Triptych

by Claude Simon

Three separate stories, about a failed marriage, a child's death, and a summer holiday, are told currently in a structure designed to resemble a three-sided painting

Genres: Fiction, Nobel Prize, French Literature, France, Literature, Madagascar

171 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Awarded 1985 Nobel Prize in Literature, for being an author "who in his novel combines the poet's and the painter's creativeness with a deepened awareness of time in the depiction of the human condition."

Reviews

[Martin Koerner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whenever I persist with and, finally, get into a Claude Simon novel, two thoughts occur to me: 1)I will seldom be able to convince anyone else to read this and 2)Claude Simon is in many ways the finest writer I have ever read.
The fact that those two facts exist simultaneously means my enthusiasm can rarely be shared or, if I do attempt to do so, it rarely convinces. Simon writes in such a complex way that to attempt to describe it renders it redundant. Whilst, however, his writing takes an awful lot of concentration, it is, unlike many better known writers of similarly 'difficult' writing, extraordinarily worth the effort. Puzzles within puzzles will be dealt to you and, yes, many will not be solved, but many will and the sheer, unadulterated pleasure at working out what is going on is remarkable. It is also worth stating that whilst his writing is without doubt 'experimental' it is so for a reason; the form is integral to the story. This is true from novel to novel, but also, in the grander scheme; Simon overall is writing about what it is to read, what it is to be told a story, what it is to experience things; what it is to be alive. That he does all this with no authorial narrative whatever- no asides, no allusions to the inner psychologies of his characters- is all the more remarkable. In Triptych, this is more successful than anywhere else in his prose. Beyond these general assertions you probably don't need to know much more as the novel is about itself and writing a review of this is needless. So; take a week off work and devote your time to reading this. It is tough going by absolutely wonderful.

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

When you go to a museum and see a still life, do you think:

(a) "This is amazing! Look at the detail on that orange!"
(b) "He's an incredible painter, I just wish he'd turn his attention to detail to something interesting!"
(c) "I hate still lives...nothing happens."

If you are type (a) you will love this book. If you are type (b) you may tolerate this book. If you are type (c) you will hate this book.

It's impossible to say what this book is about, other than it is a still life written by a master.

[F Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

The fifth installment in my nouveau roman project. This one has chapters (three!). I think in this book Simon achieves what he is reaching for in 'Conducting Bodies'; this seems to be a more fully-realized and successful effort. Despite its surface difficulties, it is really quite brilliant, if difficult to describe. The visual element is strong, with both layers of images that connect seemingly disparate story lines (are we watching a film, are we looking at a poster, are we at a circus??), and also intersections of those images that connect events in different ways. Not a casual read, but certainly a worthwhile one.

[H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not anything for those “normal readers”.

In Against Interpretation Sontag indicated to exterminate the excess vulgarity of interpretation, as she said “Our task is to cut back content so that we can see the thing at all.” I reckon Claude belongs to this camp who always dedicate to bring readers to the naked reality.

If Francis Bacon’s painting depicted dream, then Simon Claude deconstructed it, and shattered it into a myriad of dazzling prisms.

[Omar Abu Samra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is far from the traditional aspects of understanding. It is difficult to understand what is happening or why all this is happening, to be precise. This is a pure work of art, nothing more, and one reading is not enough to evaluate this book. It is different from any work written by Claude Simon.
Simon uses language as a sharp, slow instrument. Sentences are long but their range is short. The verbs and similes are short, despite the single paragraph. This is unusual in his work( short verbs etc) . I don't know if I enjoyed the language (which I usually do when reading Simon), but I enjoyed this mental journey, like looking at a painting and not knowing what is happening.

[Janet · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read it because it was assigned. Contemporary baroque literature where one sentence did not fit with the next. Unpleasant subject matter. Kind of wondered what kind of awful person would force his students to read and analyze it.

[A · Rating 5 out of 5]

WHAT.

This book. This book. THIS BOOK.

[Nik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this like four years ago. I remember the first chapter being literally perfect, and the rest was very good as well, if a little cold. Still, it was surprising and singular enough to warrant five stars.