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A review by taicantfly
Blindness by José Saramago
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Rarely does a book evoke such strong emotions of genuine empathy and willingness to change. The society in Blindness breaks down so completely and so swiftly that all that our characters are left with are the most fundamental and necessary of human traits. It shows that, in the end, it all boils down to love - the love the doctor's wife has for her husband, the love the woman with the dark shades has for the child, the love the man with the eyepatch has for her. Through so much pain and dehumanisation our community unites us, and when you strip away all the unnecessary vices and distractions, it is love that keeos us going. It was love and it always has been. This book makes me want to be a better version of myself.
In contrast to love, the other main thematic portrayal is the nature of violence. The violence of soldier against inmate stems from fear of blindness. The violence of inmate against inmate stems from fear that this delivery of food may be the last, and the knowledge that if the other wing eats you might not. These roots of violence gnaw at the hearts of those they occupy, and it grows a mind of its own - massacres, sexual violence.
In the end, Blindness' themes are simple. Love and violence, violence and love. But what makes it such a beautiful book is that it shows you that everything is just love and violence, violence and love.