A bawdy novel in a fairy tale form about a 40 year old poet/pawnbroker who is given back youth to travel for a year to imaginary places. He begins his journey with the pretense of searching for his disappeared wife. He goes to heaven and hell and marries three other women.
Jurgen was brought to trial for obscenity in 1919 for some obscure passages that may have referred to sex. The real reason may have been because of the novel's questioning of religion and dogma. Because of its notoriety, Cabell was launched into fame which included critical appreciation- he was also friends with H.L. Mencken, Sinclair Lewis, among others; and he was read by Mark Twain. After the 30s, however, Cabell's fame slipped and he has had more of a cult readership these days; although his works inspired Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land, and he is cited as an influence by Neil Gaiman.
Jurgen is a tale of a mid-life crisis. The main character questions the value of relationships and suffers illusion's unveiling of love, marriage and youth. In the end he has a better understanding of life….maybe. There are many subtle things in this story, maybe too subtle for the contemporary reader.
Jacoby was inspired, or rather compelled to write this book after hearing a conversation on 9/11/2001- according to The New York Times (2/14/2008), it went something like this: “This is just like Pearl Harbor,” one of the men said. The other asked, “What is Pearl Harbor?” “That was when the Vietnamese dropped bombs in a harbor, and it started the Vietnam War,” the first man replied. At that moment, Ms. Jacoby said, “I decided to write this book.”
After reading this article and few more reviews, and after seeing Ms Jacoby give a book reading in San Francisco, I became inspired to read it. I mostly wanted to see how if I was as ignorant and uninformed as the rest of America; and I also have a deep curiosity to understand the strange history of America's intellectuals.
After reading this, I am curious to see how Jacoby's book departs or expands upon Richard Hofstadter's book, Anti-Intellectualism in American Life. I think Jacoby does present some of the challenges Americans face in issues of education and critical thinking. Religious fundamentalism and video media are the main culprits to intellectual downfall, according to Jacoby, and I agree. However, I am more concerned of how Americans lost a respect and desire for knowledge and rational understanding. We had a trajectory for such values, but what happened? Where do we fall to the wayside? Jacoby's book excellently diagrams how we have gone awry and what are culprits, but I perhaps I wanted to dig a little deeper into the murk.
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The plot is standard gothic novel stuff, but Du Maurier uniquely reveals inner psychologizing in words. I'm not sure if I had encountered any novel so exact in this regard. I was very much drawn in by the language and the suspense of this work.
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(0 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)
A Nervous Splendor covers nine historical months from the summer of 1888 to the spring of 1889 in Vienna, Austria. The story is mostly centered on the events that led to the Crown Prince Rudolf's double suicide (with his lover Baroness Mary Vetsera). Morton alternates Rudolf's story with events that were happening simultaneously to other cultural figures: Sigmund Freud, Gustave Klimt, Arthur Schnitzler, Theodor Herzl, Gustav Mahler, Anton Bruckner and Johannes Brahms.
The overall effect is a fast-paced and engaging snapshot of Viennese history, one sees how little events start to have larger ramifications and how isolated events actually do have influence on a larger whole. One can also see how the milieu shapes the individual who can in turn, shape the milieu.
Zweig's name is no longer recognized as a major writer now, although he was the most translated author during his heyday. He was friends with some of the most well-known names of culture and intelligentsia: Rilke, Freud, Richard Strauss, Maksim Gorky and so on. He penned a wide variety of works from biographical studies to novellas and operas. World of Yesterday, however, is his memoir, published after his suicide of 1942.
I was initially attracted to this book because of my current interest in turn-of-the-century Vienna.
However, after reading WoY, new doors of inquiry have opened in my mind. I saw Vienna in its pivotal historical moment, inhabiting a crossroads where decisions were made (not only by politicians, but also by ordinary people who chose to turn away their heads) that affected Europe's course. Zweig lived during an incredibly tumultuous time; not only was culture brimming with prospects, but ideas were spilling forth and co-mingling in literature, music, visual arts and philosophy. Zweig travelled across Europe- writing, thinking and meeting other great artists. He writes of a moment he was privileged to witness the creative fire in Rodin. He speaks fondly of his encounters with Rilke- a gentle, sensitive man. And he gives a picture of Europe before the two great wars. He expresses his disappointment of Europe's change after WWI- and the horrors which befell Vienna right before WWII.
This is an amazing read- and after reading it I became more fascinated by this man who lived through all experiences, in fact, I went a bought a few more books on him!
I also saw a connection between what happened in Vienna and what could possibly happen here in the US- it is a warning. Although this memoir greatly informs, there is a strange elusive quality to Zweig. He does not really let you in, for example, as you are reading- all of a sudden, there is a wife! Who is this wife? What is her name? How did they meet? He never tells you- nor does he tell you that this marriage ends and as he is about to leave England for Brazil, he gets married to another woman. Nor does he reveal what internal processes he undergoes, nor does he reveal some insight of why he has become the person he is. No matter- I guess one can read other biographies on Zweig to get these answers (there is one penned by his first wife, Frederika).
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(2 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
lisa_emily has commented on (18) products.
