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Titled ‘The Joke’, you go in with the expectation that there will be a climax to the story, but what you find is somewhat more rewarding. It follows the story of 4 individuals whose lives are all interconnected through their social circles. Through each narrative, Kundera’s wit and sarky tones exposes the triviality of what seems to be the biggest problems of our lives. He picks up on our obsession with our own narratives and this in itself is the ‘joke’. It’s really satisfying when you come to such a conclusion as whilst you’re hooked at the story being told, you’re constantly wondering when it will all click into place.
The plot itself is quite funny in subtle sort of way and you really do become very engrossed in each person’s tale. I found this particularly so in the last part of the book where the narrator was not made explicit and yet you were still able to tell who it was by the change in tone and style. Kundera is extremely clever in the way that he writes and allows the reader to explore the themes for themselves without being explicitly led. It resulted in a satisfying read and the ending, whilst very sombre, fitted well with the overall message in the book.
Whilst The Joke is often seen in a political context, I think upon reading the novel that Kundera’s idea was not on a specific situation but on human nature as a whole. Although, it was very interesting to get some insights into a Communist regime, it was very much the background of the novel rather than its main message.
The plot itself is quite funny in subtle sort of way and you really do become very engrossed in each person’s tale. I found this particularly so in the last part of the book where the narrator was not made explicit and yet you were still able to tell who it was by the change in tone and style. Kundera is extremely clever in the way that he writes and allows the reader to explore the themes for themselves without being explicitly led. It resulted in a satisfying read and the ending, whilst very sombre, fitted well with the overall message in the book.
Whilst The Joke is often seen in a political context, I think upon reading the novel that Kundera’s idea was not on a specific situation but on human nature as a whole. Although, it was very interesting to get some insights into a Communist regime, it was very much the background of the novel rather than its main message.