Hatrack River Forum: How happy is too happy?

This is topic How happy is too happy? in forum Books, Films, Food and Culture at Hatrack River Forum.

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Posted by MidnightBlue (Member # 6146) on :

On a scale of 1-100 with one being depressingly sad, and 100 being sickeningly sweet, how happy do you like your endings? Are you the type who feels like the story isn't over until everyone's dead, or do you think everything should work out absolutely perfectly and end with a perky song and dance number? Personally, I like books and movies that end just on the happy side of 50, so the story is realistic, without being depressing. Your thoughts?

Posted by katharina (Member # 827) on :

In my head, this is defined by the classic Edith Wharton/Jane Austen divide. Both authors have wit, insight into high society, social commentary, and plots driven by romantic entanglements. Jane Austen, however, always has a happy ending, and Edith Wharton has a realistic story with a sadly all-too-probable ending.

I love them both, but I believe in Edith Wharton’s stories more.

Posted by Xaposert (Member # 1612) on :

I think you're looking at it wrong. It's not a question of whether it is happy or sad - it is a question of whether it is realistic.

I think happier is better, so long as it is realistic - but dumb happy endings end up falling apart because they are unrealisticly set up to be happy.

The reverse is also possilbe: Look at many horror movies and you can see cheesy sad endings - endings that are unrealisticly set up to deliberately be very negative. They are just as cheesy as many happy endings are.

[ November 10, 2004, 04:41 PM: Message edited by: Xaposert ]

Posted by kaioshin00 (Member # 3740) on :

Wow. A person that actually enjoy's Edith Wharton [Confused]

Im assuming you're not an 11th grade high school student [Wink]

Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :

I like endings that provide reasonable and well-paced conclusions to the storylines in the book. Satisfactory resolution is usually on the happy side, I guess. Seeing as it's the resolution of the emotion more than resolution of the action that you're going for, you don't want to give the feeling that major emotional conflict is still going on.

Posted by Raia (Member # 4700) on :

Depends on the story...

If it's a cheesy, romantic comedy/musical style story, then it should end happily.

If it's a book with a slightly higher intellectual value than that, then somewhere between 55-65, I would say. I agree... realistic is good, but too sad is not necessarily good. And not really realistic either.