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After the Divorce
The novel begins with Costantino Ledda's conviction and sentencing for the murder of his cruel uncle. Though innocent of the crime, he accepts the guilty verdict as punishment for marrying Giovanna Era through a civil ceremony rather than an expensive church wedding. When her husband is taken away, Giovanna has no way to provide for herself, her mother, and her son, who soon dies of malnutrition. Out of desperation she divorces Costantino, according to a new law for wives of convicts, and marries a wealthy but brutish landowner. When the true murderer confesses and Costantino returns, he and Giovanna begin a forbidden and ultimately destructive affair.
Deleda's tragic story of poverty, passion, and guilt portrays the primitive and remote world of the church, pre-Christian superstitions, and laws dictated from the mainland, in her native Sardinia, where society hangs in a delicate balance. Once this order is disrupted, none of these characters can escape the spiral of destruction dictated by fate, God, and society.
Deleda's tragic story of poverty, passion, and guilt portrays the primitive and remote world of the church, pre-Christian superstitions, and laws dictated from the mainland, in her native Sardinia, where society hangs in a delicate balance. Once this order is disrupted, none of these characters can escape the spiral of destruction dictated by fate, God, and society.
174 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1902
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About the author
Grazia Deledda
437 books270 followersGrazia Maria Cosima Damiana Deledda was an Italian writer who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1926 "for her idealistically inspired writings which with plastic clarity picture the life on her native island [i.e. Sardinia] and with depth and sympathy deal with human problems in general". She was the first Italian woman to receive the prize, and only the second woman in general after Selma Lagerlöf was awarded hers in 1909.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
April 8, 2021
I believe this to be the first novel I have read taking place in Sardinia. I will remember it more for the landscape, which left more of an impression on me than Deledda's characters. Winner of the Nobel Prize in 1926 she had many admirers, with one D. H. Lawrence praising Deledda for creating the passionate, complex, psychological condition of her period. She writes of her native land in a pitiless glare of hardships and imprisoning plight, with religion casting a heavy eye over the locals. Two lovers - tragic love, is the driving force of the novel. Actually, it's three, if I include the pantomime villain of the piece.
Life in a Sardinian village is torn apart for sweethearts Costantino & Giovanna. After Costantino is convicted (wrongly) of murder and sent to prison for 27 years, Giovanna is left to bring up their child, Martin (who gets gravely ill), whilst pondering over the affections of the raging, jealous drunkard, Brontu, who is madly in love with her. Giovanna pines for Costantino continuously - truly, madly, deeply. For long periods she can't stop crying with tears of despair.
A recent law has been newly enacted that will allow the wives of convicted prisoners to divorce, a situation that would seem to benefit Giovanna, a poor woman struggling day to day, whose pest of a lover Brontu can offer her a better life if she marries him. She expects never to see her true love again, and opts for the wealth of Brontu, is subjected to the disquiet of the Church and of the town, and now also has a conniving witch of a mother-in-law to put up with.
The return of Costantino after being released as new evidence came to light, would eventually lead to a reunion with his love, but tragic consequences are already set in motion, leaving the past happy memories as the only thing of any comfort. Bleak is the story, and it carries with it a feeling of hopelessness throughout. I loved the way Deledda weaved some beautifully melancholic sentences of the land, and the story never really appears melodramatic, something that does bother me in novels. But the actions of some of the other characters just bothered me, even though she deals well with dignity, compassion and faith. I also had a hard time feeling pity for Costantino, falling prey to the plight of Giovanna much more. Brontu I despised big time. As for his mother - what an absolute cow.
The novel didn't move me as much as I thought it would, but there are things in there that I won't forget easily.
dnf
June 14, 2017This wasn't doing anything for me by about 1/3 of the way through so I'm just going to DNF it. Not bad but just a plain translation and flat characters that I didn't really care about.
August 16, 2020
Talvez uma das maiores desilusões de 2020... Estava à espera de tanto mais e o que recebi foi um balde de água muito fria...
Não consegui criar nenhum tipo de laços com a narrativa, achei as personagens muito irritantes e com demasiados dramas que me fizeram comichão. A única coisa que salva a obra é a contextualização espacial, a descrição das paisagens sardas.
NOTA - 04/10
Não consegui criar nenhum tipo de laços com a narrativa, achei as personagens muito irritantes e com demasiados dramas que me fizeram comichão. A única coisa que salva a obra é a contextualização espacial, a descrição das paisagens sardas.
NOTA - 04/10
July 30, 2017
After the Divorce is a tale in 1920s Sardinia of love, envy, covetousness, murder, deceit, and anger. In actuality, it is drama dealing with events in the lives of Costantino Ledda, his wife Giovanna, his rival Brontu Dejas and the mothers-in-law, Bachisia Era and Martina Dejas.
Wrongfully accused of murdering his uncle, Basile, Costantino received a sentence of twenty-seven years in prison. Giovanna and Bachisia lost their home after paying off the lawyer. The area is not impoverished, but Giovanna and Bachisia did not own land, nor have cattle or sheep, like their neighbors, the Dejas. There was little work, so they, along with Martino, Giovanna’s son, experienced almost starvation in the small village.
Giovanna and Costantino’s toddler died during his incarceration. In the meantime, an uncompromising, bossy, Bachisia badgered Giovanna to marry Brontu, who loved her, whom she had spurned for Costantino. Realizing she was still young, her husband’s lengthy confinement, the death of their son, and poverty-stricken, Giovanna conceded.
Costantino collapsed when he discovered his wife’s decision to marry Brontu. Neighbors and friends were outraged. They considered it a sacrilege to divorce and marry another man while her husband alive. They named Giovanna ‘the woman with two husbands.’
Giovanna and her mother believed she made the right decision. Later, Giovanna had regrets. She married Brontu for his wealth, but became he and his mother’s slave.
