Under the Eye of the Clock. Christopher Nolan (6 September – 20 February ) was an Irish poet and author.
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Nolan's charm was "accept me for what I am and I'll accept you for what you're accepted as". He took part in as much school life as possible, even appearing in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. One teacher's poetry reading was a particular inspiration; so was a priest as steeped in PG Wodehouse as he was in holy writ. Nolan was aware that centuries had seen "crass crippled men dashed, branded and treated as dross in a world offended by their appearance"; kept out of sight, such people had been denied everything which his family insisted he should share with them: After considerable struggle, partly eased by newly available Lioresal tablets which temporarily relax the neck muscles, he could use a pointer strapped to his forehead - his "unicorn".
While this tapped at a typewriter, his mother held his head. As he put it, he now "gimleted his words into white sheets of life", which was "a glorious bountiful nightmare". He particularly enjoyed Gerard Manley Hopkins's adjectival compounds and sprung rhythm. Typing may have been slow, but the coining of such phrases as "sugarstick fate", "frescoed fear" and "hollyberried imaginings" appear in a Hopkins-like cascade.
Lord Snowdon photographed him, and Edna Healey, a judge for a literary contest organised by the Spastics Society which in became Scope: Dam-Burst of Dreams followed. It included poems, letters, notebook entries, stories, a short play and an autobiographical fragment related in the third person as Joseph Meehan. His mother commented that they are, "meant to give aural pleasure. I discovered that truth each time he begged me to read over and over again the sentence which he had just typed, while he sat, head averted, listening intently to the sounds and effects of his words".
When the first copy arrived, his splayed fingers dropped it on the kitchen floor.
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Although an autobiography, it is narrated by a fictional character named Joseph Meehan who details Nolan's life as a third-person biography. The book reveals the deep relationship between Nolan and his mother, whom he calls Nora. Under the Eye of the Clock shows how Nolan's parents engaged him in conversation and outdoor activities like hiking and horseback riding.
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The book was a best-seller in Britain and the United States. Nolan's writing style is often compared to James Joyce and Dylan Thomas. Critics also point out Nolan's distinct writing style omits articles and uses participle construction other than relative clauses. The Philadelphia Inquirer appreciated "Nolan's soaring language and lilting alliterative style [which] suffuse [ Dam-Burst of Dreams published , provided Nolan critical acclaim that compared him to the works of W.
Yeats and James Joyce. The collection was published four years after Nolan was administered Lioresal but some of the poems were written when Nolan was just 12 years old. The title of the collection emphasized the theme surrounding most of the poems, the overflow and release of his mental intellect. His poems in the collection are heavy with alliteration, and incorporate words invented by Nolan utilizing the combination of pre-existing root words.
Nolan often discouraged inquiries about his literary influences. During an interview he once wrote: Every night his father would read him several passages from Joyce's Ulysses and other poetic works. As a judge of the competition she was one of the early recognizers of Nolan's writing abilities.
When enrolling him for secondary school, Nolan's family struggled to convince educators that Nolan would be able to function in a regular class setting. Mount Temple Comprehensive School headmaster John Medleycott believed it was possible to devise a set-up to accommodate Nolan: Thanks to Medleycott, Nolan was accepted into Mount Temple and later was received by Trinity College, Dublin after Medleycott provided a personal recommendation. Nolan's life story and works have been referenced to in several musical works.
Nolan was once approached by a Los Angeles film producer who was interested in making his biography into a movie. Nolan declined the offer and responded: Every year, his secondary school Mount Temple Comprehensive School holds an award show in his honour. The "Eye of the Clock Awards" are hosted in the last week of school for all students. These awards are given to students for extraordinary efforts in school and are inspired by Nolan's efforts in school. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Jun 15, Lisa Musil rated it it was amazing. The language and imagery are so rich--I had to read this one chapter at a time.
