Idiots in Paris: Diaries of J.G. Bennett and Elizabeth Bennett, 1949

by J.G. Bennett

Book by John G. Bennett, Elizabeth Bennett

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Spirituality

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 2, 2012

About the author

John Godolphin Bennett (8 June 1897 – 13 December 1974) was a British mathematician, scientist, technologist, industrial research director and author. He is perhaps best known for his many books on psychology and spirituality, particularly on the teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff. Bennett met Gurdjieff in Istanbul in October 1920 and later helped to co-ordinate the work of Gurdjieff in England after Gurdjieff's arrival in Paris. He also was active in starting the British section of the Subud movement, and co-founded its British headquarters.

Reviews

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

*3.5 stars*

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The memoirs of the Bennetts in Paris with Gurdjieff the last three months before his death are smart, stylish, and chock full of stories of life with Mr. G. John Bennett was a mathematician, with an analytical frame of mind, very solemn about everything. Meanwhile, Elizabeth,who would one day become Mr. B's wife, had suffered a "slight nervous breakdown," and had come to Paris to be with Gurdjieff.

Most of the book centers around the magnificent meals in Gurdjieff's flat on the Rue des Colonels Renard, where persons of virtually every description from Russian emigres to British socialites would crowd the rooms to partake in the Toast of the Idiots, the music from Gurdjieff's harmonium, and readings from his (then) as-yet published manuscripts. These diary entries were written only for the personal recollection of the writers, but as interwoven as a tapestry, they present a revealing glimpse into the society of Gurdjieff and his students.

[Scot · Rating 3 out of 5]

Certainly not an intro text to either Gurdjieff or Bennett and not one you should pick up unless you are deep into the canon and interested in the biography and first-person accounts of working with Gurdjieff.

That said, the first half is filled with quite interesting and useful self-observation from JG Bennett that helped me get both a deeper impression of his work and the place he played in the overall Work. The second half which was only from Elizabeth's diary, was also quite interesting from a more personal perspective of someone who was in the inner circle for the final months of Mr Gurdjieff's life.

Recommended for anyone that is quite familiar with GI Gurdjieff's work and especially those interested in his final years post-WW II.

[Frederik · Rating 4 out of 5]

The diary is mostly Elizabeth's. It gives a lively insight in the late Paris years of Gurdjieff. Highly recommended for the seasoned worky.

[Mark Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is G. I. Bennett’s account of living with G. I. Gurdjieff, a mystic, writer and teacher and fellow Fourth Way students including his wife, Elizabeth in Paris at Fountainbleau. The toast mentioned by in the title was done in the evening. George Gurdjieff would go through each of his students sitting at the dinner table and lay into them that they were “this” kind of Idiot.

This is my favourite Fourth Way Book.

[Djiezes]

on G.I. Gurdjieff