Authorities freed Costantino when the real culprit confessed on his deathbed. Costantino left jail with ambivalent feelings for Giovanna. He felt betrayed. Yet he returned to the village, said he planned to leave, but could not. This became unpleasant and destructive for everyone.
Notwithstanding Costantino and Giovanna are the chief characters, but the story involved strong characters in Bachisia and Martina, too strong-willed mothers-in-law. They were imperious.
I liked it, but thought the novel melodramatic and gave it three stars. You will be enlivened with Grazia DeLedda’s nature writing on Sardinia throughout the book. One of my favorites is: “The sunset light was still brilliant while water shone here and there between oleanders and rushes, reflecting the red-gold glare of the sky. The lacy umbrellas of elder and the bright coral buds of the oleanders stood out against the light sky like enamel-work set in silver.” Ms. DeLedda received the Nobel Prize for literature in 1926.
Wrongfully accused of murdering his uncle, Basile, Costantino received a sentence of twenty-seven years in prison. Giovanna and Bachisia lost their home after paying off the lawyer. The area is not impoverished, but Giovanna and Bachisia did not own land, nor have cattle or sheep, like their neighbors, the Dejas. There was little work, so they, along with Martino, Giovanna’s son, experienced almost starvation in the small village.
Giovanna and Costantino’s toddler died during his incarceration. In the meantime, an uncompromising, bossy, Bachisia badgered Giovanna to marry Brontu, who loved her, whom she had spurned for Costantino. Realizing she was still young, her husband’s lengthy confinement, the death of their son, and poverty-stricken, Giovanna conceded.
Costantino collapsed when he discovered his wife’s decision to marry Brontu. Neighbors and friends were outraged. They considered it a sacrilege to divorce and marry another man while her husband alive. They named Giovanna ‘the woman with two husbands.’
Giovanna and her mother believed she made the right decision. Later, Giovanna had regrets. She married Brontu for his wealth, but became he and his mother’s slave.
Authorities freed Costantino when the real culprit confessed on his deathbed. Costantino left jail with ambivalent feelings for Giovanna. He felt betrayed. Yet he returned to the village, said he planned to leave, but could not. This became unpleasant and destructive for everyone.
Notwithstanding Costantino and Giovanna are the chief characters, but the story involved strong characters in Bachisia and Martina, too strong-willed mothers-in-law. They were imperious.
I liked it, but thought the novel melodramatic and gave it three stars. You will be enlivened with Grazia DeLedda’s nature writing on Sardinia throughout the book. One of my favorites is: “The sunset light was still brilliant while water shone here and there between oleanders and rushes, reflecting the red-gold glare of the sky. The lacy umbrellas of elder and the bright coral buds of the oleanders stood out against the light sky like enamel-work set in silver.” Ms. DeLedda received the Nobel Prize for literature in 1926.
December 25, 2020
Although it began somewhat melodramatically--and therefore felt old-fashioned--I more and more appreciated where this novel went, how its characters developed, and the denouement was so beautifully handled, so perfectly timed, and ultimately ambiguous yet inevitable, that it went from old-fashioned to modern all in one go. The plot is fairly obvious from the get-go, so it's the characters and the rules of the rural society of which they are a part and the feeling of a kind of ancient Greek inevitability of fate that pervades the whole narrative, that make the story compelling. The basic conflict is pretty universal--that between material needs and human feelings--but perhaps then also rather applicable to all. Does love, or duty, or conscience stand a chance against want and hunger? I think a lot of us in the first world are wondering this about now--in the midst of the covid-19 shutdown, unexpected unemployment, and desperation setting in. Out of work for six months now and facing another nine without a paycheck in sight, I know I am.
September 14, 2017
As a description of a certain time and way of life it is very good, very much in the vein of the social realism novels and their depiction of peasant life in the early 1900s across all of Europe. There are also many lyrical descriptions of the landscapes and village life. The characters were stereotypical however and the ending rather abrupt. An interesting read but not quite as memorable as I'd hoped.
June 25, 2024
Grazia Deledda, a literary luminary from Italy, wasn't just the second woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1926, but also the first Italian prose writer to snag this prestigious award. Her work shines a light on the lives of ordinary Sardinians, a community steeped in tradition on an island with a unique language and history. Poverty was a harsh reality back then, especially before World War II, and Deledda's 1902 novel, After the Divorce, throws everyday people into extraordinary situations to expose societal imbalances.
After the Divorce focuses on Giovanna and Constantino, a young couple brimming with marital bliss and a newborn son. Their world crumbles when Constantino is wrongly accused and imprisoned for his uncle's murder. A new law allows Giovanna, hesitant yet constrained by the limited choices available to women at the time, to divorce her incarcerated husband. With Constantino behind bars and no way to support herself and their child, Giovanna finds herself at the mercy of her money-driven mother and suitors looking to marry her even though she has an (ex) husband in jail.
Deledda paints a picture of resilience in the face of misfortune. Far from casting blame on her protagonist, she crafts a narrative reminiscent of Greek tragedies, where fate seems to propel the characters towards an inevitable, heart-wrenching conclusion. The stark atmosphere reflects the relentless pressures Giovanna faces, culminating in a tragic end that feels both foreseen and deeply moving.
After the Divorce focuses on Giovanna and Constantino, a young couple brimming with marital bliss and a newborn son. Their world crumbles when Constantino is wrongly accused and imprisoned for his uncle's murder. A new law allows Giovanna, hesitant yet constrained by the limited choices available to women at the time, to divorce her incarcerated husband. With Constantino behind bars and no way to support herself and their child, Giovanna finds herself at the mercy of her money-driven mother and suitors looking to marry her even though she has an (ex) husband in jail.