If I could give 10 stars to a book, this would be it! Born a cripple, he could have been consigned to the rubbish heap but instead and against all odds became a celebrated writer of this Whitbread Book winner, "The Banyan Tree" as well as an early book of poems. Without taking anything away from Joseph Meehan a self portrait of Nolan , he couldn't have overcome his If I could give 10 stars to a book, this would be it! Without taking anything away from Joseph Meehan a self portrait of Nolan , he couldn't have overcome his debilitating handicaps to scale the heights he did without the steady support and tender loving care of his family.
A father, mother and sister who are such warm and emotionally intelligent human beings anybody would be blessed and proud to have them as family. The school principals, teachers and fellow students who accepted him, nurtured him and gave him the chance to prove himself equal to the best among physically whole human specimens are themselves shining examples of humanity who deserve as much recognition in Nolan's lifestory.
Although it has been compared with James Joyce's "Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man", it is in reality nothing like it. Whereas Joyce's work is for the most part depressing and full of pain and harshness, Nolan's story is so morally uplifting you almost forget its grave subject matter. Nolan's dazzling and inventive writing style is also unique and something to relish.
He coins and mints new words which have a yet found a conventional meaning but are so emotionally accurate you know they're right. Read this if you're feeling down and need something to restore your faith in mankind! Feb 06, Robert Glover rated it it was ok. What a unique and interesting book.
Under The Eye of the Clock by Christopher Nolan
Poor Christopher Nolan was born without the ability to use his body and could only type using a special tapping device on his forehead. Within his impotent body, however, a powerful mind thrived. He wrote several books, including this one, in his short life. His language is clipped where you expect detail and spacious where you expect brevity, and convoluted to a point where it makes it difficult to tease out a meaning at times.
It was more li What a unique and interesting book. It was more like poetry in many spots. Still, I didn't want to put it down. I had to read it just to follow his line of thought and gain insight into his sealed world. Jul 06, Annie Weatherly-Barton rated it it was amazing. This book is just so beautifully written and almost poetic in its language. Moving, sad, uplighting and sometimes very funny. Christopher Nolan is such a bright, engaging young man with what might be seen, by some, as insurmountable physical problems due to his disability.
His ability to write so brilliantly at such a young age is astounding. Honest, down-to-earth reality of his life but with presented with such humour and courage. Another book that I would give 10 stars if I only could! Aug 03, Mark Maguire rated it it was amazing. It is Joyce-ian in many ways, but it is also Nolan's own voice. His descriptions are vivid, his narration is strong, his word use is brilliant.
It only took me so long to read it, because of the heavy per se nature of the book, I could only take so much at a time. A great book though. May 08, Alison Whiteman rated it it was amazing. This book was remarkable first because the author wrote the entire novel using a stick attached to his head to hit the letters on a keyboard.
He was severely disabled. His writing was much like James Joyce. I read this in graduate school at The Evergreen State College. We were the first Master in Teaching class in the school's history and I lead a team to obtain an endorsement in special education. Feb 14, Heather F rated it it was amazing.
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Christopher Nolan was a brilliant author trapped within a paralyzed and mute body, typing one letter at a time with a stick attached to his head. Not only did he finish school, including some college, he had an amazingly positive attitude in overcoming other obstacles. This book really makes me re-think my attitude. I wasn't totally in love with this book, and for that I feel nothing but guilt. I mean, it was written by a guy who has absolutely no controlled body movement other than his eyes and it's an impressive feat.
There were lovely moments of careful writing and great descriptions, but the beauty comes much more from the writer's story than the story he tells. Dec 16, Lucy rated it liked it.
Under The Eye of the Clock
I wanted to like it more than I did considering who it was written by and how it was written, but I found it difficult to follow at some points and didn't know a lot of the words he used! But it is inspiring and I appreciate and really respect the effort gone into writing this. Aug 30, Jasmine Langdon rated it it was amazing.
Christopher Nolan had an above average intelligence and the misfortune of having Cerebral Palsy.