Awesome lyrics from Paul Simon's wife.
What I've learned from reading The Magic Mountain is that I don't get most philosophical debate. My little mind can't wrap itself around abstract ideas when they are presented in paragraphs that go on for pages and never give any concrete examples.
At one point, the main character, Hans Castorp, has what is clearly a dream from the very onset of the scene (though I think we're supposed to think it's really happening for a time) and through the images and events of the dream I came to an understanding of how Hans Castorp felt about two other characters who were always arguing their beliefs in front of Hans Castorp (he is always referred to by his full name in the book). Two witches are ripping apart a blond-haired baby and eating him alive? I immediately understood this image (Hans Castorp is blond).
Following this scene, however, is about two - three pages of narrated explanation of how Hans Castorp feels. Maybe this is necessary for readers who can't make connections between images like I can. That's fine and I'm glad Thomas Mann was thinking of them. But what it turns into for me is a daydreaming session where I wander off into my own thoughts while simultaneously reading words that go nowhere for me.
Here's the kicker - if I didn't have the dream sequence I wouldn't know how Hans Castorp feels about the two men arguing around him. I would just be skimming a paragraph that goes over my head because it's too abstract and too grand for me to pay attention. Maybe Mann is a genius for including both so he leaves no reader behind.
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