Deledda paints a picture of resilience in the face of misfortune. Far from casting blame on her protagonist, she crafts a narrative reminiscent of Greek tragedies, where fate seems to propel the characters towards an inevitable, heart-wrenching conclusion. The stark atmosphere reflects the relentless pressures Giovanna faces, culminating in a tragic end that feels both foreseen and deeply moving.
March 12, 2020
Some of the most beautiful writing I have ever read.
April 18, 2023
[4.5]
Un romanzo che si inserisce in un contesto in cui il divorzio in Italia è approvato legalmente, di sicuro non approvato dalla Chiesa, spesso non approvato nemmeno dai compaesani. Ma è una scelta che molte donne hanno abbracciato, nella speranza di potersi slegare da una vita di sofferenze, di dipendenza, di sottomissione, di diritti negati.
Tanto dolore, tanta introspezione, tante accuse, tanta solitudine, tanta tradizione e tanta Sardegna.
Mi è piaciuto molto, anche se quel finale - sì, bello, sì, ci speravo - non conclude le vite di questi personaggi, di Giovanna e Costantino in particolare. Che ne sarà di loro? Come evolverà la loro situazione? Non lo sappiamo. Resteremo col dubbio, certo, ma anche con la speranza che la vita, per una volta, sorrida a due giovani che si amano.
Un romanzo che si inserisce in un contesto in cui il divorzio in Italia è approvato legalmente, di sicuro non approvato dalla Chiesa, spesso non approvato nemmeno dai compaesani. Ma è una scelta che molte donne hanno abbracciato, nella speranza di potersi slegare da una vita di sofferenze, di dipendenza, di sottomissione, di diritti negati.
Tanto dolore, tanta introspezione, tante accuse, tanta solitudine, tanta tradizione e tanta Sardegna.
Mi è piaciuto molto, anche se quel finale - sì, bello, sì, ci speravo - non conclude le vite di questi personaggi, di Giovanna e Costantino in particolare. Che ne sarà di loro? Come evolverà la loro situazione? Non lo sappiamo. Resteremo col dubbio, certo, ma anche con la speranza che la vita, per una volta, sorrida a due giovani che si amano.
October 24, 2024
A sad novel about a young couple being torn apart when the husband is convicted of murder. Constantine Leda is sentenced to 27 years imprisonment for murdering his cruel uncle. He pleas his innocence but accepts the verdict as punishment for marrying Giovanna Era through a civil ceremony rather than an expensive church wedding.
Giovanna and her mother cannot provide for themselves. Giovanna struggles to feed her baby son. A wealthy landowner, Brontu Dejas is in love with Giovanna and out of desperation, Giovanna divorces Constantine, according to new law for wives of convicts. Giovanna is not happy in her marriage to Brontu. Brontu’s mother treats Giovanna like her slave.
The outcome of this story is disclosed on the last page.
A vividly described short novel with interesting characters, providing details of ordinary life in a poor village in Sardinia in the late 1890s.
This book was first published in 1902. The author won the 1926 Nobel Prize for Literature. This book was first translated into English in 1985.
Giovanna and her mother cannot provide for themselves. Giovanna struggles to feed her baby son. A wealthy landowner, Brontu Dejas is in love with Giovanna and out of desperation, Giovanna divorces Constantine, according to new law for wives of convicts. Giovanna is not happy in her marriage to Brontu. Brontu’s mother treats Giovanna like her slave.
The outcome of this story is disclosed on the last page.
A vividly described short novel with interesting characters, providing details of ordinary life in a poor village in Sardinia in the late 1890s.
This book was first published in 1902. The author won the 1926 Nobel Prize for Literature. This book was first translated into English in 1985.
March 6, 2018
This novel by Nobel Laurreate Grazia Deledda provides psychological insight into the society, religion, and people of early twentieth century Sardinia. At the beginning of the novel, a man, Costantino, is wrongfully convicted of murder. He accepts the verdict as punishment for his sin. “This was the dreariest of his imprisonment. He sat motionless, hour after hour, legs crossed, hands clasped round his knees, but oddly enough he never lost hope or rebelled against his fate. He was convinced he was expiating that mortal sin, as he regarded it, of having lived with a woman to whom he had not been married in church. He still felt at the bottom of his heart the certainty that one day or another, after he had atoned for his sin, his innocence would be established and he would be set free.” Giovanna is poor and, in her struggle to survive, she divorces Costantino and marries a wealthy man. “Giacobbe felt a weight lift from his heart. But the struggle the two men had taken on was to be a bitter one, ranged as it was against Brontu’s ugly passion, Bachisia’s greed, and Giovanna’s indifference. Martina too no longer looked askance upon what her son intended. Giovanna was poor, but she was healthy and frugal, and she worked like a beast of burden. A well-off woman whould be offended by the disorder and dissipation in the house, and a wedding would bring enormous expense. Giovanna, however, could have a secret wedding and come to the house as an unpaid servant.”
One sees the obvious makings of a tragedy. Costantino is acquitted and released. Finding his ex-wife remarried unhappily, the two strike up an affair. “Giovanna took her hands from her face and spoke with gentle humility. ‘God, who sees the circumstances of our lives, will not be offended.’” The scandal threatens to destroy all involved. “’You frighten me and you make me feel pity for you,’ said Isidoro, in a deep voice. ‘But whose fault is it? I remember. Your visit reminds me of another. Giacobbe Dejas. He sat there where you’re sitting. He too said we must stop it, we must prevent it; if not, something terrible would happen. We tried to stop it, to prevent it, but we could not. You, your son, you all brought about your own downfall. You fell into mortal sin, you disregarded God’s laws, and now your punishment has come.’” She goes on to blame others completely and to beg mercy on her honorable family.
In summary, this is a classic tragedy. Unfortunately I could not emotionally invest myself in any of the characters. I cannot say exactly why, but I did not like this novel. It has obvious merits, all of which I appreciate. I just didn’t like it.
See my other reviews here!
