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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The twenty pages of pure unadulterated misogyny at the end were difficult I will not lie but I think it was a worthwhile read otherwise
Het verhaal was simpelweg te traag voor waar ik op dat moment zin in had. Las het ook liever in het Nederlands maar die kon ik niet in eBook vorm vinden. Wel interessant verhaal en bijzondere personages.
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
What makes a great book? Is it its exquisite style, its intellectual vigour, its emotional outreach? In terms of fiction, arguably it’s the sum of all of these that elevate a novel to greatness. However, there is another key ingredient, which in its subtlety can make or break a piece of writing, namely the ability of a book to deal with its open wounds. Elias Canetti’s “Auto da Fé”, originally published in Vienna in 1935, is an example of an artwork that impresses us with its skill and it disappoints in its ignorance of reality.
The original German title translated as “The Blinding” is critically more apt in understanding the novel, than the traditional English translation, which perhaps attributes additional meaning that is broadly absent in the whole novel. This is a story about a celebrated sinologist in his early forties, Dr. Peter Kein. His actual writing is of no consequence (and we never get a glimpse of it!). What is most important is that he owns a library, the largest in his town. He treats his books with more care than any other human being. When a middle-aged housekeeper goes into his service, his only interest is his work and the cleanliness of his library. After eight years in his service, Therese becomes his legal wife in a marriage that is never consummated. Kein is unable to express any love for his wife, whilst Therese changes her focus on her eventual wealth after her husband’s death. This inability to communicate, leads to the core drama of the story, as happiness never finds a nest.
Each character in this novel becomes blinded by their own ambition, making their survival in this world a chimera that never finds its realisation and the spiralling towards degradation becomes deterministically inevitable. Canetti was exquisite in his ability to drive his characters through madness, letting his prose loose in the euphoric journey between chaotic dreams and tactile reality. The effect is ecstatic in the celebration of literary prowess, even at the detriment of plot development and mood. “Auto da Fé” becomes at once a comedy of errors, a gangster thriller, a romance of unrequited love, a gothic horror, and a psycho-drama. Nonetheless, the author grips to his words to create a united tale about a man’s inability to live in society.
The ideas presented throughout are carefully attributed to each character. Kein’s misogyny is a driving force for his actions. His clinical disgust of women leads into a critical celebration of misogyny in art in the dénouement of the novel, bringing to light works by Confucius, Homer, Michelangelo, and even God himself in the story of Adam’s rib. These ideas determine the character, but in the depiction of Therese and the other women in this novel, Canetti rarely contradicts them. This inability to address the bigotry of thought is further enhanced by the lack of irony in depicting racial stereotypes, most evident in the characterisation of the Jewish dwarf gangster, Fischerle. His dramatic fate, albeit emotional, feels too uncomfortably deserved.
If Canetti was presenting the reality of thought of contemporary Germany under Nazi rule, then somehow, he completely fails to take a stance on its morality. In that his novel feels either dogmatic or just simply ignorant. The wounds that this novel leaves untreated appear to be completely eclipsed by the patriarchal desire to tell a story in which white men have the final say in the ruling of this world.
The original German title translated as “The Blinding” is critically more apt in understanding the novel, than the traditional English translation, which perhaps attributes additional meaning that is broadly absent in the whole novel. This is a story about a celebrated sinologist in his early forties, Dr. Peter Kein. His actual writing is of no consequence (and we never get a glimpse of it!). What is most important is that he owns a library, the largest in his town. He treats his books with more care than any other human being. When a middle-aged housekeeper goes into his service, his only interest is his work and the cleanliness of his library. After eight years in his service, Therese becomes his legal wife in a marriage that is never consummated. Kein is unable to express any love for his wife, whilst Therese changes her focus on her eventual wealth after her husband’s death. This inability to communicate, leads to the core drama of the story, as happiness never finds a nest.
Each character in this novel becomes blinded by their own ambition, making their survival in this world a chimera that never finds its realisation and the spiralling towards degradation becomes deterministically inevitable. Canetti was exquisite in his ability to drive his characters through madness, letting his prose loose in the euphoric journey between chaotic dreams and tactile reality. The effect is ecstatic in the celebration of literary prowess, even at the detriment of plot development and mood. “Auto da Fé” becomes at once a comedy of errors, a gangster thriller, a romance of unrequited love, a gothic horror, and a psycho-drama. Nonetheless, the author grips to his words to create a united tale about a man’s inability to live in society.
The ideas presented throughout are carefully attributed to each character. Kein’s misogyny is a driving force for his actions. His clinical disgust of women leads into a critical celebration of misogyny in art in the dénouement of the novel, bringing to light works by Confucius, Homer, Michelangelo, and even God himself in the story of Adam’s rib. These ideas determine the character, but in the depiction of Therese and the other women in this novel, Canetti rarely contradicts them. This inability to address the bigotry of thought is further enhanced by the lack of irony in depicting racial stereotypes, most evident in the characterisation of the Jewish dwarf gangster, Fischerle. His dramatic fate, albeit emotional, feels too uncomfortably deserved.
If Canetti was presenting the reality of thought of contemporary Germany under Nazi rule, then somehow, he completely fails to take a stance on its morality. In that his novel feels either dogmatic or just simply ignorant. The wounds that this novel leaves untreated appear to be completely eclipsed by the patriarchal desire to tell a story in which white men have the final say in the ruling of this world.
Auto-da-Fé by Elias Canetti was just not for me. Maybe I read a completely different book than everyone else who gave this Pulitzer Winner's novel 5 stars, or maybe I just don't understand the literary merit behind it?
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
challenging
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Terribile. Mi pare evidente che Canetti soffrisse di complesso di inferiorità, probabilmente perché ce l'aveva piccolo.