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3.19 AVERAGE
3.19 AVERAGE
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
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
This is more a work of political propaganda than a work of fiction. That would not have bothered me in any case, other than the sheer cruelty of some of the remarks that are taken up as normal and a corollary part of life. They are not.
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have no time for the biblical Samson, who seemed like a thug of the first order, a feeling only reconfirmed by re-reading the passage from Judges included at the start of the book.
And then the book proper begins and it's .. an essay, which is not what I was expecting. And it's a very detailed one at that - almost a line by line analysis, pulling in material from other sources, psychoanalysis - and initially it seems quite a stretch, rather too much from too little.
But by the end, and this was even less expected, it's quite gripping, and convincing even, to the extent that I feel I have not only a whole new understanding of Samson but also a new awareness of the care required when approaching these ancient texts.
And then the book proper begins and it's .. an essay, which is not what I was expecting. And it's a very detailed one at that - almost a line by line analysis, pulling in material from other sources, psychoanalysis - and initially it seems quite a stretch, rather too much from too little.
But by the end, and this was even less expected, it's quite gripping, and convincing even, to the extent that I feel I have not only a whole new understanding of Samson but also a new awareness of the care required when approaching these ancient texts.
I came to this because it's part of the Canongate Myth series, a series commissioned by the publishers from various well-known authors to rewrite any myth, legend, from their culture or another, that they wish. Being familiar with the story of Samson and Delilah from childhood bible stories, I was intrigued to know how Grossman would turn it on it's head. Perhaps he would tell the story from the point of view of Delilah, a name used so often to refer to a woman who betrays her man to an enemy, or simply betrays him at all. Or maybe a first person account from Samson himself about what is was like to become renowned for his strength and know that it was all as a result of his long hair.
Neither of these things. Instead, Grossman tells the stories and adds notes, interspersed with the storytelling, to provide background details. It's kind of like watching a film or TV episode with the director's of actors' commentary on. It gets a little academical in places and, while there is totally a place for this, I guess it just wasn't what I was expecting compared to other books in this series. I was hoping for a fictional retelling of the story, with a narrative voice to make me see things from a different perspective. Of course, there was a lot more to the story than the simplified version I had read in a picture book as a child and that was fascinating for me, but of all the books I've enjoyed from this myth series so far, I was a little disappointed with this one as I felt it was more educating through essay type format, rather than using the narrative structure.
Neither of these things. Instead, Grossman tells the stories and adds notes, interspersed with the storytelling, to provide background details. It's kind of like watching a film or TV episode with the director's of actors' commentary on. It gets a little academical in places and, while there is totally a place for this, I guess it just wasn't what I was expecting compared to other books in this series. I was hoping for a fictional retelling of the story, with a narrative voice to make me see things from a different perspective. Of course, there was a lot more to the story than the simplified version I had read in a picture book as a child and that was fascinating for me, but of all the books I've enjoyed from this myth series so far, I was a little disappointed with this one as I felt it was more educating through essay type format, rather than using the narrative structure.
‘Out of the eater came something to eat/Out of the strong came something sweet.’
The story of Samson forms four chapters (13-16) of the Book of Judges. There are a number of aspects to the story, but the best known is that of the strong man who loses his strength when his hair is cut, thanks to Delilah. Samson is imprisoned by the Philistines but, in his final act, is able to bring down a building on himself and three thousand Philistines.
In this brief (145 page) book, written for The Myths series, David Grossman writes of Samson as an individual, an outcast whose freakish strength sets him apart. Samson may well be a national symbol of Jewish fight-back, but in David Grossman’s telling of the story he is also a man who wants to belong, to be accepted by others for himself. Samson is in an impossible position: ‘A lonely man, forever tortured, enslaved by a God who has chosen for him a demanding mission - the salvation of Israel - for which his personality and character are too weak.’
In trying to understand why Samson, finally, breaks down and tells Delilah his secret, David Grossman speculates that it was ‘with the foolish innocence of one who believes that if he were to confide everything to another person, all at once, in a kind of innocent transfusion, he would finally achieve a feeling of genuine intimacy’. Poor Samson.
It isn’t just Samson the man that David Grossman is concerned with. Samson can also be seen as a metaphor for both the Jewish people and the modern state of Israel. David Grossman writes: ‘Jews throughout the ages took pride in the tales of his [Samson's] heroism and yearned for the physical strength, bravery, and manliness that he represented. They esteemed, no less, his ability to apply force without any restraints or moral inhibitions, an ability which history withheld from the trod-upon Jews for millennia, until the establishment of the state of Israel.’
This is the first book in The Myths series that I have read, and I picked it up purely by chance. I enjoyed it. The publisher’s blurb for this series states: ‘Myths are universal and timeless stories that reflect and shape our lives — they explore our desires, our fears, our longings, and provide narratives that remind us what it means to be human. The Myths series brings together some of the world's finest writers, each of whom has retold a myth in a contemporary and memorable way.’
I will be looking to read more books from The Myths series, as time permits.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
The story of Samson forms four chapters (13-16) of the Book of Judges. There are a number of aspects to the story, but the best known is that of the strong man who loses his strength when his hair is cut, thanks to Delilah. Samson is imprisoned by the Philistines but, in his final act, is able to bring down a building on himself and three thousand Philistines.