One sees the obvious makings of a tragedy. Costantino is acquitted and released. Finding his ex-wife remarried unhappily, the two strike up an affair. “Giovanna took her hands from her face and spoke with gentle humility. ‘God, who sees the circumstances of our lives, will not be offended.’” The scandal threatens to destroy all involved. “’You frighten me and you make me feel pity for you,’ said Isidoro, in a deep voice. ‘But whose fault is it? I remember. Your visit reminds me of another. Giacobbe Dejas. He sat there where you’re sitting. He too said we must stop it, we must prevent it; if not, something terrible would happen. We tried to stop it, to prevent it, but we could not. You, your son, you all brought about your own downfall. You fell into mortal sin, you disregarded God’s laws, and now your punishment has come.’” She goes on to blame others completely and to beg mercy on her honorable family.
In summary, this is a classic tragedy. Unfortunately I could not emotionally invest myself in any of the characters. I cannot say exactly why, but I did not like this novel. It has obvious merits, all of which I appreciate. I just didn’t like it.
See my other reviews here!
February 12, 2019
*3.5*
in 2017, it was the year of virginia woolf. in 2018, it was the year of marcel proust. in 2019, it will be the year of the female nobel prize laureates. hurrah!
FEBRUARY: grazia deledda (won in 1926, 17 years after the first woman, selma lagerlöf)
according to the nobel commity, deledda won due to her "idealistically inspired writings, which with plastic clarity picture the life on her native island and with depth and sympathy deal with human problems in general." i would say that sounds about right.
there's nothing trully spectacular about this novel. the title itself gives away the ending (not the mention of a divorce, because that seems fairly obvious but the subtitle of being a romance ) although i wouldn't really complain about it. i don't really have much to complain about this novel overall. i didn't dislike it neither i loved it. certainly, i would recommend it--although i wouldn't put it at the top of my list of recent reads to recommend.
quite neither here nor there. to be honest, this book was too short to achieve more than it set out to do.
in terms of style, it reminded me to Three Cheers for the Paraclete. very simple and domestic without being actually dull; which, i suppose, amounts much to the author's talent as well as the translator's. in terms of the plot, the premise makes it sound as if the stakes are much higher than what they actually are. i was expecting something a bit more soap-oper-ish; instead, it was nothing of the sort. it is, indeed, dramatic, just not overly.
it more or less amounts to an autumn read, its brevity assuring you a comfortable read for a single afternoon while you relax and not worry about much.
in 2017, it was the year of virginia woolf. in 2018, it was the year of marcel proust. in 2019, it will be the year of the female nobel prize laureates. hurrah!
FEBRUARY: grazia deledda (won in 1926, 17 years after the first woman, selma lagerlöf)
according to the nobel commity, deledda won due to her "idealistically inspired writings, which with plastic clarity picture the life on her native island and with depth and sympathy deal with human problems in general." i would say that sounds about right.
there's nothing trully spectacular about this novel. the title itself gives away the ending (not the mention of a divorce, because that seems fairly obvious but the subtitle of being a romance ) although i wouldn't really complain about it. i don't really have much to complain about this novel overall. i didn't dislike it neither i loved it. certainly, i would recommend it--although i wouldn't put it at the top of my list of recent reads to recommend.
quite neither here nor there. to be honest, this book was too short to achieve more than it set out to do.
in terms of style, it reminded me to Three Cheers for the Paraclete. very simple and domestic without being actually dull; which, i suppose, amounts much to the author's talent as well as the translator's. in terms of the plot, the premise makes it sound as if the stakes are much higher than what they actually are. i was expecting something a bit more soap-oper-ish; instead, it was nothing of the sort. it is, indeed, dramatic, just not overly.
it more or less amounts to an autumn read, its brevity assuring you a comfortable read for a single afternoon while you relax and not worry about much.
January 2, 2020
Di questo libro della Deledda non avevo mai sentito parlare. Letto per caso si è rivelato un piccolo capolavoro, con personaggi molto ben delineati e con un'ottima analisi dei loro sentimenti. L'entroterra sardo è lo scenario nel quale si muovono i personaggi: il protagonista è Costantino, il giovane sposo di Giovanna che finisce all'ergastolo con l'accusa di aver ucciso un parente. Giovanna, incinta, lo attende, desiderosa di credere che suo marito non possa essere un assassino, ma provata dalla disgrazia di dover tirare avanti senza il suo uomo, con un figlio da mantenere. La madre di lei, donna gretta ma non cattiva, tenta di fare il bene della figlia consigliandole il divorzio, ammesso nei casi come quello di Giovanna. Quando il bimbo di pochi mesi muore, Giovanna cede e pur nella vergogna di commettere un atto contrario alla Chiesa, acconsente a sposare Brontu, un giovane benestante del paese, con una madre alquanto avara. Intanto Costantino si adatta alla vita in carcere, il suo carattere ne viene forgiato, inasprito, ma in fondo non vinto.
Il racconto continua, non voglio svelare oltre, dirò solo che anche i tanti personaggi comprimari sono tutti ottimamente caratterizzati, con tratti essenziali ma rivelatori, ognuno con una sua propria storia. La vicenda, come spesso accade nei romanzi di Grazia Deledda, sembra seguire un suo corso predestinato e immutabile, ma questa volta seguendo un giro più ampio e godibile, lasciando spazio a descrizioni di usi e costumi della terra sarda, a paesaggi bellissimi, con cieli luminosi e imponenti, a introspezioni e piccole vicende.
Sul divorzio l'autrice ci dà il suo parere fondamentalmente negativo, ma non per un pregiudizio morale, quanto per un'istintiva comprensione che il legame tra un uomo e una donna, una volta formatosi, possa restare vivo oltre ogni disgrazia e avversità.
