What do you think?
Rate this book
La Missione
In order to come to terms with his violent past, soldier-of-fortune Rodrigo Mendoza joins forces with a priest, Father Gabriel, leader of a Jesuit mission deep in the South American jungle, to battle ruthless slave traders preying on the innocent Guarani natives
254 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
4 people are currently reading
185 people want to read
About the author
Robert Bolt
75 books48 followersFrom IMDB.com:
Son of a small shopkeeper, he attended Manchester Grammar School. He later said that he made poor uses of his opportunities there. He went to work in an insurance office, but later entered Manchester University, taking a degree in History. A post-graduate year at Exeter University led to a schoolmaster's position, first at a village school in Devon, then for seven years at Millfield. During this time he wrote a dozen radio plays, which were broadcast. Encouraged by the London success of his stage play "Flowering Cherry" he left teaching for full-time writing. 1960 saw two of his plays ("The Tiger And The Horse" and "A Man For All Seasons") running concurrently in the West End.
Son of a small shopkeeper, he attended Manchester Grammar School. He later said that he made poor uses of his opportunities there. He went to work in an insurance office, but later entered Manchester University, taking a degree in History. A post-graduate year at Exeter University led to a schoolmaster's position, first at a village school in Devon, then for seven years at Millfield. During this time he wrote a dozen radio plays, which were broadcast. Encouraged by the London success of his stage play "Flowering Cherry" he left teaching for full-time writing. 1960 saw two of his plays ("The Tiger And The Horse" and "A Man For All Seasons") running concurrently in the West End.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
June 8, 2017
Embedded in historical realities, based on facts The Mission is a multilayered and complex story. On one level it deals with passion, unrequited love and jealousy that led to the crime . On the other level it’s about greed, pride and conviction that our, the white people, views and faith are better and only right, and that with fire and sword one have right, duty even to convert others and bend them to our will. Finally it’s a story about cynicism, lack of scruples and choice of lesser evil though it feels more like betrayal. Set in XVIII century is a tale about Santa Croce where Jesuits undertook a civilization mission to convert Guarani tribes to Christianity and by the way to protect them from turning into slaves.
This novel has a number of well-formed characters but is built mainly on two strong personalities. Rodrigo Mendoza is probably the more tragic and complex character. Early orphaned, in the age of fourteen needs to take care of little brother so he joins to soldiers of fortune hunting for Indians. He’s inflexible and violent and his first murder only gives him a feeling of amazement at the ease of that deed. But even then we believe that he is doing everything for Philip, for his brother could become everything Mendoza would never be. And when Mendoza falls in love with Carlotta, we also believe, despite his impetuosity and tainted hands that he would like a peaceful and sweet solace in love.
The other significant figure is Irishman, father Gabriel. Firstly Rodrigo's opponent, later his mentor. He’s a dedicated priest and evangelic missionary though his way to win the hearts and minds of savages leads through music, acceptance of the other and kindness. Observing Mendoza’s struggling father Gabriel finds it true and just but at some point seems to sense that he overestimated power and curing effect of that hardship since Mendoza feels there is no penance hard enough to expiate his crime. There is something ultimate and challenging in his attitude. Sometimes it feels more like death wish rather than seeking for redemption.
And finally we have Cardinal Altamirano, the papal emmisary, whose role seems to be the most difficult: he must assess whether the mission is right, considering the unwillingness of the Portugese to Jesuits and the desire to relegate the Order. Altamirano must weigh whether the newly converted Indians are worthy of the sacrifice of the entire Order, especially since there is strong demand to unrestricted access to slaves. Well, despite the whole complexity of the problem we know what his decision will be, don't we ?
When the Spaniards after some string-pulling and behind-the –scenes machinations sell finally to Portuguese the land on which the mission stands, the choice seems small. Prayer and confidences in divine providence or active resistance. It is easy to guess the moral choices of the main characters. Old habits die hard and everyone will do what they can and feel best. Gabriel's hands will carry the cross. Rodrigo's hands didn't forget the weight of his faithful once weapon.
