The Singularity

by Dino Buzzati, Anne Milano Appel (Translator)

At the beginning of Dino Buzzati’s The Singularity, Ermanno Ismani, an unassuming university professor, is summoned by the minister of defense to accept a two-year, top-secret mission at a mysterious research center, isolated from the world among forests, plunging cliffs, and high mountains. What’s he supposed to do there? Not clear. How long will he be there? No saying.

Still, Ismani takes the mystifying job and, accompanied by his no-nonsense wife, Elisa, heads to the so-called Experimental Camp of Military Zone 36, wondering whether, in the midst of the Cold War, it’s some sort of nuclear project he’s been assigned to. But no, the colleagues the couple meets on arrival assure them, it’s nothing like that. It’s much, much more powerful.

At the center of the research complex is strange, shining, at times murmurous, white wall. Behind it, a deep gorge drops away, full of wires and radio towers and mobile sensors and a host of eccentric structures. A question begins to dawn: Could this be the shape of consciousness itself? And if so, whose?

Buzzati's novella of 1960, a pioneering work of Italian science fiction, is published here in a brisk new translation by Anne Milano Appel. In it, Buzzati explores his favorite themes of love and longing while offering a startlingly prescient parable of artificial intelligence.

Genres: Fiction, Science Fiction, Italy, Italian Literature, Classics, Literature, Novels

136 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1960

About the author

Dino Buzzati Traverso (1906 – 1972) è stato uno scrittore, giornalista, pittore, drammaturgo, librettista, scenografo, costumista e poeta italiano.

Dino Buzzati Traverso was an Italian novelist, short story writer, painter and poet, as well as a journalist for Corriere della Sera. His worldwide fame is mostly due to his novel Il deserto dei Tartari, translated into English as The Tartar Steppe.

Reviews

[Велислав Върбанов · Rating 4 out of 5]

„Големият портрет“ е много хубава и трогателна история! Въпреки че творбата е научнофантастична, Будзати се фокусира в нея най-вече върху чувствата на персонажите... Освен това, той подтиква читателите към размисъл по темата за неизбежните рискове от създаването на мощен робот, който да представлява един вид свръхчовешки разум.

Известен професор е поканен да работи в тайнствена военна зона, без предварително да му е дадена никаква информация за дейността в нея. Въпреки това той се съгласява, като заедно със своята съпруга се преместват да живеят в зоната и се запознават с останалите учени, които са част от проекта. Впоследствие се разбира, че става дума за сложен изкуствен интелект, а междувременно се случват доста странни и опасни събития...

[Maxwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

[3.5 stars]

This was originally published in 1960 and on the cutting edge of Italian science fiction. So it's extra interesting that it explores themes and topics that are even more widely discussed today, namely artificial intelligence. Particularly it looks at this through the lens of humanity, embodiment, and the soul. I thought the writing was sharp, at times even darkly funny and a bit campy (on purpose), and that leant itself well to an environment that allowed mostly unbelievable things to happen to progress the story forward. But by the end I think I just wanted a bit more exploration from this. It didn't push it far enough for me to LOVE it, but I enjoyed it still and would definitely check out more of this author's books!

[Стефан Русинов]

Много умее да напряга и да напича Будзати, като композиране на симфония му е разказването, особено с приповдигнатата динамика в края. Още една фантастична приказка за тежненията на човешката душа и катастрофалните им последствия.

[Nada · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nekoliko napomena za početak, ovo je knjiga napisana 1960-tih i smatra se prvom talijanskom SF pripovjetkom/romanom. I o umjetnoj je inteligenciji. Bar na prvu. Po meni je u osnovi ovo retelling Frankenštajna, a ponekad se pitam nisu li sve knjige o umjetnoj inteligenciji upravo to o stvaranju živoga od neživoga samo ne od krvi i mesa nego od žica i elektrona. I o razlozima zašto. Samoća, ljubav, ambicija, ludost, oholost? Kao što rekoh knjiga je napisana 60-tih godina prošlog stoljeća ali u svjetlu najnovijih načina korištenja umjetne inteligencije i ponovnog preispitivanja uloge AI u našim sadašnjim i budućim životima mislim da bi ju bilo mudro ponovno pročitati. Jer govori o filozofskim i etičkim i moralnim aspektima uspostave i korištenja AIja a mislim da su to sve stvari o kojima počinjemo prekasno razmišljati kada je u pitanju upotreba bilo koje napredna tehnologija. Knjiga je to koju ćete bez problema pročitati u jedno poslijepodne ali će te puno duže o njoj razmišljati. Topla preporuka.

[Carmine R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

L'amore vince sulla conoscenza

"Eppure dov'è il più lieto brusio di vita e aspettazione? quella risonanza indefinibile che negli uomini faceva dimenticare la presenza del corpo in una meravigliosa sensazione di leggerezza?
Né la potenza instancabile del mare, né le impenetrabili cisterne delle foreste, né l'immobilità delle selvagge montagne muovevano insieme nell'animo tante cose soavi, eroiche e fatali. Ma adesso?"

Romanzo breve del 1960 che vede l'autore muoversi in un genere - la fantascienza - a lui estraneo.
Più della metà dell'opera si trascina tra svogliati dialoghi per esacerbare la tensione e personaggi che definirli soprammobili è fare loro un complimento.
Quando l'autore smette di tirare a campare e finalmente squarcia il velo per far scorgere il dramma che risiede dietro la vicenda, ecco che l'imperfezione dell'uomo sale alla ribalta e diventa legge universale che circoscrive la sete di conoscenza a triste chimera.
Le ultime pagine trasudano di un cinismo così sibillino e amaro da riuscire (quasi) a rivalutare tutto quello che si è letto in precedenza.
Oggettivamente l'opera è meno riuscita rispetto a vette come Il deserto dei Tartari nonché lo sterminato oceano di racconti che lo hanno reso grande; e molte peculiarità di questo tipo di fantascienza sono oramai state sondate in maniera certosina: Il grande ritratto è piuttosto datato, se non si attua la corretta contestualizzazione all'anno di uscita.
Lettura suggerita a coloro che vogliano approfondire Buzzati in modo capillare; tutti gli altri possono tranquillamente passare ai titoli di punta.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished this in a day or two, definitely ahead of its time. If you're concerned about AI, read this.

[Елвира · Rating 3 out of 5]

Завършвам 2021-ва така, както я започнах - с Будзати. ❤️

Тази книжка (разказ?) ми хареса ужасно много. Не защото разсъждавах за нея като за фантастика, каквато дори не ми се и стори да е, а от философска гледна точка. Много неща ме впечатлиха - отношението към езика като към клопка за мисълта; размислите за душата; осъзнаването на бъдещите страдания и последващ крах, които Ендриаде твърдо приема, за да задържи любовта; капризите и желанията, които са неизменна част от съдържанието, носено от душата; самата Лаура беше описана великолепно. И тук, както и в „Татарската пустиня“ и „Барнабо от планината“, Будзати прекрасно разстройва хармоничния ред в мислите на героите и читателя като посредством наглед скромни сюжетни събития засяга особено фино огромни по своите мащаби въпроси, свързани с нравствения и емоционалния свят на хората в ролята им на... хора.

А пък самата словесност на Будзати е вълшебна и не е пропуснал да превърне и „Големия портрет“ в песенно повествование, както прави винаги и неизменно.

[Mahtab Safdari · Rating 4 out of 5]

During these years that AI has been a heated discussion, reading "The Singularity" which was published in 1960 and explores the themes of artificial intelligence, scientific ambition and the ethical implications of AI and its potential dangers through the lens of a Cold War-era scientific project, could be interesting.
Despite being written several decades ago, The Singularity offers a surprisingly accurate depiction of anxieties surrounding artificial intelligence, making it a relevant read even today.
Usually, such stories may sound outdated after years, but Dino Buzzati with his unique Buzzatian blend of realism and surrealism, acts like a prophet who anticipates the future.
Like Kafka, Borges, and Calvino, Buzzati's work possesses a dreamlike and unsettling quality, combining the mundane with the fantastic.
The novella is rich in visual details, creating vivid and cinematic scenes that enhance the story's impact.

[Hex75 · Rating 5 out of 5]

buzzati che come dick si domanda se le macchine possano sognare. buzzati che porta in scena soggetti e ambientazioni che sembrano provenire da un romanzo di ballard, magari di quelli dagli anni '80 in poi. buzzati che immagina una macchina che potrebbe essere la controparte femminile di hal 9000. giuro di non riuscire a capire la freddezza della critica verso questo racconto lungo: io arrivando all'ultima pagina (a quel finale sospeso che ha deluso parecchi ma che a me non spiaciuto) mi sono stupito di come fosse avanti i suoi contemporanei...

