotters club has a,955 word. If it were spoken, then it would probably have been said by a commentator on a sports programme. The longest sentence in english has nearly 14,000 words. A czech novel, dancing lessons for the advanced in age by bohumil hrabal, has a sentence that is 128 pages long. The book appears to hold the record for the longest sentence in english literature. The longest sentence in literature many people attribute the longest sentence in literature to victor hugo. Jonathan coes the rotters club, published in 2001, contains a sentence with,955 words. On managerial side, i am experienced in accounting software, have been working throughout the life cycle of product, and have considerable experience for.
The rotters club the rotters club by jonathan coe was published in 2001. Key tracks triads, the american scene, green coaster again, inspired jonathan coes 14000 word final sentence in the rotters club and cut the dummy loose. The rotters club is a remarkable depiction of the 1970s in provincial britain. Dec 26, 2010 a copy of ulysses pops up in green coaster, the 33page, singlesentence section that closes jonathan coes brilliant novel the rotters club 2001. Til a novel called the rotters club has a,955 word sentence, and may hold the record for the longest sentence in english literature. Feb 11, 2015 watch the rotters club part 1 sarah lancashire who likes chocolate. What is the longest sentence in english literature. Jonathon coes novel the rotters club occupies some ambitious terrain, attempting as it does to capture the spirit of an age in this case, 1970s britain through a collection of personal stories. Longest sentence by rebecca jones, arts correspondent.
The rotters club is not only the rare exception to that. I believe he currently holds the record in english. Snowbug is a musically and artistically advanced album and it is a fine mix of chamber pop and art rock. There are hundreds of different directions from which i could approach the story of how i came to write the rotters club. The rotters club part 1 sarah lancashire video dailymotion. I discovered today that there was a sentence of such great length, and i assumed. Winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching. According to a 1983 guinness book of records, this monster once qualified as literatures longest at 1,288 words, but that record has long been surpassed, in english at least, by jonathan coes the rotter s club, which ends with a 33pagelong,955 word sentence. Middle england by jonathan coe marks a return to the. If you knew this generation of three day working weeks and unions and shop stewards and immigration and racism and ira bombs etc etc etc, all well and good all this series does is cast a glib, politically correct eye at those times, rendering the issues essentially as soundbites that never really develop. The rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in. It tells the story of a group of teenage friends and their coming of age in the 1970s, which includes coping with their parents failing marriages. The rotters club is a 2001 novel by british author jonathan coe, set in birmingham during the 1970s, and inspired by the authors experiences at king edwards school, birmingham.
Coe may have set a record for the longest sentence published in english the,955 words that close his 2001 novel, the rotters club. Recorded for virgin records in 1974, the rotters club was the second album by the band comprising former caravan member richard sinclair, keyboard player dave stewart, guitarist phil miller and drummer pip pyle. We find the title character, an obsessively rational. Oclcs webjunction has pulled together information and resources to assist library staff as they consider how to handle coronavirus.
In her books concluding sentence she told her readers that, if it were popular, she would follow her characters into married life. Jonathan coe a considerable novelist and the rotters club is an aberration, an aberration with a sequel promised. Coe, born in 1961, is about the same age as the four boys around whom most of the narrative revolves. Most annoyingly, if it wasnt for their ridiculously short.
In 1973 the uk was going through a bombing campaign by the ira, strikes including a national miners strike and power cuts an infamous 3day week had to be employed on commerce and industry check youtube film of office staff having to. Using sophie and patrick to create a frame story at the start didnt really go anywhere, which is a shame, as i would have enjoyed getting to know more about the contemporary sophiepatrick story as a contrast to the 1970s story. Jun 26, 2014 the rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. I have no idea who wrote the longest sentence in science fiction, fantasy. We experience this through the lives of a small group of sixteen and seventeen yearolds brummies. The the rotters club community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. Guiness lists it as being from william faulkners absalom, absalom. There are some odd moments and writerly devices in the rotters club that didnt quite work for me. Many people attribute the longest sentence in literature to victor hugo. The claim is that a sentence in les miserables, 823 words long, earns that title. The novel is notable for featuring what is considered to be the longest sentence in the english language, at an,995 words long. Is it correct to combine multiple clauses into one sentence.