In this brief (145 page) book, written for The Myths series, David Grossman writes of Samson as an individual, an outcast whose freakish strength sets him apart. Samson may well be a national symbol of Jewish fight-back, but in David Grossman’s telling of the story he is also a man who wants to belong, to be accepted by others for himself. Samson is in an impossible position: ‘A lonely man, forever tortured, enslaved by a God who has chosen for him a demanding mission - the salvation of Israel - for which his personality and character are too weak.’
In trying to understand why Samson, finally, breaks down and tells Delilah his secret, David Grossman speculates that it was ‘with the foolish innocence of one who believes that if he were to confide everything to another person, all at once, in a kind of innocent transfusion, he would finally achieve a feeling of genuine intimacy’. Poor Samson.
It isn’t just Samson the man that David Grossman is concerned with. Samson can also be seen as a metaphor for both the Jewish people and the modern state of Israel. David Grossman writes: ‘Jews throughout the ages took pride in the tales of his [Samson's] heroism and yearned for the physical strength, bravery, and manliness that he represented. They esteemed, no less, his ability to apply force without any restraints or moral inhibitions, an ability which history withheld from the trod-upon Jews for millennia, until the establishment of the state of Israel.’
This is the first book in The Myths series that I have read, and I picked it up purely by chance. I enjoyed it. The publisher’s blurb for this series states: ‘Myths are universal and timeless stories that reflect and shape our lives — they explore our desires, our fears, our longings, and provide narratives that remind us what it means to be human. The Myths series brings together some of the world's finest writers, each of whom has retold a myth in a contemporary and memorable way.’
I will be looking to read more books from The Myths series, as time permits.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
informative
fast-paced
This was more of a discussion of the myth, rather than a retelling or re-imagining like the other titles I have read from this series. Probably due more than anything to my predisposition toward 'fiction' over 'non-fiction,' I think I would have enjoyed it more if it had hewed to the same creative impulse as the other Canongate Myths books. Grossman's work is admittedly highly speculative and uses a lot of psychoanalytic theory/logic, of which I am generally fairly dubious when it comes to literary analysis. Call me an arty wingnut, but I often think you can gain more insight and understanding of something like a myth from telling and retelling it than you can from picking apart the story in a quasi-scientific, autopsy-esque fashion.
3.5 Stars.
A captivating close reading of the texts from Judges, retelling the story of Samson through a series of questions, musings, and extrapolations. Both probing and insightful, Grossman takes a clinical approach to the tale that never feels distanced or removed. His fascination and love for the myth remains evident despite the academic approach.
A captivating close reading of the texts from Judges, retelling the story of Samson through a series of questions, musings, and extrapolations. Both probing and insightful, Grossman takes a clinical approach to the tale that never feels distanced or removed. His fascination and love for the myth remains evident despite the academic approach.
I was a little surprised as to what comprised this book, as I expected to find a fictional retelling after the reproduction of Judges 13-16 of the King James Bible. Instead, what follows is a detailed commentary that examines and dissects the Biblical account, using even the original language to understand the full meaning of the text, with all of its nuances and allusions. As many times that I have studied the story of Samson in church growing up, there is apparently quite a bit that I never knew about such an interesting character in Hebrew history.
As any person chosen of God to do His will, Samson is a man plagued by his destiny and how it separates him from the rest of humanity. Though chosen of God from the womb to live as a Nazarite, he is still very much human with human urges. Almost constantly at war with himself, Samson seems to set himself up to be hurt by those he puts his trust in so that he may let loose his anger and rage against those who hold his people captive -- the Philistines. Like so many modern-day psychological head cases, much of his choices are also driven by a need for that hidden something lacking in his relationship with his parents. He looks for it in the wrong places and the wrong women, even paying a visit to a prostitute. He seems to use his strength and anger with an artistic flair, first setting up a group of Philistines at his wedding with an unsolvable riddle, and later finding rather unique ways of further punishing the Philistines, such as using the jawbone of an ass to kill a thousand of them. Furthermore, every verbal account from Samson is spoken poetically.
What I found most interesting is the way that David Grossman explored the account of Samson and Delilah. He alludes that Samson in fact knew the betrayal that Delilah harbored and welcomed it in order to finally shed his God-given destiny. While he ends his life in a final act of redemption, I have to wonder if he did complete the task that God had given him to "begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines."
Despite the intense detail that David Grossman goes into when writing this study of Samson, the book is a very good read and well worth my time.
As any person chosen of God to do His will, Samson is a man plagued by his destiny and how it separates him from the rest of humanity. Though chosen of God from the womb to live as a Nazarite, he is still very much human with human urges. Almost constantly at war with himself, Samson seems to set himself up to be hurt by those he puts his trust in so that he may let loose his anger and rage against those who hold his people captive -- the Philistines. Like so many modern-day psychological head cases, much of his choices are also driven by a need for that hidden something lacking in his relationship with his parents. He looks for it in the wrong places and the wrong women, even paying a visit to a prostitute. He seems to use his strength and anger with an artistic flair, first setting up a group of Philistines at his wedding with an unsolvable riddle, and later finding rather unique ways of further punishing the Philistines, such as using the jawbone of an ass to kill a thousand of them. Furthermore, every verbal account from Samson is spoken poetically.
What I found most interesting is the way that David Grossman explored the account of Samson and Delilah. He alludes that Samson in fact knew the betrayal that Delilah harbored and welcomed it in order to finally shed his God-given destiny. While he ends his life in a final act of redemption, I have to wonder if he did complete the task that God had given him to "begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines."
Despite the intense detail that David Grossman goes into when writing this study of Samson, the book is a very good read and well worth my time.