[Vasko Genev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Това е първата италианска научнофантастична творба. Не знам защо някъде го определят като роман, когато де факто е разказ. Има прекрасни елементи на класическия Будзати, но в случая ми се стори твърде наивно. Донякъде това е разбираемо, имайки предвид жанра в който влиза. Техническите елементи ми бяха почти смешни.

Но човекът е обречен да се тормози, не вижда утешението, дори и да е досами него; чувства нужда да си измисля все нови терзания.

Но представяте ли си какъв би станал светът, ако един ден се разбере, че никой не може да разполага със собствения си живот? Един ужасен затвор. Бихме полудели.

ПП. След като "преспах" реших да коригирам оценката си. Прецених, че съм станал твърде критичен към фантастиката (сега ако препрочета повечето сигурно бих насвяткал единици и двойки), освен това малко се ядосах на Будзати, така набързо да смотолеви добрата идея заложена в книгата. Две звезди създават впечатление, че книгата не става за четене, което в случая определено не е така.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dino Buzzati is a master of eerie, unsettling atmospheres. great read!

[Riccardo Mazzocchio · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breve opera dal tema distopico. Si legge in un attimo anche per la curiosità che suscita. Buzzati riesce a descrivere l'indescrivibile - ricorrendo a sensazioni/suggestioni esterne come quelle evocate dal paesaggio natio, dalle sue montagne, valloni, foreste, fiumi e gole ma anche interne pescando nella fragilità della psiche - e a farcelo quasi sfiorare. "... non solo il pensiero, ma la sua individualizzazione, la permanenza dei caratteri, insomma quel tumore fatto d'aria che però talora ci pesa addosso come se fosse piombo, l'anima."

[arcobaleno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tra raziocinio e assurdo, tra realtà e apparenza, scienza e fantasia, Buzzati ci affascina e incuriosisce, con una intensità che cresce via via con la lettura, fino alla scoperta del gran 'segreto' e la descrizione di un amore impossibile nella sua irrealtà.

Sempre, dove c'è un grande segreto, girano le voci più assurde, come in guerra. (pag 58)

[Paul Dembina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this little tale a bit underwhelming. The story of an artificial intelligence it sounded like the perfect thing to read now with the rise of AI. But it ended up being mostly a tale of jealousy

[Bbrown · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I’ve said before, Dino Buzzati is criminally underrated, at least in the English-speaking world. A corollary to this fact is it’s incredibly difficult to figure out what of his work has actually been translated into English. His second most popular book on goodreads, “La boutique del mistero,” for instance, has apparently never been fully translated, though it appears that many (most? all?) of the short stories it contains have been translated into English in other collections. Thus, I sometimes discover a book by Buzzati that I thought had gone untranslated is in fact available in English, via some out of print edition from many decades ago. Whenever I make such a discovery it’s an incredibly pleasant surprise, and Larger Than Life (in the form of a 1962 edition I got off of Abebooks) is one such surprise.

Larger Than Life tells the story of the scientist Ismani and his wife going to a secret military installation so that he can work on a top-secret government project, kept a mystery even to high-ranking government officials. At first I thought there was too much buildup to Ismani learning of the project, the narrative intentionally brings you to the brink of discovery several times but then pulls back, the reveal only coalescing when the novella is already half over. But I only considered this a flaw because I hadn’t yet grasped what Larger Than Life is: it’s not just Buzzati trying his hand at a work of science fiction, more importantly it’s him taking a stab at a horror novella. Thus, it makes perfect sense to build up the suspense before Ismani and company first see the massive machine, as this is the unveiling of the creature in this creature feature. In retrospect all the hallmarks are there, a trip into the unpopulated wilderness filled with a sense of foreboding, the steps to isolate a small group of people from everyone else, our protagonist is even put up in a cabin in the woods for crying out loud. There are people hearing noises, perhaps mysterious voices on the wind, which at first is thought to be just characters’ imaginations, until later we get the exposition delivered by a possibly mad scientist who has undertaken a massive project to resurrect the mind—and more importantly the soul—of his deceased wife. This, as is always the case, doesn’t turn out well. It’s actually close to a by-the-numbers rendition of this type of story once you realize what type of story you’re reading, but it’s a little while before you come to that realization.

Buzzati is very effective in striking just the right tone in Larger Than Life, and the writing is good although not his very best. His recurring theme of unfaithful love is explored here perhaps even more interestingly than in his book A Love Story, but even besides that it tells a more interesting tale. Then again, I’m a science fiction fan, so of course I’d think that. And really, my status as a fan is what makes my assessment of this work as a whole suspect: it was such a pleasant surprise to find another book by Buzzati, and one in a genre I’m partial to, that I was strongly predisposed to liking this book, and that inclination was not countervailed by the book being short (as I mentioned, it’s essentially a novella), many of the characters correspondingly lacking depth, the title being lackluster, or the story being a bit boilerplate when all was said and done.

I still enjoyed Larger Than Life, though I will say that this is not the place you should start with Buzzati. Not that you’d likely start with an especially obscure work only available used at significant expense, but a warning all the same. Instead, I would recommend The Tartar Steppe, or, if you can get a hold of one, a short story collection like Restless Nights. I understand that HarperCollins is releasing Buzzati’s collection Catastrophe in March of next year, which may also serve as a good jumping-off point for the author. When it’s released I’ll read it and find out.

[Ante Vojnović · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dino Buzzati 1960. godine napisao je roman koji se smatra začetkom, prvim romanom talijanske znanstvene fantastike. Ali, da ne drvim dalje o značaju ovog romana za talijansku i europsku književnost, jer o tome možete doznati sve iz upućenijih i relevantnijih kanala od ovog bloga, vratimo se na ono zašto me roman Veće od života zatekao nespremna.

Zašto bi se jedan ugledni profesor odazvao pozivu na rad na projektu o kojem ne zna apsolutno ništa, tim više što je taj isti projekt miljama udaljen od njegovog doma i radnog mjesta? Otići u planine na nepoznato vrijeme jer ga je na prihvaćanje intrigantne ponude naposljetku nagovorila supruga? Zašto ne? Ima savršenog smisla. Savršeno razumno!

Baš kao taj neplanski odlazak u planine, savršeno je (ne)razuman bio ovaj roman u svom prvom dijelu, pomalo kafkijanski, i jedino što je jasno jest da je Buzzati taj koji se, baš kao s profesorom, poigrava s čitateljevom znatiželjom.

Kada malo bolje promislim, da je u pitanju žanrovski drugačiji roman, taj prvi dio bio savršen uvod u jedan podulji vic. Time bi bilo lakše shvatiti zašto nisam bio spreman na drugi dio romana onakvog kakvog sam ga dobio i doživio i zašto mi i sad zatreperi upitnik poviše glave. Taj drugi dio nije bio nimalo nalik zakucavanju i poentiranju vica, već potrebno otrježnjenje okupano sumornim tonovima. Neki čudan način suočavanja sa svijetom onda - i sad.

Na mom popisu pročitanih romana za života teško bi se našao šturiji roman od ovoga. Isto tako, siguran sam da se na tom popisu ne bi našao roman koji je, tako škrt, uspio postaviti toliko pitanja i skromnim tekstom i izrazom otvoriti toliko prostora za različita tumačenja. Ne zato što je ostao nedorečen u smislu radnje pa imate skokove da ne znate kako ste krenuli od točke A i teleportirali se do točke B. Ne, vezano za samu radnju romana, neće vam faliti apsolutno ništa. Pitanja koja se postavljaju vješto su upletena u ideju romana.

Pitanje ostvarivanja samoga sebe – karijerno, ljubavno, životno - u sudaru očekivanja i danu realnost. Postoji li išta poželjno i zdravo u otuđivanju od svijeta i sebe samog u trenutku kada sudar realnosti i očekivanja ne rezultira onako kako smo zamislili? Imamo li pravo, kao ljudska vrsta, igrati se Boga kako bi ostvarili neki ‘’viši cilj’’ za koji se nadamo da će našim životima podariti neki novi smisao? I, naposljetku, postoji li mogućnost zaustavljanja kotača koji se gotovo sigurno kotrlja u propast?

Pitanja na koja ni danas nemamo univerzalno prihvaćene odgovore jer - usuđujem se reći - ista i ne postoje. Egzistencijalna pitanja, ljudska bezvremenska pitanja i moralne dileme. Ovim romanom Buzzati nije napisao djelo spekulativne fikcije u smislu da je samo on taj koji ima privilegiju pitati se što bi bilo kad bi bilo, već je ostavio dovoljno prostora čitatelju da postavlja svoja pitanja, zbog čega je ovaj roman u mojim očima utjelovljenje žanra spekulativne fikcije. U ovom romanu, Buzzati je sukobio srce i mozak, emociju i razum, školovanu racionalnost i slijepu iracionalnost.

