Originally Posted by
XiaoYe
Of all the authors, I prefer GL the most and I agree with the wit in GL dialogues. I also think whether you like GL or not also depends on your own experiences and outlook on life. I personally think GL makes some very deep points about life. Many of his sentences have double meanings. They can be read at face value, and there is also a deeper meaning which really hits the spot.
I agree that JY is good at closing off stories. You know that all will come to an end and everything will be resolved and that does give you a satisfying feel after the long journey. GL often has no endings or undesirable endings. It's a different approach to life. He likes to open up the possibilities, and likes to show that life is not predictable.
I have read one LYS novel, and I found that it had some lengthy paragraphs too, like JY's, but he had main characters unlike any of JY's. GL's later works were the same actually, as in that they were not JY like.
While writing all that, a thought came to my mind. JY has characters that are upright and probably more desirable in being a good human being. It's almost educational. Where as the other authors, like GL or LYS, while they have some very interesting characters, they are probably not the kind of qualities the society as a whole would want. Hence there are more adaptations on JY novels which helps it to reach a wider audience. The society sure doesn't want people like GL's characters running around, flirting with women or men, drinking wine all day, and not obeying rules set by the society. As for LYS, he basically makes bad guys look cool.