In my memory this story lives thanks to Rolland Joffe's movie. The breathtaking views of the Iguassu waterfalls, the music of Ennio Morricone, that he did not get an Oscar for it it’s quite incomprehensible to me, and for Robert de Niro. He’s a great actor, truly chameleon and his performance of Rodrigo Mendoza, firstly uncontrollable leader of the mercenaries and the tormentor of the Indians and his gradually change of heart, his grief but no pricks of conscience, his penance that feels as defiant and violent as his previous actions, his wrestling with God, finally his approach to people he used to hunt for, felt very convincing.
You can look at The Mission as a kind of morality, record of the eternal struggles of the church with the state and the emerging capitalism. Like the parable of people involved in political plots and machinations. Father Gabriel committed an unforgivable sin, he ventured into the jungle to create the Garden of Eden. So for him there is no place in such a world. Rodrigo Mendoza found peace in the jungle, and in the life of the monks something of the simplicity of the soldier's order. So it will also be taken from him. The Indians, though converted and baptised, will scatter and return to the jungle to become a wild game again. The Jesuit Order will survive.
Such is the world. Or maybe we have made it thus ?
Read
August 3, 2011Well written, placed as historical fiction in the troublesome period of the destruction of the Jesuit order in the eighteenth century. The Jesuits are unflatteringly described as worldly men playing politics and influencing the policies of the Christian kings. This is done objectively by placing the history in the thoughts of despots of the Enlightenment, such as the infamous Marques de Pombal, whose hatred for the Church can be seen in the words and acts of today's European policy makers.
The Church is portrayed very well, with innocent priests working to protect the Brasilian natives from exploitation in the slave-trade in a situation which tries their own faith and sometimes destroys it, while their superiors and including the Pope cautiously make deals with the new political order already arising. This is the period when Europe begins to look less and less Christian and the liberal spirit of revolution is taking hold.
If the movie was good, the book is even better. The main character of the Irish Jesuit Fr. Gabriel is excellent; he quite represents the missionary spirit that history records of the brave priests that took to the furthest reaches of the new Empires to convert the pagans to Christianity. The author describes plainly how the Church and her missionaries were *used* by the slave-traders and the greedy political enterprise to present a tame visage to the natives before they moved in to capture territory and people.
I appreciate the way the direct speech is formulated in the book, almost as if it is a translation from the Spanish. I'll give the book four stars and the Jesuit vocations video five.
The Church is portrayed very well, with innocent priests working to protect the Brasilian natives from exploitation in the slave-trade in a situation which tries their own faith and sometimes destroys it, while their superiors and including the Pope cautiously make deals with the new political order already arising. This is the period when Europe begins to look less and less Christian and the liberal spirit of revolution is taking hold.
If the movie was good, the book is even better. The main character of the Irish Jesuit Fr. Gabriel is excellent; he quite represents the missionary spirit that history records of the brave priests that took to the furthest reaches of the new Empires to convert the pagans to Christianity. The author describes plainly how the Church and her missionaries were *used* by the slave-traders and the greedy political enterprise to present a tame visage to the natives before they moved in to capture territory and people.
I appreciate the way the direct speech is formulated in the book, almost as if it is a translation from the Spanish. I'll give the book four stars and the Jesuit vocations video five.
March 6, 2014
From the same pen as A Man for All Seasons:
Father Gabriel ascends the mountains of Brazil to bring christianity to the natives. He is successful and brings about a golden age among them. Mendoza, a slaver, kills his brother in a fit of rage, and only Fr. Gabriel's guidance prevents his suicide. Gabriel brings Mendoza to work at his mission with the natives, and Mendoza finds peace and asks to become a priest. The church , under pressure, cedes the land to the Portuguese which will allow slavers in again. Mendoza breaks his vows and organizes the natives to resist while Gabriel warns him to help them as a priest.
Father Gabriel ascends the mountains of Brazil to bring christianity to the natives. He is successful and brings about a golden age among them. Mendoza, a slaver, kills his brother in a fit of rage, and only Fr. Gabriel's guidance prevents his suicide. Gabriel brings Mendoza to work at his mission with the natives, and Mendoza finds peace and asks to become a priest. The church , under pressure, cedes the land to the Portuguese which will allow slavers in again. Mendoza breaks his vows and organizes the natives to resist while Gabriel warns him to help them as a priest.
April 4, 2020
A beautiful story. It felt like two books. Parts one and two were fast-paced and where most of the action took place, parts three and four exposed all the politics at play, and part five tied both stories together. In some parts it could have definitely slowed down and drawn some scenes out, but the whole book was hard to put down. I have just begun the film and already it is quite different. A beautiful story indeed.
July 5, 2023
This book is so baffling that I've been inspired to leave my first Goodreads review.
The necessary context here is that The Mission was written as a movie, by playwright and screenwriter Robert Bolt, that I can only assume was well into production by the time this version went to press. The resulting book has an engaging enough plot to give it structural integrity (albeit one that feels constrained to a two hour cinematic runtime), but little else to convince the reader that a novel was more than a free token of goodwill in a marketing executive's package.
I have not seen the film, but perhaps this is the natural result of sending a storyteller who is accustomed to collaboration out alone. With no set and costume designers, we are left with thin, scattered references to what people and places actually look like. The jungle - meant to serve as a punishing context for heroism and feats of strength - is passive and quiet. With no acting and directing to breathe life into the dialogue, it reads mechanical and undressed. Each spoken sentence is simply the shortest possible line between two plot points.
I grabbed this book because I get a kick out of trashy Christian media, and the cover seemed promising in that regard. But a chapter or two in I realized I had never once been exposed to trashy Catholic media. The ideological framework is premodern: while we get a critique of money and self-interest as the engine of the slave trade, the favoured alternative is pious devotion and obedience to a traditional church hierarchy. Bourgeois colonialism is cold and cruel; Christian colonialism is at least kind and protective.
As a part of this archaic framing, Bolt's worldbuilding occasionally demonstrates a more mature understanding of the unique and unstable relationships of power during this time period. A high-level Portuguese advisor recognizes and envies the early stirrings of capital on a trip to England, and plans to crack open the Jesuit missions for more slave trading and possible mining. A few lines of dialogue early in the book indicate that, contrary to the expectations of the Jesuit, the Guarani who live above the falls only have a chief in wartime (though this breath of fresh air is later muddled when one of them usurps the shaman and starts making unilateral decisions without explanation).
Unfortunately, the portrayal of the Guarani is where this text becomes problematic and not just boring. In the first act, Mendoza's bona fides as a soulless warrior are built by killing and capturing hundreds of them for the slave trade. During the second act, we get two disgusting examples of the most quintessential Christian logic. One: a shaman explicitly acknowledges his spiritual practice is really devil worship. Two: the group above the falls forgives Mendoza's human trafficking after witnessing the metaphorical power of his self-immolating climb, burdened by the weight of his weapons and armour.
The latter moment isn't surprising considering that religious conversion in The Mission always seems to be a matter of when, not if. We see the same pattern with European manufacturing technology and European music: like European faith, these must be so clearly advanced beyond what one might find on other continents that any inhabitants would naturally be itching to adopt them at the first opportunity.
For Bolt, the need to portray Indigenous people as undeveloped means attaching a laundry list of the worst and most tired stereotypes imaginable: cannibalism, infanticide, poor hygiene, and unsophisticated dwellings, to name a few. Here he proudly adopts the most prominent failures of centuries of colonial media. There is no true representation in his book, and there is no way to squeeze a three-dimensional character out of his narrative context, try as he might. The half dozen or so named Guarani never hold any significant sway over the course of the story.
I'll admit the ending stumped me a little. The book was not written as a piece of Catholic propaganda, but it takes pains to exclude any of the historical dark sides of missionary work (as opposed to naked conquest), so why have the Jesuits lose in the end? A book without a message shouldn't be sanitizing anything; a book with one could at least take one more historical liberty and finish on a consistent note.
I see no reason to read this book, unless maybe you're obsessed with the movie and feel compelled to round out your collector's set. As for me, I'm left with no desire to see the film or engage with any of Bolt's other work, film or print.
The necessary context here is that The Mission was written as a movie, by playwright and screenwriter Robert Bolt, that I can only assume was well into production by the time this version went to press. The resulting book has an engaging enough plot to give it structural integrity (albeit one that feels constrained to a two hour cinematic runtime), but little else to convince the reader that a novel was more than a free token of goodwill in a marketing executive's package.
I have not seen the film, but perhaps this is the natural result of sending a storyteller who is accustomed to collaboration out alone. With no set and costume designers, we are left with thin, scattered references to what people and places actually look like. The jungle - meant to serve as a punishing context for heroism and feats of strength - is passive and quiet. With no acting and directing to breathe life into the dialogue, it reads mechanical and undressed. Each spoken sentence is simply the shortest possible line between two plot points.
I grabbed this book because I get a kick out of trashy Christian media, and the cover seemed promising in that regard. But a chapter or two in I realized I had never once been exposed to trashy Catholic media. The ideological framework is premodern: while we get a critique of money and self-interest as the engine of the slave trade, the favoured alternative is pious devotion and obedience to a traditional church hierarchy. Bourgeois colonialism is cold and cruel; Christian colonialism is at least kind and protective.
As a part of this archaic framing, Bolt's worldbuilding occasionally demonstrates a more mature understanding of the unique and unstable relationships of power during this time period. A high-level Portuguese advisor recognizes and envies the early stirrings of capital on a trip to England, and plans to crack open the Jesuit missions for more slave trading and possible mining. A few lines of dialogue early in the book indicate that, contrary to the expectations of the Jesuit, the Guarani who live above the falls only have a chief in wartime (though this breath of fresh air is later muddled when one of them usurps the shaman and starts making unilateral decisions without explanation).
Unfortunately, the portrayal of the Guarani is where this text becomes problematic and not just boring. In the first act, Mendoza's bona fides as a soulless warrior are built by killing and capturing hundreds of them for the slave trade. During the second act, we get two disgusting examples of the most quintessential Christian logic. One: a shaman explicitly acknowledges his spiritual practice is really devil worship. Two: the group above the falls forgives Mendoza's human trafficking after witnessing the metaphorical power of his self-immolating climb, burdened by the weight of his weapons and armour.
The latter moment isn't surprising considering that religious conversion in The Mission always seems to be a matter of when, not if. We see the same pattern with European manufacturing technology and European music: like European faith, these must be so clearly advanced beyond what one might find on other continents that any inhabitants would naturally be itching to adopt them at the first opportunity.
For Bolt, the need to portray Indigenous people as undeveloped means attaching a laundry list of the worst and most tired stereotypes imaginable: cannibalism, infanticide, poor hygiene, and unsophisticated dwellings, to name a few. Here he proudly adopts the most prominent failures of centuries of colonial media. There is no true representation in his book, and there is no way to squeeze a three-dimensional character out of his narrative context, try as he might. The half dozen or so named Guarani never hold any significant sway over the course of the story.
I'll admit the ending stumped me a little. The book was not written as a piece of Catholic propaganda, but it takes pains to exclude any of the historical dark sides of missionary work (as opposed to naked conquest), so why have the Jesuits lose in the end? A book without a message shouldn't be sanitizing anything; a book with one could at least take one more historical liberty and finish on a consistent note.
I see no reason to read this book, unless maybe you're obsessed with the movie and feel compelled to round out your collector's set. As for me, I'm left with no desire to see the film or engage with any of Bolt's other work, film or print.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 1, 2019
https://wiewiorkawokularach.blogspot....
Robert Bolt to przede wszystkim wysoko ceniony scenarzysta, czego dowodem jest statuetka Oscara za scenariusz do filmu Doktor Żywago. Oprócz tego Amerykanin pisał również scenariusze sztuk teatralnych, a także został autorem, wydanej również w Polsce, książki Misja. Książka została sfilmowana w roku 1986, a scenariusz do niej napisał sam Bolt. Nie oglądałam przed lekturą filmu, więc na jego temat nic nie jestem w stanie powiedzieć, ale opis książki i fakt, że znalazła się na watykańskiej liście ważnych dzieł dla chrześcijaństwa, zaintrygowały mnie na tyle, że zdecydowałam się po nią sięgnąć.
Młody Rodrigo Mendoza w 1743 roku musi szybko dojrzeć, gdy na morzu w trakcie połowu ryb umiera jego ojciec. Chłopiec jest odpowiedzialny nie tylko za siebie, ale też za swojego trzyletniego brata Phillippo, którym musi się zaopiekować. Sam podejmuje pracę na statku płynącym do Ameryki Południowej, do jednej z kolonii hiszpańskich, a brata umieszcza w przyklasztornej szkole prowadzonej przez siostry zakonne. Za oceanem dostaje kolejną szkołę życia, oszukany przez ludzi, którzy nie chcą mu płacić, aż w końcu zostaje mordercą jako nastolatek i przystaje do handlarzy niewolników, by wiązać koniec z końcem. W tym samym czasie ojciec Gabriel, jezuita, tworzy wśród Indian Guarani nową misję, a Hiszpania z Portugalią toczą spór o zamorskie posiadłości. To wszystko ostatecznie rzutuje na życie ponurego Mendozy, którego życie nie oszczędza i którego los prowadzi do nieuchronnego końca.
Tocząca się na tle sporów wielkich mocarstw historia to przede wszystkim opowieść o Bogu i o miłości do drugiego człowieka. Jezuici tworzą w Ameryce Południowej nowe misje, by nawracać tamtejszych Indian i chronić ich przed łowcami niewolników. Z drugiej strony ich staraniom przeciwstawiają się handlarze encomiendaros, jak nazywa się niewolników w tamtych rejonach, którym zależy na tym, by Guarani nie trafili pod protekcję jezuitów, gdzie stają się dla nich nieosiągalni. To właśnie ci zakonnicy ze wszystkich sił walczą nie tylko o nowe dusze w swojej trzódce, ale też o życie Indian, którzy są traktowani jak podludzie przez przybyłych do Nowego Świata Europejczyków. Pośród tego jesteśmy świadkami osobistego dramatu Rodrigo Mendozy, osieroconego w dzieciństwie najpierw przez matkę, potem przez ojca, a następnie wielokrotnie oszukiwanego przez innych ludzi, aż w końcu zdradzonego przez ukochaną kobietę i brata. Były łowca niewolników, morderca, dopiero wśród wcześniej gnębionych przez siebie ludzi i jezuitów odnajduje niezbędny mu spokój ducha i wybaczenie dawnych grzechów. To on staje się jednym z największych zwolenników ojca Gabriela i chce pomóc mu uchronić Guarani przed kolejnymi takimi jak on. Jednocześnie obserwujemy też walkę między mocarstwami, jakimi są Hiszpania i Portugalia. Dla ich władców tereny, o które toczą się dyskusje przy stołach, to tylko linie na mapie, a nie żywi ludzie, mający tam swoje domy i rodziny. Wysyłają oni do Ameryki Południowej papieskiego legata, by rozsądził, czy tereny te mają zostać oddane pod władzę jednego, czy drugiego mocarstwa. Tak naprawdę los tych wszystkich ludzi zależy od sumienia jednego człowieka, który ma podjąć tę decyzję. A to wszystko toczy się w amazońskiej dżungli, tuż nad wodospadami, będącymi symboliczną granicą między zepsutą intrygami Europą a misją prowadzoną przez oddanych Bogu jezuitom, w dusznej i parnej atmosferze, pełnej tajemniczości i niepokoju.
Misja to nie tylko historia pojedynczych ludzi, ale też całych społeczności. Oparta na faktach przedstawia to, jak twierdzenie o boskich wyrokach można zafałszować i dzięki niemu prowadzić własną politykę. Dzięki zestawieniu jezuitów, głoszących ofiarnie Słowo Boże, z legatem papieskim i instytucją kościelną, otrzymujemy niejednoznaczny portret Kościoła. Nie jest on ani dobry, ani zły – z jednej strony wykorzystuje swoją władzę do kształtowania światowej polityki, a z drugiej szerzy miłość do bliźniego i pokój w niespokojnych rejonach świata.
Ta książka może być odczytana na wiele sposobów i każdy z czytelników może zrozumieć ją po swojemu. To sprawia, że Misja jest powieścią skomplikowaną i niełatwą do zrozumienia, ale na pewno wartą poznania.
Robert Bolt to przede wszystkim wysoko ceniony scenarzysta, czego dowodem jest statuetka Oscara za scenariusz do filmu Doktor Żywago. Oprócz tego Amerykanin pisał również scenariusze sztuk teatralnych, a także został autorem, wydanej również w Polsce, książki Misja. Książka została sfilmowana w roku 1986, a scenariusz do niej napisał sam Bolt. Nie oglądałam przed lekturą filmu, więc na jego temat nic nie jestem w stanie powiedzieć, ale opis książki i fakt, że znalazła się na watykańskiej liście ważnych dzieł dla chrześcijaństwa, zaintrygowały mnie na tyle, że zdecydowałam się po nią sięgnąć.
Młody Rodrigo Mendoza w 1743 roku musi szybko dojrzeć, gdy na morzu w trakcie połowu ryb umiera jego ojciec. Chłopiec jest odpowiedzialny nie tylko za siebie, ale też za swojego trzyletniego brata Phillippo, którym musi się zaopiekować. Sam podejmuje pracę na statku płynącym do Ameryki Południowej, do jednej z kolonii hiszpańskich, a brata umieszcza w przyklasztornej szkole prowadzonej przez siostry zakonne. Za oceanem dostaje kolejną szkołę życia, oszukany przez ludzi, którzy nie chcą mu płacić, aż w końcu zostaje mordercą jako nastolatek i przystaje do handlarzy niewolników, by wiązać koniec z końcem. W tym samym czasie ojciec Gabriel, jezuita, tworzy wśród Indian Guarani nową misję, a Hiszpania z Portugalią toczą spór o zamorskie posiadłości. To wszystko ostatecznie rzutuje na życie ponurego Mendozy, którego życie nie oszczędza i którego los prowadzi do nieuchronnego końca.
Tocząca się na tle sporów wielkich mocarstw historia to przede wszystkim opowieść o Bogu i o miłości do drugiego człowieka. Jezuici tworzą w Ameryce Południowej nowe misje, by nawracać tamtejszych Indian i chronić ich przed łowcami niewolników. Z drugiej strony ich staraniom przeciwstawiają się handlarze encomiendaros, jak nazywa się niewolników w tamtych rejonach, którym zależy na tym, by Guarani nie trafili pod protekcję jezuitów, gdzie stają się dla nich nieosiągalni. To właśnie ci zakonnicy ze wszystkich sił walczą nie tylko o nowe dusze w swojej trzódce, ale też o życie Indian, którzy są traktowani jak podludzie przez przybyłych do Nowego Świata Europejczyków. Pośród tego jesteśmy świadkami osobistego dramatu Rodrigo Mendozy, osieroconego w dzieciństwie najpierw przez matkę, potem przez ojca, a następnie wielokrotnie oszukiwanego przez innych ludzi, aż w końcu zdradzonego przez ukochaną kobietę i brata. Były łowca niewolników, morderca, dopiero wśród wcześniej gnębionych przez siebie ludzi i jezuitów odnajduje niezbędny mu spokój ducha i wybaczenie dawnych grzechów. To on staje się jednym z największych zwolenników ojca Gabriela i chce pomóc mu uchronić Guarani przed kolejnymi takimi jak on. Jednocześnie obserwujemy też walkę między mocarstwami, jakimi są Hiszpania i Portugalia. Dla ich władców tereny, o które toczą się dyskusje przy stołach, to tylko linie na mapie, a nie żywi ludzie, mający tam swoje domy i rodziny. Wysyłają oni do Ameryki Południowej papieskiego legata, by rozsądził, czy tereny te mają zostać oddane pod władzę jednego, czy drugiego mocarstwa. Tak naprawdę los tych wszystkich ludzi zależy od sumienia jednego człowieka, który ma podjąć tę decyzję. A to wszystko toczy się w amazońskiej dżungli, tuż nad wodospadami, będącymi symboliczną granicą między zepsutą intrygami Europą a misją prowadzoną przez oddanych Bogu jezuitom, w dusznej i parnej atmosferze, pełnej tajemniczości i niepokoju.
Misja to nie tylko historia pojedynczych ludzi, ale też całych społeczności. Oparta na faktach przedstawia to, jak twierdzenie o boskich wyrokach można zafałszować i dzięki niemu prowadzić własną politykę. Dzięki zestawieniu jezuitów, głoszących ofiarnie Słowo Boże, z legatem papieskim i instytucją kościelną, otrzymujemy niejednoznaczny portret Kościoła. Nie jest on ani dobry, ani zły – z jednej strony wykorzystuje swoją władzę do kształtowania światowej polityki, a z drugiej szerzy miłość do bliźniego i pokój w niespokojnych rejonach świata.
Ta książka może być odczytana na wiele sposobów i każdy z czytelników może zrozumieć ją po swojemu. To sprawia, że Misja jest powieścią skomplikowaną i niełatwą do zrozumienia, ale na pewno wartą poznania.
March 17, 2012
Excellent! Have the DVD, the CD, and plan to read the book multiple times. Recommending it to many friends.
April 23, 2016
Amazing book i can always come back
Want to read
February 14, 2020Synopsis: a soldier-of-fortune joins with a priest to battle slave traders preying on the Guarani natives. Do you recall the movie? The music?
May 4, 2019
Diretto, intenso e crudele. Uno dei romanzi più realistici abbia mai letto.
August 2, 2025
Se la ragione è del più forte, allora non c'è posto per l'amore in questo mondo. Forse è così, ma io non ho la forza d'animo per vivere in un mondo simile.
Avevo visto l'indimenticabile film di Roland Joffé (con gli immensi Jeremy Irons e Robert De Niro) prima di trovare, del tutto casualmente, questo libro nella vecchia libreria dei miei genitori, edizione del 1986. Il libro non fa che confermare la grandezza della storia già goduta con il film, ed ha forgiato a fuoco nel mio cuore l'incisione dei suoi protagonisti.
Impossibile dimenticare due personaggi come Gabriel e Mendoza: così diversi e, allo stesso tempo, così umani - il primo nonostante la sua aura quasi divina, e il secondo nonostante il suo passato da mercenario e fratricida.
Bellissimo, imprescindibile, lacerante.
Semplicemente da leggere e rileggere.
Avevo visto l'indimenticabile film di Roland Joffé (con gli immensi Jeremy Irons e Robert De Niro) prima di trovare, del tutto casualmente, questo libro nella vecchia libreria dei miei genitori, edizione del 1986. Il libro non fa che confermare la grandezza della storia già goduta con il film, ed ha forgiato a fuoco nel mio cuore l'incisione dei suoi protagonisti.
Impossibile dimenticare due personaggi come Gabriel e Mendoza: così diversi e, allo stesso tempo, così umani - il primo nonostante la sua aura quasi divina, e il secondo nonostante il suo passato da mercenario e fratricida.
Bellissimo, imprescindibile, lacerante.
Semplicemente da leggere e rileggere.
Read
May 19, 2023Amai il film e amai il libro, in cui i pensieri e i sentimenti dei personaggi di questa tragica storia sono vivi e ben descritti. Le personalità diverse affrontano la situazione ciascuno a suo modo, ciascuno coerente fino in fondo e dando tutto. Profondo.
October 28, 2012
I chose to read this becasue I am a big fan of A Man for All Seasons, the play by the same author. But I found this story to be much less worthwhile. A rather dark story of a man who lives a depraved life without much introspection, then becomes an apparently devout Jesuit with a tragic ending. It was enjoyable to picture a little of colonial life in South America, but with the overall story I was not impressed.
April 13, 2008
the movie was also good, for a change...
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews