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Leli ta' Ħaż-Żgħir
Leli ta' Ħaż-Żgħir huwa rumanz psikoloġiku, l-ewwel wieħed tal-ġeneru tiegħu li qatt inkiteb fil-Letteratura Maltija, kapulavur letterarju ta’ Ellul Mercer.
Fih l-awtur iħares lejn l-injoranza bħala dik li twassal għall-isfruttament. Biex wieħed jevita dan, kellu jiftaħ moħħu. Il-karattru prinċipali tal-ktieb, Leli, jispiċċa dejjem aktar soċjalment maqtugħ iktar ma jiftaħ moħħu għax f'Ħaż-Żgħir il-ħajja kienet tibqa’ sejra mingħajr ma wieħed jieqaf biex jaħseb u jirrifletti.
Fid-dlam intellettwali ta' Ħaż-Żgħir, in-nies ma tifhimx lil Leli u tgħaddih ta’ wieħed miġnun.
Dan ix-xogħol ta' Ellul Mercer huwa kritika qawwija tal-istat tal-biki li kienet fih is-soċjeta’ Maltija fis-snin ta' qabel it-Tieni Gwerra Dinjija. Kienet teżisti kriżi soċjali li żviluppat f'waħda psikoloġika, spiritwali u reliġjuża.
F'Leli ta' Ħaż-Żgħir Ġuże Ellul Mercer jagħti ħarsa lejn Malta kif tidher fil-kuxjenza ta’ bniedem intelliġenti u sensittiv li jfittex fl-ambjent ta’ madwaru biex imbagħad jidħol fih innifsu mgħobbi bil-konklużjonijiet li kważi ma jikkonkludux.
Ir-rumanz hu mixja lejn it-tajjeb fis-soċjetà u lejn il-kalma fir-ruħ. L-Iżolament tal-karattru, maqtugħ mid-dinja, hu l-aħħar kelma ta’ l-awtur imħasseb.
Fih l-awtur iħares lejn l-injoranza bħala dik li twassal għall-isfruttament. Biex wieħed jevita dan, kellu jiftaħ moħħu. Il-karattru prinċipali tal-ktieb, Leli, jispiċċa dejjem aktar soċjalment maqtugħ iktar ma jiftaħ moħħu għax f'Ħaż-Żgħir il-ħajja kienet tibqa’ sejra mingħajr ma wieħed jieqaf biex jaħseb u jirrifletti.
Fid-dlam intellettwali ta' Ħaż-Żgħir, in-nies ma tifhimx lil Leli u tgħaddih ta’ wieħed miġnun.
Dan ix-xogħol ta' Ellul Mercer huwa kritika qawwija tal-istat tal-biki li kienet fih is-soċjeta’ Maltija fis-snin ta' qabel it-Tieni Gwerra Dinjija. Kienet teżisti kriżi soċjali li żviluppat f'waħda psikoloġika, spiritwali u reliġjuża.
F'Leli ta' Ħaż-Żgħir Ġuże Ellul Mercer jagħti ħarsa lejn Malta kif tidher fil-kuxjenza ta’ bniedem intelliġenti u sensittiv li jfittex fl-ambjent ta’ madwaru biex imbagħad jidħol fih innifsu mgħobbi bil-konklużjonijiet li kważi ma jikkonkludux.
Ir-rumanz hu mixja lejn it-tajjeb fis-soċjetà u lejn il-kalma fir-ruħ. L-Iżolament tal-karattru, maqtugħ mid-dinja, hu l-aħħar kelma ta’ l-awtur imħasseb.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 5, 2017
Dan ir-rumanz qrajtu darbtejn. L-ewwel darba ħafna snin ilu. Niftakar kont affaxxinajt ruħi b'Leli għax kont ammirajtu għall-fatt li ntilef wara l-qari u ħassejt li Ellul Mercer ried ilaqqa' lill-qarrejja tiegħu ma' qari ieħor ferm iżjed avventuruż. It-tieni darba li qrajtu ħassejtni xort'oħra. Bqajt inżomm il-fatt li Ellul Mercer kien qed jikteb fl-ewwel nofs tas-seklu l-ieħor u l-istorja ambjentaha fil-bidu tas-seklu, fi żmien il-Gwerra l-Kbira. Ftit taż-żmien ilu għamilt perjodu nqalleb fil-Melitensia qalb gazzetti ta' dak iż-żmien u ma stajtx ma nimmeraviljax ruħi bil-ħakma li kellha l-Knisja Kattolika fuq il-ħajja soċjali tal-Maltin. Kont naf li hekk kien imma meta taqra bħal qisek tidħol f'dinja oħra, fil-ħajja Maltija tal-bidu tas-seklu, u tkexkixt. Il-Maltin kienu maħkuma mill-biża' aktar milli fidi matura. Għalhekk qrajt dan ir-rumanz b'għarfien aktar korrett ta' kif kienet il-mentalità.
L-ammirazzjoni li ħassejt fil-ġibda li kellu Leli għall-qari din id-darba daret f'mistoqsija dwar x'kien l-iskop ta' Ellul Mercer f'li jbiddel lil Leli minn bniedem maħbub għal bniedem mqit li tilef il-fidi u l-pożittività fil-ħajja. Fis-sens ma nistax nifhem x'kellu f'moħħu Ellul Mercer. X'ried juri? Li għax taqra mela titlef il-fidi u titlef moħħok? Jew Leli tilef moħħu għax minbarra li kien qed jaqra kotba li skont il-mentalità ta' dak iż-żmien, ma kinux tajbin, kien ittradixxa lil martu u allura dawn l-elementi kollha flimkien wassluh fejn wassluh? X'ried iwassal kittieb li kien qed jikteb fl-ewwel nofs tas-seklu għoxrin? Kieku jien kont qarrejja f'dak iż-żmien x'kont naħseb? Li rrid noqgħod attenta x'naqra għax inkella nitlef il-fidi? Allura dan hu messaġġ pożittiv vis a vis il-qari? Jew inkella ried jiżra' ż-żerriegħa tal-ħsieb li hemm barra hemm kotba li jekk naqrahom se nasal biex nibda naħseb għal rasi u nista' nitbiegħed mill-fiduċja f'min jgħidli fuq min ħalaqni u lil min għandi nrodd ta' din il-ħajja? U allura jekk naqra se niftaħ moħħi imma nirriskja li nitlef xi ħaġa oħra?
Saru diversi studji dwar dan ir-rumanz u ninsab ħerqana biex naqrahom ħalli nkun nista' nifforma opinjoni aktar sħiħa. Żgur li Ellul Mercer kien qed jikteb differenti mill-kittieba kontemporanji tiegħu u jidher li kien qed joħroġ miz-zona komda u jiżra' ħsieb fil-qarrejja ta' żmienu li jmur lil hinn minn dak li kienu mistennijin jagħmlu, jiġifieri li "jaħsbu".
L-ammirazzjoni li ħassejt fil-ġibda li kellu Leli għall-qari din id-darba daret f'mistoqsija dwar x'kien l-iskop ta' Ellul Mercer f'li jbiddel lil Leli minn bniedem maħbub għal bniedem mqit li tilef il-fidi u l-pożittività fil-ħajja. Fis-sens ma nistax nifhem x'kellu f'moħħu Ellul Mercer. X'ried juri? Li għax taqra mela titlef il-fidi u titlef moħħok? Jew Leli tilef moħħu għax minbarra li kien qed jaqra kotba li skont il-mentalità ta' dak iż-żmien, ma kinux tajbin, kien ittradixxa lil martu u allura dawn l-elementi kollha flimkien wassluh fejn wassluh? X'ried iwassal kittieb li kien qed jikteb fl-ewwel nofs tas-seklu għoxrin? Kieku jien kont qarrejja f'dak iż-żmien x'kont naħseb? Li rrid noqgħod attenta x'naqra għax inkella nitlef il-fidi? Allura dan hu messaġġ pożittiv vis a vis il-qari? Jew inkella ried jiżra' ż-żerriegħa tal-ħsieb li hemm barra hemm kotba li jekk naqrahom se nasal biex nibda naħseb għal rasi u nista' nitbiegħed mill-fiduċja f'min jgħidli fuq min ħalaqni u lil min għandi nrodd ta' din il-ħajja? U allura jekk naqra se niftaħ moħħi imma nirriskja li nitlef xi ħaġa oħra?