Uzmimo u obzir, Veće od života roman je napisan 1960. godine, a ideje u njemu iznesene su, čak i uz današnju tehnologiju, gotovo nezamislive i teško izvedive. Iako, možda i jesu, negdje daleko od očiju javnosti, baš na način kako je to izvedeno u ovom romanu.

S romanom kao što je Veće od života ne usuđujem se progovoriti i predviđati kakvim književnim ukusima će se dopasti jer istovremeno prezirem koristiti onu dobru staru o romanu koji nije za svakoga. Samo ću reći da, ako ste spremni za izlazak iz komfor zone ustaljene forme romana kakvi danas prevladavaju, Veće od života je roman za vas. Osobno, nisam bio ne svjestan da mi je ovaj roman bio potreban, baš kao davno izgubljena ljubavnica koju sam sa zadovoljstvom opet sreo.

[Mostafa · Rating 2 out of 5]

داستان علمی تخیلی
طرح جالبی داره کتاب، ولی خوب پرداخت نشده و بخشهای مختلف خوب به همدیگه چفت نشدن!
خیلی جاها خواننده میتونه از نویسنده جلو بیوفته

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Onde nasce o nosso sentido de liberdade? Qual é a sua origem última? A primeira e indispensável condição que nos faz sentir senhores de nós mesmos, mesmo numa prisão, mesmo diante de uma doença mortal? Que coisa é essa sem a qual nada nos restaria senão enlouquecermos?
a vida ser-nos-ia insuportável, mesmo nas condições mais felizes, se nos estivesse negada a possibilidade do suicídio. É claro que ninguém pensa nisso. Mas imagina o que seria do mundo se um dia se soubesse que ninguém pode dispor da própria vida? Seria um cárcere assustador. Enlouqueceríamos."

[Marc Nash · Rating 5 out of 5]

Video review https://youtu.be/z3DlAFRfY5c

[Kyle C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ermanno Ismani is a university professor recruited for a mysterious military project. Everything is top-secret. Not even the general can explain to him what the job entails—except that he will have to live for at least two years in a remote location in the Italian hillsides and must never disclose his work there. He thinks it must involve nuclear weapons. When he arrives at the military camp, he is astonished: there is no factory, no labs, no buildings, just a fortress surrounded with precipitous walls and metallic ravines full of shimmering wires and coils. Haunting sounds reverberate through the night-time, soldiers report strange radio signals, and the neighboring valley sometimes moves. He and his wife, Elisa, are disturbed by the eery spectacle surrounding them. One day, when Elisa visits the scientist Endriade, she discovers a photo of her long-lost friend Laura, and the plot's philosophical heart reveals itself: Endriade had married Laura but she tragically died young, and so he had tried to preserve her in some digital afterlife. The whole valley is a cybernetic creature, a sprawling robot that has, or so the scientists think, been implanted with the psyche of Laura.

It's a modern fusion of the myths of Pandora and Pygmalion. Endriade hopes for a Pygmalion—a computationally perfect woman, an optimized simulacrum of the wife he had married, just now with unlimited processing and calculating power. But is she really the Laura he mourns? Is she even a woman? The scientists have succumbed to the Eliza Effect, believing that a real human intelligence and emotion resides in the machine (the term, Eliza Effect, was not coined until 1966, six years after this novel was published, so the novel is thinking about the consequences of chatbots and artificial intelligence right at the infancy of such technologies). Endriade is convinced that his wife's mind and personality have been successfully replicated in the robot. When she misbehaves, when the earth vibrates and groans, they think it is just female hysteria rather than a bug in the code, so to speak. But she is not a Pygmalion so much as a Pandora—the primordial woman, crafted (by Prometheus or by Hephaestus) and endowed with every gift of the gods, who was, according to various mythographers, a beguiling but destructive entity. So too is the mechanized Laura created by these scientists. The creature torments the inhabitants of the military camp with her humming, luring the men and women, trying to trap them with her spiraling wires and machinery. She has been driven mad by the scientists' experiments on her and their attempts to make her into a Laura. Like Pandora, she seeks destruction.

It's a short, breezy read and it prophetically sees the contemporary debates right now between techno-utopianists and doomsayers. It's a timely warning about the false assumptions and self-deceptions we can all have about the technologies we interact with. It reminds me of the 2014 film Transcendence but the book treats the idea of artificial consciousness with more skepticism.

[Pierfrancesco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Opera un po’ oscura di Dino Buzzati, messa in ombra da una fitta schiera di capolavori, ma che per la modernità espressa meriterebbe molta più attenzione.
Anticipando di almeno sessant’anni film come “Her” o dibattiti sulle macchina senzienti (vedasi il caso LaMDA di Google) Buzzati esplora temi di cui forse, all’epoca, nessuno era conscio dell’esistenza. Il breve romanzo è denso come un buco nero: una storia di resurrezione tecnologica che fa collidere due mondi che sembrano conciliarsi mal volentieri, ossia l’anima umana (fatta anche delle sue brutture) e la macchina “morta”, ma con la sua capacità di calcolo.
Capisco perché non gode della stima di altri racconti dello stesso autore: all’inizio impiega un po’ a partire e la costruzione del mistero sembra - inizialmente - artificiosa, ma etichettare questo romanzo come “di fantascienza” sarebbe un marchiano errore… come tutte le grandi opere la fantascienza qui è solo una questione di sfondo.

[Olga Zilberbourg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A narrative of constructive body, it reads very much as a utopian project gone wrong. In many ways, it seems to repeat the old Pygmalion trope, a man trying to reconstruct the woman he loved and lost, and this experiment going awry. In this book, it takes a group of women arriving to a male-run lab to shine the light on how far offtrack this project has gotten, and to put a stop to it.

[Gert De Bie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buzzati wist ons eerder te beklijven met het existentialistische 'De woestijn van de Tartaren' en bekoorde ons evenzeer met het ietwat frivole 'De beroemde bereninvasie van Sicilië'. Twee compleet verschillende leeservaringen.

Dat was 'The Singularity' (eerder naar het Engels vertaald als 'Larger than life') opnieuw: hoewel we delen van de sfeeropbouw herkenden, valt ook dit boek niet te vergelijken met de vorige twee. De bevreemdende en beklemmende opbouw van het verhaal (dat zich - waarschijnlijk niet toevallig - weer in een berglandschap afspeelt) deden ons bij vlagen denken aan 'De woestijn van de Tartaren', maar The Singularity kiest een heel andere verhaalroute.

Wanneer een professor van de overheid onder strikte geheimhouding de opdracht krijgt mee te werken aan een erg vaag omschreven project, komt hij in de bergen op een afgelegen legerbasis (weer een linkje met De woestijn van de Tartaren) terecht waar zijn collega's bezig zijn met het ontwerpen en aansturen van een supercomputer die zou moeten kunnen denken zoals het menselijke brein.

Verderop in het verhaal worden op indringende wijze ook de persoonlijke relaties van de personages met dat gegeven verwikkeld en stuurt Buzzati aan op een beklemmende en indringende plot.
Hoewel die plot zich veel tastbaarder ontwikkeld, dan de eerdere sfeervolle en mysterieuze verhaalopbouw, weet Buzzati toch moeiteloos filosofische vraagstukken, science-ficition, spanning en existentialisme te combineren in een vlot lezend verhaal.

[Stela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un SF (unii zic chiar că e primul în limba italiană) din 1960 și se vede 😊! Chiar dacă nuvela (că nu e chiar un roman) nu se petrece în viitor, imaginea aceea a unui computer mare cît un munte și-a pierdut oarecum măreția și a devenit ușor caraghioasă.

În orice caz, mie mi se pare că literatura fantastică îi reușește mult mai bine lui Dino Buzzati decît cea științifico-fantastică. Chiar dacă în Marele portret se regăsesc temele lui preferate (viața sub semnul fatalității, contrastul între aparență și esență etc.) narațiunea nu are același firesc cu care ne-au obișnuit poveștile despre monstrul Colombre, spitalele cu șapte etaje, balaurii care-și dau viața pentru puii lor ș.a.m.d., și nici nu te lasă cu senzația aceea că aproape ai văzut ce se ascunde dincolo de văl.

[Argos · Rating 3 out of 5]

D. Buzzati’nin sanırım en zayıf romanı, 150 sayfalık kısa bir roman. Bilimkurguyu anımsatsa da gerçeküstü ve metafizik unsurlarıyla eğlenceli bir masal tanımına uyuyor. 1960 yılında yazmış, çağına göre bir hayli hayali ve fantastik olan geleceğe ilişkin olayları mizahi olarak anlatmış. İlk bölümde adı gibi büyük bir sır olan meseleyi anlatırken ve bu bölümde gizem ön plandayken, ikinci bölümde konunun anlaşılması ile heyecan birden düşüyor. Buzzati’nin kalemi tabii çok iyi ama hikayesinin konusu biraz sönük.

[Astrid · Rating 5 out of 5]

stunning. will be at least a footnote in thesis

[Kevin Tole · Rating 3 out of 5]

After writing a glowing review of Buzzati's The Stronghold which I think is a minor classic, I was given this to read. Frankly, its not in the same league. In fact it is tepid in comparison to The Stronghold and to the various compilations of his short stories. It is laboured because Buzzati does not have the depth to talk about the work scientifically and he does not appear to want to talk about the ideas philosophically. This was written in 1960 - so WAAAAYYYY before AI was on the scene.

Buzzati gives us a series of scientists trying to create a computer-based (thats not said - what is said is MACHINE-based) consciousness. And they appear to have managed that task. There is also a strong romantic element thrown into this ersatz Italian sci-fi. It seems dated when it should not, given current debates over AI. Its Italian. There has to be some eroticism but its really quite pathetic.

Its just not that well thought out or enacted through the text. The ideas are mushy. (unlike The Stronghold)

That is, daa-daaaa, until the final 10 pages when it gets interesting. Buzzati starts dealing with themes that should have been covered well back towards the start, but he couldn't because he was more concerned with making it seem some kind of secret 'Project X' he was writing about. Still..... I can't imagine someone coming up with a book on machine consciousness and going into the philosophical and cybernetics of that in 1960.

Give this a miss. You won't miss anything of note and really its not up to Buzzati's usual stuff.

Slightly interesting. The novel was written and published in 1960 but set in 1972. This was the year Buzzati died. A mild coincidence>

[Elalma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Più che un romanzo, è un racconto lungo. La critica all'uscita nel 1960 non ne parlò molto bene, con quest'aura di mistero, di "science fiction", come scrisse Gramigna, lo definirono un po' piatto. A leggerlo ora, si ritrova un filone sfruttatissimo dai film e dalla fantascienza dei decenni successivi, eppure mi sono molto divertita. Sarà per la scrittura scarna ma attentissima di Buzzati, sarà per quel clima di aspettativa, di segreto, o anche semplicemente per la curiosità dell'impianto narrativo, di come poteva essere immaginato una "creatura", un golem quasi umano nel 1960 alle soglie della ricerca cibernetica. A essere datata, invece, è la figura della donna, non tanto come oggetto del desiderio, quanto per essere istintivo, che come scopo nella vita è accompagnare il marito nelle trasferte. Ma è stato scritto quasi sessant'anni fa, ben altri libri più recenti hanno lo stesso problema.

[Христо Блажев · Rating 4 out of 5]

Дино Будзати смесва технология и емоции: http://knigolandia.info/book-review/g...

Един учен получава предложение, на което не може да откаже – държавата знае, че той е патриот, и му предлага и щедро възнаграждение, ако прекара известно време изолиран в секретен военен обект. Само че никой от министерството не знае какво се случва там – Будзати игриво води действието на страница след страница, среща ни с различни герои, които обаче до един не знаят какво точно се крие там – тайната става все по-интригуваща с всяка стъпка към разкриването ѝ. В крайна сметка обаче истината не може да бъде опазвана вечно, поне не и в тази книга, и става ясно какво се случва – и не, и аз няма да ви кажа. Но спокойно мога да ви кажа, че както в много добри фантастики, това не е роман за технологии и бъдещето, а за хора, емоции и настояще, всички от които са просто облечени в по-пъстра дегизировка.

Издателство "Лист"
http://knigolandia.info/book-review/g...

[Nick Klagge]

A new translation of a novella published in Italian in 1960. This is a fable of AI that is more or less also a ghost story/haunted house story. Some of the concepts relating to AI may seem a little well-trodden by 2024, but I think they are very original and visionary for 1960. It's a fun story and I think the novella length works perfectly for what it is. Worth a read today, and not just for historical interest!