Il racconto continua, non voglio svelare oltre, dirò solo che anche i tanti personaggi comprimari sono tutti ottimamente caratterizzati, con tratti essenziali ma rivelatori, ognuno con una sua propria storia. La vicenda, come spesso accade nei romanzi di Grazia Deledda, sembra seguire un suo corso predestinato e immutabile, ma questa volta seguendo un giro più ampio e godibile, lasciando spazio a descrizioni di usi e costumi della terra sarda, a paesaggi bellissimi, con cieli luminosi e imponenti, a introspezioni e piccole vicende.
Sul divorzio l'autrice ci dà il suo parere fondamentalmente negativo, ma non per un pregiudizio morale, quanto per un'istintiva comprensione che il legame tra un uomo e una donna, una volta formatosi, possa restare vivo oltre ogni disgrazia e avversità.
December 12, 2021
As with all things in life, I can’t help but love an underdog and I’m fairly certain this is where my fascination with so called “forgotten” writers comes from. When I found out about Grazia Deledda, an author who I’d never heard of but who is a quietly celebrated Nobel prize winner, her fiction seemed right up my alley. I wanted to see what kind of a writer would have won such an accolade but subsequently been largely forgotten in mainstream classic literature (in English at least). ‘After the Divorce’ just happened to be the novel that was most easily accessible to me, and the premise sounded intriguing enough for me to decide to start there. The story follows couple Giovanna and Constantino, a poor, Sardinian couple who fall upon further misfortune when Constantino is wrongly accused and convicted of murder. Constantino’s incarceration coincides with a new divorce law in Sardinia that with continued pressure from her mother, sees Giovanna succumb to the inevitable and end her marriage and begin a new one. When the real murderer is discovered and Constantino is acquitted, this situation comes to an unavoidable head.
The prose itself was generally lovely and unique though not always my personal favourite stylistically, though having said that it definitely impressed me more than it turned me off. Unlike many Nobel prize winning authors, I don’t think Deledda’s prose is so celebrated for the sake of itself but instead for how well grounded that prose is to create her entire universe of Sardinia. Deledda is more grounded in her particular corner of the world than maybe any writer I’ve ever read. Though I’ve never been to Sardinia (the closest I’ve been is to it’s neighbouring island, Corsica), I felt like I could literally smell the air and feel the dirt. Before I read ‘After the Divorce’, if you’d asked me what I knew about Sardinia and it’s people I’d say virtually nothing, yet while reading it I felt like I truly understood these ordinary Sardinian people and the attitudes and traditions that ruled their lives. For any writer to be capable of giving me such delusions of confidence reflects just how immaculately Deledda manages to represent her home. There may be no other writer that captures such a sense of place as well as Deledda, the only author that comes to mind is Ferrante who likely owes at least a little of this to Deledda’s legacy.
To talk about my biggest criticism of the novel, I need to begin by saying that by the end of the novel I felt incredibly shortchanged by the premise vs the actual novel itself. While I can’t deny that the plot did follow as I was given to believe it would, in terms of the structure and pacing of the story, the description of the story is almost closer to being a mistruth. Though the story is as even I outlined above, none of the major plot really happens until almost the end of the book. Though it would be easy to put my issues with ‘After the Divorce’ being down to this novel being yet another victim of a disappointment born of an over zealous blurb (one of my most common and least favourite complaints that I frustratingly see more and more in modern literature), I do think that even if this weren’t the case, I would’ve ended up somewhat disappointed by the way ‘After the Divorce’ was structured. It wasn’t that the novel until this plot point was bad, I was definitely enjoying it and wouldn’t even describe it as slow, maybe only as laid-back. However part of this enjoyment came from the fact that I believed it to be in service of building to the real meat of the story, that each part was a necessary stepping stone to the real crux of the book. This again isn’t untrue, but unfortunately instead of capitalising on all of this careful work it had done, the novel instead simply ends. What a con.
I think in the end the reason all of this ended up disappointing me so much is that the novel was so good and I wanted so much more from it. Normally this criticism is driven by my own greed, the kind of greed that makes you order dessert when you’re already full from dinner, but instead this felt like someone taking dinner away after only one bite leaving you utterly unsatiated. By the time it got to the part that I had been so looking forward to, and justifiably so because it was by far the deeper, richer part of the novel, it was completely snatched away from me. I felt like I finally reached the top of the mountain and rather being able to enjoy the view I just immediately fell down the other side of it. By the end, Deledda had expertly weaved such a fantastic portrait of a small community with every character fleshed out just enough to have their own fascinatingly conflicting morals and obligations. This made for a stunning set up of a group of people trapped by their traditions, religion, social structures, financial positions. By the time all of these were finally coming to a head against each other, about to collide in a perfect storm that Deledda had meticulously arranged, suddenly the novel was over. There was no time to explore each of these to their fullest or even just sit with what a clever web Deledda had spun. The rug was simply pulled out from under me and that was that. What felt like squandered potential almost offended me more than if the novel just hadn’t been that great. It was certainly harder to stomach. Really, it’s just a shame - I should’ve enjoyed this novel more, the possibility was sitting right there on the page in front of me, unfortunately instead I just ended up sad that I didn’t love it as much as I wanted to. I’d still try another Deledda novel on the strength of all the good I saw in this one, I just hope I won’t feel as bad at the end of that one as this.
The prose itself was generally lovely and unique though not always my personal favourite stylistically, though having said that it definitely impressed me more than it turned me off. Unlike many Nobel prize winning authors, I don’t think Deledda’s prose is so celebrated for the sake of itself but instead for how well grounded that prose is to create her entire universe of Sardinia. Deledda is more grounded in her particular corner of the world than maybe any writer I’ve ever read. Though I’ve never been to Sardinia (the closest I’ve been is to it’s neighbouring island, Corsica), I felt like I could literally smell the air and feel the dirt. Before I read ‘After the Divorce’, if you’d asked me what I knew about Sardinia and it’s people I’d say virtually nothing, yet while reading it I felt like I truly understood these ordinary Sardinian people and the attitudes and traditions that ruled their lives. For any writer to be capable of giving me such delusions of confidence reflects just how immaculately Deledda manages to represent her home. There may be no other writer that captures such a sense of place as well as Deledda, the only author that comes to mind is Ferrante who likely owes at least a little of this to Deledda’s legacy.
To talk about my biggest criticism of the novel, I need to begin by saying that by the end of the novel I felt incredibly shortchanged by the premise vs the actual novel itself. While I can’t deny that the plot did follow as I was given to believe it would, in terms of the structure and pacing of the story, the description of the story is almost closer to being a mistruth. Though the story is as even I outlined above, none of the major plot really happens until almost the end of the book. Though it would be easy to put my issues with ‘After the Divorce’ being down to this novel being yet another victim of a disappointment born of an over zealous blurb (one of my most common and least favourite complaints that I frustratingly see more and more in modern literature), I do think that even if this weren’t the case, I would’ve ended up somewhat disappointed by the way ‘After the Divorce’ was structured. It wasn’t that the novel until this plot point was bad, I was definitely enjoying it and wouldn’t even describe it as slow, maybe only as laid-back. However part of this enjoyment came from the fact that I believed it to be in service of building to the real meat of the story, that each part was a necessary stepping stone to the real crux of the book. This again isn’t untrue, but unfortunately instead of capitalising on all of this careful work it had done, the novel instead simply ends. What a con.
I think in the end the reason all of this ended up disappointing me so much is that the novel was so good and I wanted so much more from it. Normally this criticism is driven by my own greed, the kind of greed that makes you order dessert when you’re already full from dinner, but instead this felt like someone taking dinner away after only one bite leaving you utterly unsatiated. By the time it got to the part that I had been so looking forward to, and justifiably so because it was by far the deeper, richer part of the novel, it was completely snatched away from me. I felt like I finally reached the top of the mountain and rather being able to enjoy the view I just immediately fell down the other side of it. By the end, Deledda had expertly weaved such a fantastic portrait of a small community with every character fleshed out just enough to have their own fascinatingly conflicting morals and obligations. This made for a stunning set up of a group of people trapped by their traditions, religion, social structures, financial positions. By the time all of these were finally coming to a head against each other, about to collide in a perfect storm that Deledda had meticulously arranged, suddenly the novel was over. There was no time to explore each of these to their fullest or even just sit with what a clever web Deledda had spun. The rug was simply pulled out from under me and that was that. What felt like squandered potential almost offended me more than if the novel just hadn’t been that great. It was certainly harder to stomach. Really, it’s just a shame - I should’ve enjoyed this novel more, the possibility was sitting right there on the page in front of me, unfortunately instead I just ended up sad that I didn’t love it as much as I wanted to. I’d still try another Deledda novel on the strength of all the good I saw in this one, I just hope I won’t feel as bad at the end of that one as this.
December 27, 2018
Wow! I didn't know what to make of this little book for a long time until I finally looked at the publishing details and realized this author was writing in the late 19th and early 20th century, and it was obviously translated from Italian.
It's very much of its time and place. The beautiful but remote hills of this part of Italy add to the pathos of the story. It mostly takes place in a tiny remote village and a prison. Once I got used to the rhythm of the book, I really enjoyed it. I started it then put off finishing it for so long that I had to start over. It's only 174 pages so it's a quick read, but very poignant. I'm really glad I read it.
It's very much of its time and place. The beautiful but remote hills of this part of Italy add to the pathos of the story. It mostly takes place in a tiny remote village and a prison. Once I got used to the rhythm of the book, I really enjoyed it. I started it then put off finishing it for so long that I had to start over. It's only 174 pages so it's a quick read, but very poignant. I'm really glad I read it.
March 20, 2018
This tragedy plays out in Deledda's excellent writing like a psychological symphony. Her central questions are: Is divorce a sin and subsequent remarriage, or is it a sin to have relations with your divorced spouse? That is the conundrum. Similarly, do people eventually do the wrong things they are originally falsely accused of doing? I hope not! But it is truly a tragedy when they do.
March 6, 2019
A beautiful, unobtrusive translation
July 17, 2022
Неудачное название у книги убивает всю интригу первой части романа. Книга читается очень легко, если не считать описаний природы Сардинии, тут пришлось посидеть со словарем.
February 10, 2023
Un libro che, me ne sono resa conto solo verso la fine, avevo già letto diversi anni fa, quando uno dei personaggi viene pizzicato dalla tarantola e io ho pensato che, per quanto possibile, era improbabile che Grazia Deledda avesse parlato in due romanzi diversi dei riti tradizionali collegati alla puntura del ragno. Mi ricordo quando ho letto questo libro negli anni '90 che ho pensato a quanto fosse strano che fosse una sarda a spiegarmi tradizioni molto simili a quelle che qui in Salento sono molto vive - forse oggi più di allora, quando ho letto questo romanzo, con la riscoperta della pizzica - anche se devo dire che i ragni sardi non fanno distinzione di sesso, mentre quelli salentini pizzicano più le donne...
Nella mia prima lettura, però, il libro si chiamava Naufraghi in porto, in quanto Deledda lo pubblicò nel 1902, ma poi lo revisionò e aggiunse un epilogo per il mercato americano (che ho riletto dalla mia edizione Mammut di Newton Compton), ripubblicando il romanzo nel 1920 con il nuovo titolo (e, in effetti, il finale della prima edizione è un po' tronco, secondo me).
Deledda immagina che il divorzio, di cui in quegli anni si parlava moltissimo, fosse diventato legittimo in alcuni casi particolari, soprattutto nei casi di condannati all'ergastolo, e inventa questo romanzo di Costantino Ledda - ingiustamente accusato di aver assassinato lo zio - e di Giovanna Era - innamoratissima di lui, ma costretta a divorziare dalle circostanze di povertà in cui si ritrova col figlioletto e dalla madre avida.
Il romanzo voleva essere probabilmente un'opposizione al divorzio, specialmente se veniva accordato solo in circostanze particolari, dimostrando che, nel caso di un inghippo, la situazione poteva divenire davvero ingarbugliata (anche perché poi era difficile poter sciogliere un secondo matrimonio in cui le circostanze particolari non sussistevano). E, naturalmente vuole criticare la giustizia fatta approssimativamente, che condanna un innocente e rovina non solo la sua vita, ma anche quella di tutte le persone che dipendono da lui.
Nella mia prima lettura, però, il libro si chiamava Naufraghi in porto, in quanto Deledda lo pubblicò nel 1902, ma poi lo revisionò e aggiunse un epilogo per il mercato americano (che ho riletto dalla mia edizione Mammut di Newton Compton), ripubblicando il romanzo nel 1920 con il nuovo titolo (e, in effetti, il finale della prima edizione è un po' tronco, secondo me).
Deledda immagina che il divorzio, di cui in quegli anni si parlava moltissimo, fosse diventato legittimo in alcuni casi particolari, soprattutto nei casi di condannati all'ergastolo, e inventa questo romanzo di Costantino Ledda - ingiustamente accusato di aver assassinato lo zio - e di Giovanna Era - innamoratissima di lui, ma costretta a divorziare dalle circostanze di povertà in cui si ritrova col figlioletto e dalla madre avida.
Il romanzo voleva essere probabilmente un'opposizione al divorzio, specialmente se veniva accordato solo in circostanze particolari, dimostrando che, nel caso di un inghippo, la situazione poteva divenire davvero ingarbugliata (anche perché poi era difficile poter sciogliere un secondo matrimonio in cui le circostanze particolari non sussistevano). E, naturalmente vuole criticare la giustizia fatta approssimativamente, che condanna un innocente e rovina non solo la sua vita, ma anche quella di tutte le persone che dipendono da lui.
May 26, 2025
Interesting to read while I am traveling in Sardinië and visited the places and the landscapes where the story takes place. Easy to imagine what it was like living here in those days. The poverty and the way people live so close together, judging, gossiping and constantly cursing each other.
March 5, 2023
Diretto e disperato, la scelta di una donna che non ha scelta, l'ingiustizia dell'ignoranza e la difficoltà del perdono.
Perdersi tra i paesaggi di una Sardegna antica e ancestrale fino a respirare l'aria opprimente delle estati torride accompagnate dallo sguardo altrettanto pungente dei paesani.
Consigliatissimo per chi ama la scrittura della Deledda e vuole immergersi nelle sue atmosfere, ambientazioni e tematiche, profondamente sociali ma soprattutto umane.
Perdersi tra i paesaggi di una Sardegna antica e ancestrale fino a respirare l'aria opprimente delle estati torride accompagnate dallo sguardo altrettanto pungente dei paesani.
Consigliatissimo per chi ama la scrittura della Deledda e vuole immergersi nelle sue atmosfere, ambientazioni e tematiche, profondamente sociali ma soprattutto umane.
May 29, 2019
This novel is an interesting mix between juicy scandal and cautionary tale. While the details of the story seem a little overwrought now, I can see how it would have housewives in a tizzy back when it was published. However the constant religious overtones pull it out of daytime soap territory in a way that I personally found somewhat mismatched.
What it succeeds in best is being a readable and compelling portrait of its time, like a character study of a decade. That's not usually something I can hold an interest in (maybe because those are usually about the 70s for some reason?) but this was an interesting, quick read despite its heavy subject and scope.
What it doesn't succeed at so much is building relatable characters. They all feel a little exaggerated and cartoonish and would seem more at home in some form of satire than in such a serious story. Because of this (and the constant self-flagellation (see religious overtones)) it was hard for me to feel strongly for anyone. Every time something happens they jump into these big dramatic "woe is me" monologues and it's like Okay, you got enough feelings about this for both of us.
In conclusion, while I didn't enjoy it in the way one wants to enjoy a juicy book about a controversial divorce, or a book with compelling story and characters, I do feel like I learned something and in the end I'm glad a read it, I feel like I expanded my horizons by doing so.
That sounds a little harsher than I intended. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm on the positive side of ambivalent about this book. Like, it's more something you'd be forced to read in a Lit class, but it's one of the ones you wouldn't mind having to read.
I like that better. That's my summary.
What it succeeds in best is being a readable and compelling portrait of its time, like a character study of a decade. That's not usually something I can hold an interest in (maybe because those are usually about the 70s for some reason?) but this was an interesting, quick read despite its heavy subject and scope.
What it doesn't succeed at so much is building relatable characters. They all feel a little exaggerated and cartoonish and would seem more at home in some form of satire than in such a serious story. Because of this (and the constant self-flagellation (see religious overtones)) it was hard for me to feel strongly for anyone. Every time something happens they jump into these big dramatic "woe is me" monologues and it's like Okay, you got enough feelings about this for both of us.
In conclusion, while I didn't enjoy it in the way one wants to enjoy a juicy book about a controversial divorce, or a book with compelling story and characters, I do feel like I learned something and in the end I'm glad a read it, I feel like I expanded my horizons by doing so.
That sounds a little harsher than I intended. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm on the positive side of ambivalent about this book. Like, it's more something you'd be forced to read in a Lit class, but it's one of the ones you wouldn't mind having to read.
I like that better. That's my summary.
April 28, 2020
I read this in my quest to read all female Nobel Laureates who wrote/write prose.
This one is from around 1910 - and it shows. It is well written, and the story is told through the characters quite well. But it feels old fashioned. And it felt like a much longer read. Maybe it was the translation, it wasn't available in German, so I had to read the English translation of the Italian original.
Also, it was quite depressing. Seems that books that are to be considered "literature" need to be downers. There can be no fun had. It has to be hard work to read them, it seems.
What I also didn't really see is, the reflection of rural Sardinian life - one of the reasons for the Nobel prize. It would have been difficult in this very short novel anyway to pack too much backstory in.
It was not a bad read, but it would also not encourage me to read anything by this author again, as it felt like work.
I have to confess that I expected at least some humor in it, given the title. But ok, my mistake.
This one is from around 1910 - and it shows. It is well written, and the story is told through the characters quite well. But it feels old fashioned. And it felt like a much longer read. Maybe it was the translation, it wasn't available in German, so I had to read the English translation of the Italian original.
Also, it was quite depressing. Seems that books that are to be considered "literature" need to be downers. There can be no fun had. It has to be hard work to read them, it seems.
What I also didn't really see is, the reflection of rural Sardinian life - one of the reasons for the Nobel prize. It would have been difficult in this very short novel anyway to pack too much backstory in.
It was not a bad read, but it would also not encourage me to read anything by this author again, as it felt like work.
I have to confess that I expected at least some humor in it, given the title. But ok, my mistake.
August 16, 2017
Interesting story. About 100 years ago in Sardinia, a man and woman are in love and get married. A shirt time later, the man is convicted of murdering his uncle and sentenced to life in prison. However, a short time earlier, the Italian government padded a law that says if your husband is entranced to life in prison, a wide may divorce her husband.
Everyone in town is shocked when the womsn gets a divorce because even if the law says you can divorce, they all believe that divorce is a sin against God. Anyhow, she is posited by her mother and dies it, and then marries the neighbor, who has been in love with her since childhood. She is desperately unhappy as she doesn't love her new husband and he and his mother do not treat her well.
Interesting to be thinking about marriage, the law and religion, in light of the marriage debate going on back home in Australia right now.
Everyone in town is shocked when the womsn gets a divorce because even if the law says you can divorce, they all believe that divorce is a sin against God. Anyhow, she is posited by her mother and dies it, and then marries the neighbor, who has been in love with her since childhood. She is desperately unhappy as she doesn't love her new husband and he and his mother do not treat her well.
Interesting to be thinking about marriage, the law and religion, in light of the marriage debate going on back home in Australia right now.
June 11, 2018
I think this will have had more impact when it was originally published. Set in Sardinia at the turn of the 20th century, the story is about a poor woman using a recently passed divorce law when her first husband is sentenced to a crime, entering in to a second unhappy marriage and then starting an affair with her first husband on his release. In a conservative Catholic country at this time, it must have been quite shocking but today it has lost that lustre. The author was praised on winning the Nobel Prize for 'writing with depth and sympathy....with human problems' which I can definitely see in this one as there is no moral judgement passed on any of the characters, just a story about the decisions people have to make to survive.
June 23, 2020
Italians and Armenians have some unique similarity of mindset, that's for sure. And the Nobel laureate Italian writer Grace Deledda once again proved this.
'After the Divorce' perhaps is the first published work from the author in Armenian. It's a tragic story of a couple living in Sardinia. It all begins with the husband's conviction for the murder of his uncle and. According to Italian law, in such cases, wives allowed to divorce without the consent of their husbands. From this moment, religion stands between fate and society.
Although the way of thinking, ethics, and mentality of the novel's characters today may be pretty irrelevant, it's another opportunity to discover how people were and lived a century ago.
'After the Divorce' perhaps is the first published work from the author in Armenian. It's a tragic story of a couple living in Sardinia. It all begins with the husband's conviction for the murder of his uncle and. According to Italian law, in such cases, wives allowed to divorce without the consent of their husbands. From this moment, religion stands between fate and society.
Although the way of thinking, ethics, and mentality of the novel's characters today may be pretty irrelevant, it's another opportunity to discover how people were and lived a century ago.
December 31, 2021
Nobel Prize winner Grazia Deledda uses the harsh Sardinian landscape as the backdrop for this short novel. It is a metaphor for the harsh circumstances and difficulties the characters in the story face. Constantino is convicted of the murder of his uncle, a crime he did not commit. But, he keeps his hope alive and his love for his wife, Giavanni. However, his wife, at the urging of her mother and the abject poverty she lives in, marries another man. When the real murderer confesses, Constantino is released and this is where the novel delves into the moral issues of jealousy to the point of obsession, rage and hopelessness, leading to the inevitable violent ending.
November 22, 2011
Grazia Deledda was the second Italian and the second woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. I can see what the Swedes like about her; the spartan houses and goat pastures of her native Sardinia seem Scandinavian in their harshness. The plot turns on a law that allowed women to divorce convicts. So the central pair is married civilly, not in the church, and is sent to prison for a crime he did not commit. The overpowering sense of fate is redeemed by the unforgettable sense of place and a vivid cast of characters.
May 24, 2012
I recently discovered this writer was the second woman to win the Nobel Prize for literature in 1926 or thereabouts. She is from Sardinia and there are dozens of other books written by her, which I am excited about.
I chose this book for "pleasure reading" just because it looked interesting and I had never heard of the author. It was a good choice. I am not sure if this is her best work, though. My guess would be no, but I could be incorrect.
I chose this book for "pleasure reading" just because it looked interesting and I had never heard of the author. It was a good choice. I am not sure if this is her best work, though. My guess would be no, but I could be incorrect.
November 30, 2020
I didn't find this book especially good, though I was interested in seeing how it ended. I couldn't really empathize with any of the characters. On the basis of this book alone, it's hard to see how the author was awarded the Nobel prize. (Caveat: I listened to most of the book, via Librivox https://librivox.org/after-the-divorc... (though I read a small part, using the Gutenberg text). The quality of the reading on Librivox is quite good).
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