Saru diversi studji dwar dan ir-rumanz u ninsab ħerqana biex naqrahom ħalli nkun nista' nifforma opinjoni aktar sħiħa. Żgur li Ellul Mercer kien qed jikteb differenti mill-kittieba kontemporanji tiegħu u jidher li kien qed joħroġ miz-zona komda u jiżra' ħsieb fil-qarrejja ta' żmienu li jmur lil hinn minn dak li kienu mistennijin jagħmlu, jiġifieri li "jaħsbu".
July 28, 2013
4 or 4.5 out of 5 stars
Thought provoking! It must have been a very disturbing read as it was published at a time when the politico-religious crisis was still present... In fact, the philosophical side of this book mainly deals with the conflict between faith and reason.
Thought provoking! It must have been a very disturbing read as it was published at a time when the politico-religious crisis was still present... In fact, the philosophical side of this book mainly deals with the conflict between faith and reason.
January 5, 2019
I read another book in Maltese! This is a huge accomplishment for me, because you’re lucky if I read one book in Maltese in a year. But two?! That’s incredible!
All joking aside, I enjoyed this a lot more than I enjoyed reading ‘Inez Farrug’, for a lot of reasons.
First of all, this book had writing that was just more realistic and beautiful. There were moments were I was just sitting there absorbing the language that Ellul Mercer uses, enjoying his wordsmithing. He has a way with words in our language that makes it sound better than it actually is. I found a lot of quote-worthy moments in this book, as you will see below.
Secondly, the plot was incredibly well paced. I hate comparing books, especially when they come from two completely different times in literature’s history, but the difference between this book and ‘Inez Farrug’ was incredibly marked. This book had a plot that I could see develop, while the other book was just simple a very long wait for a very dry ending. While this book’s ending was far from happy – as I will explain later – there was still a plot that grew as the story went on.
Finally, I enjoyed seeing what passed off as scandalous in the 1930s. My father told me that when this book was first published, it caused a huge uproar because it was so controversial. I didn’t know what he meant while I was reading it, but now that I have, I can see what he means. While the topics the book deals with wouldn’t seem so bad today, they were a huge deal at the time.
So, without further ado…
The book focuses on Leli, a young man who’s loved by everyone in his little village. He’s smart, and his mother wants him to be a priest. He wants to read as many books as he can and marry the love of his life. He’s a simple boy with a simple life – he works for his money, he respects people, he likes to read, and he loves his girlfriend (and eventual wife). But, of course, Leli is very much a tragic hero.
One of Leli’s closest friends is an older gentleman who lends him the books that he reads. This older gentleman is the village outcast – he doesn’t believe in God or religion. Leli doesn’t let this stop them from being friends and respecting each other, but soon he start to see the man’s influence rub off onto Leli, who starts to see the world as the old man does. He soon stops believing in God as well, seeing no point in Religion and becoming more and more distant from the church. This, for the time, would have been an incredibly big deal – religion is still entrenched deeply in Malta’s culture; you can only imagine who deep it was in the 1930s.
Leli soon suffers through the throes of World War One with his family as they experience the loss of his older brother. His married life goes down the drain when he not only cheats on his wife, but also becomes abusive. He becomes a recluse, and eventually even descends into depression (though what they call it is an ‘illness of the mind’), which the village pastor claims is because he has become so distant from God. Leli ends the novel as a lonely old man, with no children, and a wife who is trying very hard to love him like she used to. He does not get his happy ending, by the end of the book, you don’t really feel he deserves one anyway.
