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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
Wenen lijkt nochtans geen stad voor verbitterde mannen
Womit wäre Holzfällen zu vergleichen? Vielleicht am besten doch mit Ravels Boléro.
Thomas Bernhard hat eine Geschichte ohne Handlung geschrieben. Denn Ereignisse, die gibt es fast nicht: Ein Mann sitzt in einem Ohrensessel und beobachtet die Leute, die zu einem künstlerischen Abendessen eingeladen sind. Alle warten bis ein Burgschauspieler eintrifft, bevor dieses Abendessen anfangen kann. Worum es aber geht, sind die Gedanken dieses Mannes. Seine Beobachtungen sind messerscharf, und, wie man es von Bernhard kennt, ist er unzufrieden mit Wien, dem Burgtheater, den Leuten, usw.
Warum denn der Vergleich mit Ravels Boléro? Weil die Gedanken und Themen sich immer in unterschiedlichen Gestalten wiederholen und langsam lauter werden, bis am Ende das ganze Orchester mitspielt und es tatsächlich zu einem Klimax kommt.
Ein herrliches Buch!
Thomas Bernhard hat eine Geschichte ohne Handlung geschrieben. Denn Ereignisse, die gibt es fast nicht: Ein Mann sitzt in einem Ohrensessel und beobachtet die Leute, die zu einem künstlerischen Abendessen eingeladen sind. Alle warten bis ein Burgschauspieler eintrifft, bevor dieses Abendessen anfangen kann. Worum es aber geht, sind die Gedanken dieses Mannes. Seine Beobachtungen sind messerscharf, und, wie man es von Bernhard kennt, ist er unzufrieden mit Wien, dem Burgtheater, den Leuten, usw.
Warum denn der Vergleich mit Ravels Boléro? Weil die Gedanken und Themen sich immer in unterschiedlichen Gestalten wiederholen und langsam lauter werden, bis am Ende das ganze Orchester mitspielt und es tatsächlich zu einem Klimax kommt.
Ein herrliches Buch!
A short, bitter bit of thinly veiled fiction based on Bernhard's interactions/associations with members of the Viennese artistic set over the course of a late-night dinner in the eighties. Highly repetitive 'cuz you're following the unfiltered train of thought of the unnamed narrator (Bernhard, more or less) as he silently seethes at everybody else (and at himself—no one is spared).
And he's vicious. Kept thinking of that moment in The Simpsons when Homer beats the Krustyburgler and a kid in the crowd pleadingly shouts, "Stop! Stop! He's already dead." Some of my favorite insults: "archetypal mindless ham," in reference to an actor the narrator has no respect for, and "snobbish musical dandy from the Styrian sticks," in reference to a composer who is one of the hosts of the dinner party.
I learned halfway through reading that the composer maps pretty much entirely to a real individual in all but name, who sued and almost got all copies of the book pulped, before ultimately backing down. In the novel he blacks out and makes a fool of himself multiple times over, and his past sexual predations are heavily implied, so I can see why he was upset enough to go to court. Just imagine the worst of yourself, in the most uncharitable light, making it into publication. I would simply pass away.
The repetitiveness makes the book a little difficult to get into and/or through. The circular rhythm of words and ideas stated and restated three or four times is hypnotizing, making it easy for your attention to drift, until suddenly you find yourself having to backtrack or pause. There are some real nuggets if you stick with it, though. Consider reading it as a bit of catharsis after a particularly bad night out with people you didn't want to hang with in the first place.
And he's vicious. Kept thinking of that moment in The Simpsons when Homer beats the Krustyburgler and a kid in the crowd pleadingly shouts, "Stop! Stop! He's already dead." Some of my favorite insults: "archetypal mindless ham," in reference to an actor the narrator has no respect for, and "snobbish musical dandy from the Styrian sticks," in reference to a composer who is one of the hosts of the dinner party.
I learned halfway through reading that the composer maps pretty much entirely to a real individual in all but name, who sued and almost got all copies of the book pulped, before ultimately backing down. In the novel he blacks out and makes a fool of himself multiple times over, and his past sexual predations are heavily implied, so I can see why he was upset enough to go to court. Just imagine the worst of yourself, in the most uncharitable light, making it into publication. I would simply pass away.
The repetitiveness makes the book a little difficult to get into and/or through. The circular rhythm of words and ideas stated and restated three or four times is hypnotizing, making it easy for your attention to drift, until suddenly you find yourself having to backtrack or pause. There are some real nuggets if you stick with it, though. Consider reading it as a bit of catharsis after a particularly bad night out with people you didn't want to hang with in the first place.
challenging
dark
funny
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
One of the greatest, funniest and darkest writers. This book, as any of his works, leave a lastning impression.
funny
reflective
medium-paced
funny
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
I had thought it would be difficult to spend the whole book, even if it's short, stuck in the narrators neurotic head but he/Bernhard is such a good hater it was actually enjoyable. I can see why people describe bernhards prose as musical he introduced and reintroduces sentences and themes in slightly different ways over and over. The book is in some ways a meditation of pessimism and I think if I thought about friendships the way Bernhard clearly does id be pretty pessimistic about life too but I didn't recognize my friendships in his to any extent. The choice to end the book by bringing it right up to the present is a terrific choice, it gives such a panicked claustrophobic sense of there being no escape. Anyway I guess this was all based so closely on an actual dinner he'd had that some guy sued him so there's a lot more specifics about Austria, art, music, and the German language that I could only gesture at. Almost cormac mccarthy-esque in my ability to admire it and look at the ideas he's smuggling into the story but I still ultimately have to say : eh no I don't think it works like that
il mio secondo Bernhard preferito, almeno per il momento. forse dovrei dare 4,5/5 o 4,75/5 per il sacro rispetto che provo per antichi maestri, ma 5/5 rende l'idea di cosa Bernhard rappresenta per me