That god has made me the victim of some cosmic practical joke, by assigning me little more than a walkon part in my own life. An interview with jonathan coelooking backwards and. We believe that this is the longest single sentence in. What is considered the longest sentence in english. Much of the rotters club is clearly autobiographical.
Numerous and frequentlyupdated resource results are available from this search. But after reading and enjoying the third book in the series, middle england, so much last month, i knew i had to find out how the whole thing started. Jan 17, 2019 the joycean mammoth sentence which ends the rotters club, and in which he declares his love for the beautiful cicely, is undercut, because she abandons him. Enjoy reading and rereading them, and please leave your favorite very long sentence in the comments. Maybe i should start from the title which is the title of an album by. This is an unanswerable question, because however long the s. However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study. Til jonathan coes, the rotters club, holds the record of longest sentence in english literature. The rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel. Author enters record books with a,955word sentence. What is the longest meaningful sentence in the english.
The sentence, part of jonathan coes latest book, the rotters club, is,955 words long and took an hour and 17 minutes to read. A polish novel, gates of paradise by jerzy andrzejewski, has a 40,000 word sentence. The rotters club is a novel of britain in the 1970s, a surprisingly rich and varied work about that odd and already so distant decade. The title is taken from the album the rotters club by experimental rock band hatfield and the north. In his most recent novel, the rotters club1, jonathan coe treats the reader to a sentence containing,995 words. The rotters club was inspired by bohumil hrabals danci. What is the longest meaningful sentence in the english language and who used it and when. This interview with jonathan coe mainly focuses on his fictional production from the rotters club 2001 to number 11 2015, but also includes a discussion of his breakthrough novel what a carve up. The lengths writers go to in praise of the neverending sentence. Lilleboll mar 2011 the american scene is great, the. Is it correct to combine multiple clauses sub sentences into one. The rotters club was wellreceived by critics, going on to win the bollinger everyman wodehouse prize in 2001.
Earlier, a sentence in a novel titled ulysses by james joyce, which comprises 4,391 words was known to be the longest sentence in english. A compendium of useless information, published in 1975. The rotters club is a wonderfully gripping novel, by turns funny, heartbreaking and terrifying. It was inspired by dancing lessons for the advanced in age, a czech novel by bohumil hrabal, which consisted of entirely one word. Against a distant backdrop of strikes, terrorist attacks and growing racial tension, a group of young friends inherit the editorship of their school magazine and begin to put their own distinctive spin onto events in the wider world. I was curious but sceptical, expecting another lightweight nick hornby type novel to while away the weekend but, seriously folks, theres more depth to rc than meets the eye.
An interview with jonathan coelooking backwards and forwards. Feb 21, 2002 the rotters club by jonathan coe the 1970s are anything but smiley faces and bellbottoms for a family facing adultery, racial turmoil and identity crises in postimperial england. In 2003, the novel was adapted into a bbc television program. The claim, often repeated by linguists, that we can potentially produce an infinite number of sentences in a language, is not strictly true.
The bbc has reported that at,955 words, it is the longest sentence ever written in english. Oct 10, 20 jonathan coes the rotters club, published in 2001, contains a sentence with,955 words. Can anyone find me the 955 word long sentence from jonathan coes the rotters club. Til jonathan coes, the rotters club, holds the record. However this was surpassed in 2001 by jonathan coes book the rotters club which contains a sentence,955 words long. Jonathan coes new novel the rotters club contains a sentence of,955 words. The sentence, which makes up the last section of the novel, appears as a monologue by benjamin trotter, one of the storys protagonists, related in a streamofconsciousness style, and according to the author, in homage to molly blooms monologue in james joyces ulysses, which. With a couple of exceptions the rotters club largely avoids this problem. Jonathan coes the rotters club has a sentence with,955 words. Anthony bourdain, author of kitchen confidential and a cooks tour. The source most often given for this, if a source is given, is timothy fullertons triviata.