Jurgen: A Comedy of Justice by James Branch Cabell
lisa_emily, June 12, 2008
A bawdy novel in a fairy tale form about a 40 year old poet/pawnbroker who is given back youth to travel for a year to imaginary places. He begins his journey with the pretense of searching for his disappeared wife. He goes to heaven and hell and marries three other women.Jurgen was brought to trial for obscenity in 1919 for some obscure passages that may have referred to sex. The real reason may have been because of the novel's questioning of religion and dogma. Because of its notoriety, Cabell was launched into fame which included critical appreciation- he was also friends with H.L. Mencken, Sinclair Lewis, among others; and he was read by Mark Twain. After the 30s, however, Cabell's fame slipped and he has had more of a cult readership these days; although his works inspired Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land, and he is cited as an influence by Neil Gaiman.
Jurgen is a tale of a mid-life crisis. The main character questions the value of relationships and suffers illusion's unveiling of love, marriage and youth. In the end he has a better understanding of life….maybe. There are many subtle things in this story, maybe too subtle for the contemporary reader.
The Age of American Unreason by Susan Jacoby
lisa_emily, June 12, 2008
Jacoby was inspired, or rather compelled to write this book after hearing a conversation on 9/11/2001- according to The New York Times (2/14/2008), it went something like this: “This is just like Pearl Harbor,” one of the men said. The other asked, “What is Pearl Harbor?” “That was when the Vietnamese dropped bombs in a harbor, and it started the Vietnam War,” the first man replied. At that moment, Ms. Jacoby said, “I decided to write this book.”After reading this article and few more reviews, and after seeing Ms Jacoby give a book reading in San Francisco, I became inspired to read it. I mostly wanted to see how if I was as ignorant and uninformed as the rest of America; and I also have a deep curiosity to understand the strange history of America's intellectuals.
After reading this, I am curious to see how Jacoby's book departs or expands upon Richard Hofstadter's book, Anti-Intellectualism in American Life. I think Jacoby does present some of the challenges Americans face in issues of education and critical thinking. Religious fundamentalism and video media are the main culprits to intellectual downfall, according to Jacoby, and I agree. However, I am more concerned of how Americans lost a respect and desire for knowledge and rational understanding. We had a trajectory for such values, but what happened? Where do we fall to the wayside? Jacoby's book excellently diagrams how we have gone awry and what are culprits, but I perhaps I wanted to dig a little deeper into the murk.
(2 of 2 readers found this comment helpful)
Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
lisa_emily, May 27, 2008
The plot is standard gothic novel stuff, but Du Maurier uniquely reveals inner psychologizing in words. I'm not sure if I had encountered any novel so exact in this regard. I was very much drawn in by the language and the suspense of this work.(0 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)
A Nervous Splendor: Vienna 1888-1889 by Frederic Morton
lisa_emily, January 2, 2008
A Nervous Splendor covers nine historical months from the summer of 1888 to the spring of 1889 in Vienna, Austria. The story is mostly centered on the events that led to the Crown Prince Rudolf's double suicide (with his lover Baroness Mary Vetsera). Morton alternates Rudolf's story with events that were happening simultaneously to other cultural figures: Sigmund Freud, Gustave Klimt, Arthur Schnitzler, Theodor Herzl, Gustav Mahler, Anton Bruckner and Johannes Brahms.The overall effect is a fast-paced and engaging snapshot of Viennese history, one sees how little events start to have larger ramifications and how isolated events actually do have influence on a larger whole. One can also see how the milieu shapes the individual who can in turn, shape the milieu.
The World of Yesterday: An Autobiography by Stefan Zweig
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1-5 of 18 nextlisa_emily, October 31, 2007
Zweig's name is no longer recognized as a major writer now, although he was the most translated author during his heyday. He was friends with some of the most well-known names of culture and intelligentsia: Rilke, Freud, Richard Strauss, Maksim Gorky and so on. He penned a wide variety of works from biographical studies to novellas and operas. World of Yesterday, however, is his memoir, published after his suicide of 1942.I was initially attracted to this book because of my current interest in turn-of-the-century Vienna.
However, after reading WoY, new doors of inquiry have opened in my mind. I saw Vienna in its pivotal historical moment, inhabiting a crossroads where decisions were made (not only by politicians, but also by ordinary people who chose to turn away their heads) that affected Europe's course. Zweig lived during an incredibly tumultuous time; not only was culture brimming with prospects, but ideas were spilling forth and co-mingling in literature, music, visual arts and philosophy. Zweig travelled across Europe- writing, thinking and meeting other great artists. He writes of a moment he was privileged to witness the creative fire in Rodin. He speaks fondly of his encounters with Rilke- a gentle, sensitive man. And he gives a picture of Europe before the two great wars. He expresses his disappointment of Europe's change after WWI- and the horrors which befell Vienna right before WWII.
This is an amazing read- and after reading it I became more fascinated by this man who lived through all experiences, in fact, I went a bought a few more books on him!
I also saw a connection between what happened in Vienna and what could possibly happen here in the US- it is a warning. Although this memoir greatly informs, there is a strange elusive quality to Zweig. He does not really let you in, for example, as you are reading- all of a sudden, there is a wife! Who is this wife? What is her name? How did they meet? He never tells you- nor does he tell you that this marriage ends and as he is about to leave England for Brazil, he gets married to another woman. Nor does he reveal what internal processes he undergoes, nor does he reveal some insight of why he has become the person he is. No matter- I guess one can read other biographies on Zweig to get these answers (there is one penned by his first wife, Frederika).
(2 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)