De verteller

by Harry Mulisch

Een alleszins cryptische familieroman, die we literairtheoretisch en -historisch als experimenteel of modernistisch kunnen klasseren. Mulisch zelf noemt de roman hyperrealistisch. De geschiedenis is ondergeschikt aan de wijze van presenteren, waardoor het een moeilijk leesbaar boek is geworden over WO II, in tegenstelling tot b.v. 'De aanslag'. De kritiek reageerde in 1970 (1ste druk) geirriteerd; men sprak van een 'on-boek', 'een lege verpakking' 'een boek van niks', 'geen boek'. In verschillende tekstsoorten die door elkaar heen gevlochten zijn, lezen we het levensverhaal van de 43-jarige Joris Sytzma die, nadat hem acht voortanden getrokken zijn, in een soort crisis dobberend op zijn boot, nadenkt over zijn verleden.

243 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1970

About the author

Harry Kurt Victor Mulisch along with W.F. Hermans and Gerard Reve, is considered one of the "Great Three" of Dutch postwar literature. He has written novels, plays, essays, poems, and philosophical reflections.
Mulisch was born in Haarlem and lived in Amsterdam since 1958, following the death of his father in 1957. Mulisch's father was from Austria-Hungary and emigrated to the Netherlands after the First World War. During the German occupation in World War II he worked for a German bank, which also dealt with confiscated Jewish assets. His mother, Alice Schwarz, was Jewish. Mulisch and his mother escaped transportation to a concentration camp thanks to Mulisch's father's collaboration with the Nazis. Due to the curious nature of his parents' positions, Mulisch has claimed that he is the Second World War.

A frequent theme in his work is the Second World War. His father had worked for the Germans during the war and went to prison for three years afterwards. As the war spanned most of Mulisch's formative phase, it had a defining influence on his life and work. In 1963, he wrote a non-fiction work about the Eichmann case: The case 40/61. Major works set against the backdrop of the Second World War are De Aanslag, Het stenen bruidsbed, and Siegfried.
Additionally, Mulisch often incorporates ancient legends or myths in his writings, drawing on Greek mythology (e.g. in De Elementen), Jewish mysticism (in De ontdekking van de Hemel and De Procedure), well-known urban legends and politics (Mulisch is politically left-wing, notably defending Fidel Castro since the Cuban revolution). Mulisch is widely read and (according to his critics) often flaunts his philosophical and even scientific knowledge.
Mulisch gained international recognition with the movie De Aanslag (The Assault), (1986) which was based on his eponymous book. It received an Oscar and a Golden Globe for best foreign movie and has been translated in more than twenty languages.
His novel De ontdekking van de Hemel (1992) was filmed in 2001 as The Discovery of Heaven by Jeroen Krabbé, starring Stephen Fry.
Amongst many awards he has received for individual works and his total body of work, the most important is the Prijs der Nederlandse Letteren (Prize of Dutch Literature, an official lifetime achievement award) in 1995.

Reviews

[Laurens Monster · Rating 3 out of 5]

finally done with all the mulisch novels ugh

[Clemens Schoonderwoert · Rating 3 out of 5]

**Should Read as 3.5 Stars**

This book is a fantasy life/war novel, in which fiction and real events are interwoven with each other in a very fine fashion but at the same time it will give the book a surrealistic feel, and all these events are presented in a very particular formula.

Storytelling is very good, but the tale as a whole is somewhat complicated to follow, but nevertheless it is a clear developed story from begin till end.

When you've managed to follow and understand it all, it's quite a clever story in its own right, but to be honest, you'll have to appreciate it as a reader.

All in all, it's a tale which is peculiar in its set up, but still the author produces a surprising tale where real historical events are intertwined with fantasy names to make this a completely worthwhile read if you're determined to read it till the end.

Very much recommended to all Dutch readers, because so far as I'm aware it's sadly not in any other language available, first of all for its unusualness and secondly for its delightful and sometimes intellectual storytelling, and that's why I like to call this book: "A Remarkable Storyteller"!

[Damiën Heemskerk · Rating 5 out of 5]

In mijn mening is dit Mulisch' magnum opus, zo niet van de Nederlandse literatuur. Meeslepend, poëtisch, intelligent (ja, voor sommigen misschien pretentieus), hartverscheurend en dat alles in een ontzettend compacte, conceptuele structuur.

[Remco de Kok · Rating 2 out of 5]

Van de ‘Grote Drie’ is Mulisch absoluut mijn favoriet, maar het experimentele, Ulysses-achtige register dat hij hier opentrekt is duidelijk niet zijn sterkste kant. Het idee is aardig, maar echt werken doet het niet, het blijft te fragmentarisch en associatief om echt te boeien of overtuigen.

[csillagkohó · Rating 4 out of 5]

alleen echte mulischhoofden weten