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Umberto ECO Eco's first novel 'The Name of the Rose' was first published in his native Italy as, yes you guessed it, 'Il nome della Rosa' in 1980 and then in England four years later. A film of the same name starring Sean Connery and a young Christian Slater was screened in 1986. Both film and novel are extremely well portrayed and characterized. The novel, especially is very exciting if using ones own mind-pictures, which are enhanced by Eco's fine writing. Umberto Eco is a world renowned specialist in semiotics which Webster defines as "pertaining to the signs or symptoms of disease". The Shorter Oxford spells this word as 'semeiotics' which fooled me for a while. He also is a distinguished historian and, combining these two schools of knowledge he builds a wonderful picture of 'signs and symptoms of disease' into the historical fabric of an ancient monastery, high in some alpine range, where is the finest repository of ancient manuscripts in existence. However, the librarian who obviously is 'diseased' in his mind anyway, refuses to allow a scholar access to the hidden parts of his labyrinthine library. As a philosopher and 'aesthetician' he is also a scholar of James Joyce and has written extensively on the subject of Joyce's language. He is also a newspaper columnist, teaches semiotics at the University of Bologna and lives in Milan. In his interest in philosophy his books graduated to different spheres of esthetics always stretching the imagination to higher metaphysics as in his second novel, 'Foucault's Pendulum' This interesting mechanism is a large weight hanging from an extremely long wire which, with a magnet beneath the floor to assist in it's perpetual swing measured the world's turning and twisting in the universe. In a vacuum, we are told, Foucault's Pendulum will oscillate for eternity. Eco saw metaphysical occultism in this eternal swing and, to quote a literary critic, "...... zooms across continents, in and out of the wisdom of the cabala and the occult, of physics, of computer technology; of political foresight and hind sight and of the sexual mores of '60's and '70's southern European intellectuals" This summary, I guess, is aimed more at the author as being a 'Southern Intellectual' than the book, which I found to be confusing and often inexplicable. Reading a second time I decided I was not to be listed as one of these 'Intellectuals' but perhaps, on a third try I may better get to understand the book. Another of Umberto Eco's books is a series of essays which I found much more to my understanding. 'Travels in Hyper-Reality' which travels from ex-President's Libray and Museum to the world of Woody Allen, Fellini and Antonioni. He explores the murderous temple of Jim Jones, terrorism in general and swings to St.Thomas Aquinas. In effect he covers everything from tight-fitting blue jeans to higher religion. An exciting and fascinating exploration which I have enjoyed reading, 'dipping into' many times. In short then, I found Eco to be a fascination as a personality and would like to read more of his works, yet suspicious that his
occult-intellectual-hyper-realism may leave me floundering.
 Hi, I'm afraid I would have to disagree with
Charles. I'm like most people - I did not
find "Chilhood's End" all that enjoyable. In
the end I found Arthur C. Clarke's view of
humanity rather depressing. I usually read
SF to have my spirit brought up a little.
Notes from a Small Island As I was born, and spent my 'formative years' in England I looked forward to reading this book by an expatriate American after he had spent more than twenty years in the UK. He arrived in England for the first time in 1973 and spent a few unpleasant days in what might be misconstrued as 'The Typical English Seaside Boarding House'. The author was struck dumb, almost literally in that he had no answers, by the bellicose landlady. He left Dover after a very few days and, as he said, never returned there. Growing more used to the English ways and manners he eventually settled in Yorkshire and, before returning, with his family, to America he set out on a trek around England, in a manner reminiscent of Paul Theroux rather than with the sympathetic insight of, say, Eric Newby. The book IS funny and I could find myself giggling quite happily at some of Byson's descriptions but could never really get a good belly laugh from him. Seeing England through the author's eyes I found myself thinking that England and English ways had not changed dramatically since I left for good, in 1948, just after the end of WW2. "And the British are so easy to please. It is the most extraordinary thing." says Bryson, "They actually like their pleasures small. That is why, I suppose, so many of their treats - teacakes, scones, crumpets, rock cakes, rich tea biscuits, fruit Shrewsburys - are so cautiously flavourful. They are the only people in the world who think of jam and currants as thrilling constituents of a pudding or cake. Offer them something genuinely tempting - a slice of gateau or a choice of chocolates from a box - and they will nearly always begin to worry that it's unwarranted and excessive, as if any pleasure beyond a very modest threshold is vaguely unseemly." So, if you are interested in a wry look at the English, written in a
pleasantly jocular manner then this book is good reading. I enjoyed it. It
never made me feel I couldn't get to England fast enough. In fact it had the
opposite effect of reinforcing my pleasure to be a New Zealander, living in
New Zealand. I have recently finished "Childhood's End" by Arthur C. Clarke, and
found it a very interesting book. Most of the people I know who have
read it, hated it. I would like to know what others who have read it
thought of it....thanks. |