Thursday, October 25, 2012
92. The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe
Poe piles one horror on top of another: the trial, the conviction, the descent into the pit, exploring the pit in complete darkness, the well in the centre of the pit, being bound to a frame below the descending pendulum, the rats, escape from the pendulum, the heating metal, walls closing .... and then a last minute rescue.
I imagine Poe watching the swing of a clock's pendulum in an opiate haze.
I imagine Poe watching the swing of a clock's pendulum in an opiate haze.
91. Lost Illusions by Honore de Balzac
This is three novels about the same characters: Lucien and Eve are brother and sister, and David is Lucien's best friend and Eve's husband.
David buys his faather's printng businss. He loves his father, who is a miserly and greedy old man who mercilessly exploits David.
Lucien is a poet, and David and Eve support him when he goes to Paris to seek his fortune in the train of Louise, an eccentric local spinster. Lucien starts off with noble aspirations and believes himself in love, but ends up living with a prostitute and becoming a journalist. (Balzac has a very low opinion of journalists). Lucien forges notes of credit that put David in prison when he can't pay, and Eve and David continue to love him but no longer trust him.
Various characters conspire to steal David's printing business and his invention of a new kind of paper; David is a trusting soul, even when Eve begins to think something's going on. Eventually they sell his invention and the business and retire to the country, with the aid of a gift from Lucien.
Lucien goes off to commit suicide but meets a priest on the road who employs him as a secretary. Lucien claims to be an atheist but discovers the priest is even more cynical.
So, lost illusions all round. There are various other subplots going on at the same time.
What struck me most about this was Balzac's desciption of journalism, and how newspapers can manipulate people's ideas and influence politics. It's still relevant today.
David buys his faather's printng businss. He loves his father, who is a miserly and greedy old man who mercilessly exploits David.
Lucien is a poet, and David and Eve support him when he goes to Paris to seek his fortune in the train of Louise, an eccentric local spinster. Lucien starts off with noble aspirations and believes himself in love, but ends up living with a prostitute and becoming a journalist. (Balzac has a very low opinion of journalists). Lucien forges notes of credit that put David in prison when he can't pay, and Eve and David continue to love him but no longer trust him.
Various characters conspire to steal David's printing business and his invention of a new kind of paper; David is a trusting soul, even when Eve begins to think something's going on. Eventually they sell his invention and the business and retire to the country, with the aid of a gift from Lucien.
Lucien goes off to commit suicide but meets a priest on the road who employs him as a secretary. Lucien claims to be an atheist but discovers the priest is even more cynical.
So, lost illusions all round. There are various other subplots going on at the same time.
What struck me most about this was Balzac's desciption of journalism, and how newspapers can manipulate people's ideas and influence politics. It's still relevant today.
Monday, August 27, 2012
80. Eugenie Grandet by Honore de Balzac
Eugenie's father Grandet is a miser. His nephew Charles arrives from Paris with a letter revealing his father has lost his fortune and committed suicide.Eugenie falls in love with Charles and gives him her savings, so he can make his fortune in the Indies. When she confesses this to her father, he locks her in her room on bread and water. Eugenie's mother is dying, and Grandet is worried that her fortune will go to Eugenie, so he asks her to renounce her claim to her mother's estate. Grandet dies.
Meanwhile Charles has made his fortune in the Indies and forgotten Eugenie. He has also forgotten his father's debts, and contracted marriage with a noble but impoverished family. Eugenie concludes "one can only suffer and die". She settles her uncle's debts and marries her father's friend, the president, who dies not long after.
Eugenie is rich, and still young, but lives like a miser.
(I admit I read several more de Balzac novels after this one. I can't help thinking that in historical romances, when young English women read scandalous French novels, they were reading books like this.)
Meanwhile Charles has made his fortune in the Indies and forgotten Eugenie. He has also forgotten his father's debts, and contracted marriage with a noble but impoverished family. Eugenie concludes "one can only suffer and die". She settles her uncle's debts and marries her father's friend, the president, who dies not long after.
Eugenie is rich, and still young, but lives like a miser.
(I admit I read several more de Balzac novels after this one. I can't help thinking that in historical romances, when young English women read scandalous French novels, they were reading books like this.)
79. The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo
Set in 15th century Paris, with a lot of descriptions of architecture. It took me a while to realise that it's about the city, as much as the people.
The hunchback is Quasimodo, abandoned at birth on the steps of Notre-Dame Cathedral and adopted by the Arch Deacon, Claude. Claude lusts after the beautiful Esmeralda (stolen by gypsies as a child), who is in love with Phoebus, a soldier. Claude gets Quasimodo to kidnap Esmeralda, Phoebus rescues her, Quasimodo is flogged, Claude kills Phoebus and Esmeralda is arrested and hanged. Esmeralda's true mother discovers her identity too late.
The hunchback is Quasimodo, abandoned at birth on the steps of Notre-Dame Cathedral and adopted by the Arch Deacon, Claude. Claude lusts after the beautiful Esmeralda (stolen by gypsies as a child), who is in love with Phoebus, a soldier. Claude gets Quasimodo to kidnap Esmeralda, Phoebus rescues her, Quasimodo is flogged, Claude kills Phoebus and Esmeralda is arrested and hanged. Esmeralda's true mother discovers her identity too late.
Friday, July 20, 2012
78. The Red and the Black
Now I've caught up to the book I've just finished. The Red and the Black is about Julien Sorel, the son of a carpenter, who is intelligent and ambitious. He becomes a priest (and seduces Madame de Renal) and then secretary to the Marquis de la Mole (and seduces the Marquis' daughter Mathilde). He despises the people around him and is proud that he can manipulate them; but is also flattered by their attention, I think.
It's an interesting psychological picture of a young man making his way in the world, but unconvincing at the end when he shoots and wounds Madame de Renal and is executed.
Why the red and the black? Passion vs reason?
77. The Betrothed
An Italian novel about a humble couple who want to marry and are prevented by an oppressive aristocracy allied to corrupt priests; but there's a happy ending thanks to the intervention of a few good men.
76. Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper
Our first American novel on the book list. It's a ripping yarn complete with beautiful heroines and noble savages.
73. Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles Robert maturin
Different again - a kind of gothic horror story. I can see how this story foreshadows Oscar Wilde (Portrait of Dorian Gray) and Edgar Allan Poe.
72. The Monastery by Sir Walter Scott
Scottish Protestants vs Catholics, and an interesting insight in Scottish history with some attractive characters.
69. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Catherine's adolescent fantasies are confronted with mundane reality.
68. Persuasion by Jane Austen
Back to lovely Jane, and the tribulations of Anne Elliott and Captain Wentworth.
65. Emma by Jane Austen
Emma and Mr Knightley - he understands the flaws in her character but loves her anyway. (Oops, slipping into Mills and Boon descriptions.)
64. Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
Fanny is the poor but virtuous and soft-hearted poor relation of the Bertrams. In the end, her cousin Edmund recognises and values Fanny's virtue over the dubious attractions of Miss Crawford.
63. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Elizabeth and Mr Darcy - who was proud, and who was prejudiced? And in the end, was it the sight of Mr Darcy's estate that changed Elizabeth's mind about him?
59. Castle Rackrent by Maria Edgeworth
I shouldn't leave it so long between finishing the book and writing the blog, I had to resort to '1001 Books' to remind myself of the plot. The story of the gradual decline of the Rackrent family is told by Thady Quirk, the steward. It's not very flattering about the Irish squirocracy.
Friday, April 27, 2012
71. Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
I'd never read this before, and enjoyed it immensely. It has all the Robin Hood characters plus King Richard vs Prince John, and Saxons vs Normans, and Knights Templar (and others) vs an enchanting Jewish heroine. And a romance (Ivanhoe and Rowena) which ends happily ever after.
It reminded me, in fact, of Game of Thrones. If you like Game of Thrones by George R R Martin, it will make sense when I say that Scott has a footnote about a tower on an island with a causeway under the water that takes a sharp turn; and that a Saxon father disinherits his son for fighting for Richard and the Normans, and wearing Norman clothing. Of course, if you haven't read Game of Thrones, this won't mean much.
Sir Walter Scott seems to be on the side of the Saxons, more than anyone else.
It reminded me, in fact, of Game of Thrones. If you like Game of Thrones by George R R Martin, it will make sense when I say that Scott has a footnote about a tower on an island with a causeway under the water that takes a sharp turn; and that a Saxon father disinherits his son for fighting for Richard and the Normans, and wearing Norman clothing. Of course, if you haven't read Game of Thrones, this won't mean much.
Sir Walter Scott seems to be on the side of the Saxons, more than anyone else.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
70. Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
I only knew the story of Frankenstein from movie versions, so it was fascinating to read Mary Shelley's original. It's another story told in letters and journals by a third party. Shelley poses serious philosophical questions about good and evil. Are we created good, and become evil because of how we are treated or how people perceive us?
Monday, April 9, 2012
66. Rob Roy by Sir Walter Scott
I read Rob Roy while on holiday in Bali, about as far as you can get from the Scottish highlands. I've never read any of Scott's historical novels. Rob. Roy's story is told almost as a side story to the main plot by young Francis Osbaldistone who visits his country cousins and falls in love with Di Vernon.
Fascinating for the insight into Scottish history and characters, and very readable (once you decipher the dialect)
Fascinating for the insight into Scottish history and characters, and very readable (once you decipher the dialect)
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
61. Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
I've read all Jane Austen's novels over the years, but this time read them one after another in a collected edition. She seems very modern compared with everything I've read that precedes her. I can't put my finger on what the difference is. I hadn't realised that there is a satirical thread through all the novels, either.
Sense and Sensibility contrasts the feelings and behaviour of two sisters, Elinor and Mariane Dashwood. Jane was a wonderful observer of human behaviour. I wond if her friends and family recognised themselves in her characters?
Sense and Sensibility contrasts the feelings and behaviour of two sisters, Elinor and Mariane Dashwood. Jane was a wonderful observer of human behaviour. I wond if her friends and family recognised themselves in her characters?
62. The Absentee by Maria Edgeworth
This was enjoyable to read on several levels - as a romance in which virtuous hero is united with virtuous heroine, as social parody about English society, and as social commentary about absentee Irish landlords and corrupt agents and the effect on their tenants.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
51. The Interesting Narrative by Olaudah Equiano
Interesting indeed! This is auto-biography, the story of Olaudah Equiano's experiences of being kidnapped as a young boy in Africa and transported to America as a slave, buying his freedom and living in England, and eventually becoming a Christian. Along the way he works on British navy ships as the slave of a Captain and recounts some of his seagoing experiences.
His book made him a well-known (but not always popular) public figure of his time, and a spokesperson for the abolition of slavery.
His book made him a well-known (but not always popular) public figure of his time, and a spokesperson for the abolition of slavery.
50. The Adventures of Caleb Williams by William Godwin
This was an interesting psychological study. Caleb's insatiable curiousity leads him to find out that his employer, Falkland, has committed a murder. When he tries to leave, promising not to tell, Falkland pursues him and persecutes him to the point where everyone's hand is against Caleb because they believe Falkland, who is aristocratic, rich, powerful and respected. Caleb despairs but refuses to give up. Right at the end, Falkland confesses all.
I read this as a novel, rather than political commentary - it works on both levels. It reminded me of the sixties television series, The Fugitive.
47. The 120 Days of Sodom by Marquis de Sade
I've been reading books over Christmas but not in chronological order, so I'm just now reading 120 Days of Sodom. It's heavy going. De Sade seems to want to catalogue every possible perversion. He admits that a lot of it won't appeal, but promises his readers they'll find something that turns them on.
Four evil and powerful men take their accomplices and victims to a remote location, where they listen to pornographic stories which stimulate them to try out what they've heard. The stories progress from relatively innocuous incest, cophrophragy and whipping and progress to torture, mutilation and death. After a while even De Sade gets bored and simply describes variations, rather than telling stories about them.
I made it to the end, and felt filthy afterwards.
Four evil and powerful men take their accomplices and victims to a remote location, where they listen to pornographic stories which stimulate them to try out what they've heard. The stories progress from relatively innocuous incest, cophrophragy and whipping and progress to torture, mutilation and death. After a while even De Sade gets bored and simply describes variations, rather than telling stories about them.
I made it to the end, and felt filthy afterwards.
Friday, January 13, 2012
49. Justine, or Good Conduct Well Chastised by Marquis de Sade
Justine is virtuous and never loses her goodness in spite of a series of adventures in which she is abused and degraded. Her sister Juliet is bad and profits from it.
At the end of the book, when they are reunited and Justine has some hope of living happily, she is struck by a bolt of lightning and dies. The moral de Sade offers is "true happiness lies only in the bosom of virtue" - "virtue is its own reward" - and "If God permits virtue to be persecuted on earth, it is not for us to question his intentions."
At the end of the book, when they are reunited and Justine has some hope of living happily, she is struck by a bolt of lightning and dies. The moral de Sade offers is "true happiness lies only in the bosom of virtue" - "virtue is its own reward" - and "If God permits virtue to be persecuted on earth, it is not for us to question his intentions."
48. Vathek by William Beckford
This is a story about the Caliph Vathek, set in an imaginary oriental country . Vathek is a despotic ruler whose excesses have no limits. In a search for forbidden knowledge, he and his wife and friends end up in Hell. And the moral is, "such should be the punishment of unrestrained passions and atrocious actions!"
46. Cecilia by Fanny Burney
Another novel by Fanny Burney. This time the heroine's dilemma is that she is heiress to a large fortune, but to retain it when she marries her husband must take her name. Naturally she falls in love with Mortimer Delvile, the son of a family very proud of their name, and his family, while fond of Cecilia, won't allow Mortimer to marry her. Meanwhile she is faced with three guardians, all equally unsuitable (one greedy, one miserly, one proud).
Eventually Cecilia and Mortimer marry secretly and Cecilia gives up her wealth to a distant cousin. Through a series of misunderstandings Mortimer suspects Cecilia of being unfaithful, Cecilia thinks herself abandoned and becomes ill, then Mortimer realises she is innocent and all is resolved happily.
Eventually Cecilia and Mortimer marry secretly and Cecilia gives up her wealth to a distant cousin. Through a series of misunderstandings Mortimer suspects Cecilia of being unfaithful, Cecilia thinks herself abandoned and becomes ill, then Mortimer realises she is innocent and all is resolved happily.
45. Confessions by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
After reading Reveries of a Solitary Walker, I thought Rousseau was paranoid. Now that I've read Confessions, I don't know what to think. Towards the end of his life, Rousseau believed that a man called Grimm had conspired with various people to destroy him. His Confessions can be read as an appeal for justice, putting the facts as he knows them in front of the public. He admit his own faults, and is honest about his own feelings - although I think he tends to blame circumstances for his actions instead of accepting full responsibility.
It must be hard to be a nerdish genius in a society where you need social skills to attract a wealthy and powerful patron. Rousseau had a gift for offending people without realising it. In Myers Briggs personality types, I'd characterise him as Introvert (not Extravert), Sensing (not Intuitive), Feeling (not Thinking) and Judging (not Perceiving).
It must be hard to be a nerdish genius in a society where you need social skills to attract a wealthy and powerful patron. Rousseau had a gift for offending people without realising it. In Myers Briggs personality types, I'd characterise him as Introvert (not Extravert), Sensing (not Intuitive), Feeling (not Thinking) and Judging (not Perceiving).
44. Dangerous Liaisons by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos
I'd heard about this novel because of the movie based on it, and later this year we're going to see the play at Sydney Theatre Company.
Valmont is a libertine and Merteuil a young widow, once lovers, who conspire to outdo each other in seducing young innocents. Again, the story is told through letters.
"Who is there who would not shudder, if he were to reflect upon the misfortunes that may be caused by even one dangerous acquaintance! " writes Madame de Volanges, erstwhile friend of Madame de Merteuil who has corrupted her daughter.
In the end, the wicked are punished: Merteuil catches smallpox and is horribly scarred and "now her soul was to be seen in her face". Valmont is killed in a duel with Chevalier Danceny.
Valmont is a libertine and Merteuil a young widow, once lovers, who conspire to outdo each other in seducing young innocents. Again, the story is told through letters.
"Who is there who would not shudder, if he were to reflect upon the misfortunes that may be caused by even one dangerous acquaintance! " writes Madame de Volanges, erstwhile friend of Madame de Merteuil who has corrupted her daughter.
In the end, the wicked are punished: Merteuil catches smallpox and is horribly scarred and "now her soul was to be seen in her face". Valmont is killed in a duel with Chevalier Danceny.
42. Evelina by Fanny Burney
Fanny Burney supported her family through her writing, and this is a her debut novel.
Evelina travels to London to learn to find her way in society, having been brought up in a secluded village. There is a mystery about her birth, as her true father denies she is his daughter and heir.
She is attracted to Lord Orville, but is embarrassed by a pack of vulgar relations. In the end, her father acknowledges her and she is united with Lord Orville.
Evelina travels to London to learn to find her way in society, having been brought up in a secluded village. There is a mystery about her birth, as her true father denies she is his daughter and heir.
She is attracted to Lord Orville, but is embarrassed by a pack of vulgar relations. In the end, her father acknowledges her and she is united with Lord Orville.
41. The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
This novel, published in Germany in 1774, is very different in style from the English novels I've been reading, although it also tells the story through Werter's letters to a friend.
Werter falls in love with Lotte, who is engaged to Albert and subsequently marries him. In the end Werter despairs and shoots himself, telling Charlotte they will be reunited in the next life.
(Thanks to Kindle, I can tell you that the last fifth of the book is Werter talking about and then committing suicide!)
Werter falls in love with Lotte, who is engaged to Albert and subsequently marries him. In the end Werter despairs and shoots himself, telling Charlotte they will be reunited in the next life.
(Thanks to Kindle, I can tell you that the last fifth of the book is Werter talking about and then committing suicide!)
41. Humphry Clinker by Tobias George Smollett
Published in 1771, this is another story told in letters. Each of the main characters has their own version of the truth - Matt Bramble, his sister Tabitha, Jerry their nephew, Lydia their daughter, and Tabitha's maid Wyn. Humphrey Clinker is their servant, and together they have a series of misadventures which end happily.
40. The Man of Feeling by Henry Mackenzie
"A bundle of little episodes", supposed to have been rescued from a curate who was using the paper as wadding for his gun. Each episode in the life of young Harley explores a particular emotion - bashfulness, indifference to fortune, love, pity, and so on.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
39.A Sentimental Journey by Laurence Sterne
Yorick and his servant, La Fleur, do the "Grand Tour" through France and Italy. Yorick describes his travels in an informal, conversational style as a series of anecdotes and observations about his fellow travellers and other characters he meets along the way.
I enjoyed this amusing tale - it made me laugh.
I enjoyed this amusing tale - it made me laugh.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
43. Reveries of a Solitary Walker by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Poor Jean Jacques has suffered persecution by religious authorities for his writings and now feels everyone who recognises him is hostile. He yearns for human contact but has given up. He feels his own mental powers waning. He sounds paranoid, now and then
The Reveries are a series of essays where JJ explores his own feelings on topics such as: when is it okay to lie? Why is the study of nature so satisfying? Why does the pleasure of giving become a burden as soon as it becomes expected?
Embedded in this I recognised some ideas that I hadn't known were Rousseau's. If you don't care what people think of you, their opinion can't hurt you.
Because JJ is so honest about his feelings, I feel I know him and pity him.
The Reveries are a series of essays where JJ explores his own feelings on topics such as: when is it okay to lie? Why is the study of nature so satisfying? Why does the pleasure of giving become a burden as soon as it becomes expected?
Embedded in this I recognised some ideas that I hadn't known were Rousseau's. If you don't care what people think of you, their opinion can't hurt you.
Because JJ is so honest about his feelings, I feel I know him and pity him.
38. Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne
This is worth reading again, because it wasn't until I was a fair way in that I realised the underlying sexual innuendo. The story purports to be about Tristam Shandy, but we're a long way in before Tristam even gets born, and the story ends when Tristam is still a child.
What's interesting in this novel is the characters and their relationships: Tristam's father and mother, his Uncle Toby, Yorick, Corporal Trim and Widow Wadman are all lovable, if flawed, human beings.
What's interesting in this novel is the characters and their relationships: Tristam's father and mother, his Uncle Toby, Yorick, Corporal Trim and Widow Wadman are all lovable, if flawed, human beings.
37. The Vicar of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith
I enjoyed this comic novel about the misadventures of the Vicar of Wakefield, Dr Primrose, and his family. The plot rambles all over the place - like the family - and ends happily.
36. The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole
Horace Walpole was the youngest son of a Prime Minister, 4th Earl of Orford, and owner of Strawberry Hill, a famous house influenced by mediaeval Gothic architecture. The Castle of Otranto is subtitled "a gothic story" and is regarded as the founding text of gothic romances, combining supernatural horror with romance.
In the Castle of Otranto, Prince Manfred is the villain who has supplanted the rightful heir. He marries his son Conrad to Princess Isabella. When Conrad is crushed before the wedding by a mysterious giant plumed helmet, Manfred divorces his wife and is going to force Isabella to marry him, but Isabella is rescued by a young peasant called Theodore. Theodore fights a knight who turns out to be Isabella's father Frederic. Frederic wants to marry Manfred's daughter Matilda. Manfred mistakenly stabs Matilda thinking she is Isabella. Frederic turns out to be the rightful heir. Matilda dies, Manfred repents, Theodore becomes king and marries Isabella.
It felt like an ancient soap opera, with exaggerated emotions building on top of each other and more and more unlikely events and coincidences following each other. Fun, but exhausting.
In the Castle of Otranto, Prince Manfred is the villain who has supplanted the rightful heir. He marries his son Conrad to Princess Isabella. When Conrad is crushed before the wedding by a mysterious giant plumed helmet, Manfred divorces his wife and is going to force Isabella to marry him, but Isabella is rescued by a young peasant called Theodore. Theodore fights a knight who turns out to be Isabella's father Frederic. Frederic wants to marry Manfred's daughter Matilda. Manfred mistakenly stabs Matilda thinking she is Isabella. Frederic turns out to be the rightful heir. Matilda dies, Manfred repents, Theodore becomes king and marries Isabella.
It felt like an ancient soap opera, with exaggerated emotions building on top of each other and more and more unlikely events and coincidences following each other. Fun, but exhausting.
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