My only criticism of this book was the fact that it seemed to imply that reading led to a loss of faith, which I disagree with. I am not a religious person (far from it), but I know quite a few people who are, who enjoy reading works on philosophy and psychology and all these other topics that sometimes contradict religion. They have retained their faith and are still highly intelligent people, so I don’t see why the book would suggest that something as joyful as reading – something that is supposed to give us knowledge – could lead to us losing touch with religion. Apart from that, however, the book is wonderfully written, wonderfully paced, and very worth the read.
Final rating: 4/5.
All joking aside, I enjoyed this a lot more than I enjoyed reading ‘Inez Farrug’, for a lot of reasons.
First of all, this book had writing that was just more realistic and beautiful. There were moments were I was just sitting there absorbing the language that Ellul Mercer uses, enjoying his wordsmithing. He has a way with words in our language that makes it sound better than it actually is. I found a lot of quote-worthy moments in this book, as you will see below.
Secondly, the plot was incredibly well paced. I hate comparing books, especially when they come from two completely different times in literature’s history, but the difference between this book and ‘Inez Farrug’ was incredibly marked. This book had a plot that I could see develop, while the other book was just simple a very long wait for a very dry ending. While this book’s ending was far from happy – as I will explain later – there was still a plot that grew as the story went on.
Finally, I enjoyed seeing what passed off as scandalous in the 1930s. My father told me that when this book was first published, it caused a huge uproar because it was so controversial. I didn’t know what he meant while I was reading it, but now that I have, I can see what he means. While the topics the book deals with wouldn’t seem so bad today, they were a huge deal at the time.
So, without further ado…
The book focuses on Leli, a young man who’s loved by everyone in his little village. He’s smart, and his mother wants him to be a priest. He wants to read as many books as he can and marry the love of his life. He’s a simple boy with a simple life – he works for his money, he respects people, he likes to read, and he loves his girlfriend (and eventual wife). But, of course, Leli is very much a tragic hero.
One of Leli’s closest friends is an older gentleman who lends him the books that he reads. This older gentleman is the village outcast – he doesn’t believe in God or religion. Leli doesn’t let this stop them from being friends and respecting each other, but soon he start to see the man’s influence rub off onto Leli, who starts to see the world as the old man does. He soon stops believing in God as well, seeing no point in Religion and becoming more and more distant from the church. This, for the time, would have been an incredibly big deal – religion is still entrenched deeply in Malta’s culture; you can only imagine who deep it was in the 1930s.
Leli soon suffers through the throes of World War One with his family as they experience the loss of his older brother. His married life goes down the drain when he not only cheats on his wife, but also becomes abusive. He becomes a recluse, and eventually even descends into depression (though what they call it is an ‘illness of the mind’), which the village pastor claims is because he has become so distant from God. Leli ends the novel as a lonely old man, with no children, and a wife who is trying very hard to love him like she used to. He does not get his happy ending, by the end of the book, you don’t really feel he deserves one anyway.
My only criticism of this book was the fact that it seemed to imply that reading led to a loss of faith, which I disagree with. I am not a religious person (far from it), but I know quite a few people who are, who enjoy reading works on philosophy and psychology and all these other topics that sometimes contradict religion. They have retained their faith and are still highly intelligent people, so I don’t see why the book would suggest that something as joyful as reading – something that is supposed to give us knowledge – could lead to us losing touch with religion. Apart from that, however, the book is wonderfully written, wonderfully paced, and very worth the read.
Final rating: 4/5.
November 22, 2017
Having read this novel as part of my formal education in the Maltese Literature, I may not have appreciated at the time the insight that the author used within his storytelling. I was fortunate enough to have a tutor that excelled in explaining the subtleties of meaning.
From time to time, I recall these messages and confirm how more actual they become as superficial education overcomes knowledge in a tick box society.
From time to time, I recall these messages and confirm how more actual they become as superficial education overcomes knowledge in a tick box society.
November 5, 2019
Excellent book!
March 29, 2023
Ir-rumanz ghandu l-limiti tieghu (fl-opinijoni tieghi), imma jibqa' interessanti hafna biex tara l-Malti, lil Maltin u lil Malta ta' dak iz-zmien.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews