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Babettes gæstebud
I en lille norsk fjordby tager to aldrende søstre den franske chefkok Babette i huset, efter hun er flygtet fra det revolutionære Paris i 1871. I fjorten år koger hun trofast klipfisk og øllebrød, men en dag sker miraklet. En gammel lotteriseddel, der gennem alle årene har været hendes eneste forbindelse til Frankrig, kommer ud med den store gevinst. Babette bruger alle pengene på ét storstilet gæstebud, hvor hun kan udfolde sin sublime kulinariske kunst.
96 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1958
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About the author
Isak Dinesen
157 books580 followersPseudonym used by the Danish author Karen Blixen.
Baroness Karen von Blixen-Finecke (Danish: [kʰɑːɑn ˈb̥leɡ̊sn̩]), born Karen Christentze Dinesen, was a Danish author, also known by the pen name Isak Dinesen, who wrote works in Danish, French and English. She also at times used the pen names Tania Blixen, Osceola, and Pierre Andrézel.
Blixen is best known for Out of Africa, an account of her life while living in Kenya, and for one of her stories, "Babette's Feast," both of which have been adapted into Academy Award-winning motion pictures. She is also noted for her Seven Gothic Tales, particularly in Denmark.
(wikipedia)
Baroness Karen von Blixen-Finecke (Danish: [kʰɑːɑn ˈb̥leɡ̊sn̩]), born Karen Christentze Dinesen, was a Danish author, also known by the pen name Isak Dinesen, who wrote works in Danish, French and English. She also at times used the pen names Tania Blixen, Osceola, and Pierre Andrézel.
Blixen is best known for Out of Africa, an account of her life while living in Kenya, and for one of her stories, "Babette's Feast," both of which have been adapted into Academy Award-winning motion pictures. She is also noted for her Seven Gothic Tales, particularly in Denmark.
(wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 750 reviews
January 13, 2022
Babette's Feast is the story of self-determination, of the French Revolution, of living large, a grand life, one full of success and excess, but knowing that what is more important is following one's conscience and standing up for what is right even if it means paying the price for that for the rest of her life.
It is also the story of giving up free will, of letting one's life's course be decided by another and consequently accepting a dour life ordained by the pastor who leads a Christian cult that strips all joy from this life in preparation for the Golden Jerusalem in the life hereafter.
And what happens when they both meet. What happens is sacrifice, is Christian charity, is a colourless life. But then, a windfall comes into all their lives and the charity is repaid by an artist who must create, who must given the chance, do her utmost to make the greatest creation of her life, and again, will pay the price for that for the rest of her life.
There is one really rather awful but humorous tale of another feast in the book, gruesome too.
This is the entire plot, so if you are going to read the book or watch the film (the film is better) then don't read these spoilers.
free pdf Babette's Feast
It is also the story of giving up free will, of letting one's life's course be decided by another and consequently accepting a dour life ordained by the pastor who leads a Christian cult that strips all joy from this life in preparation for the Golden Jerusalem in the life hereafter.
And what happens when they both meet. What happens is sacrifice, is Christian charity, is a colourless life. But then, a windfall comes into all their lives and the charity is repaid by an artist who must create, who must given the chance, do her utmost to make the greatest creation of her life, and again, will pay the price for that for the rest of her life.
There is one really rather awful but humorous tale of another feast in the book, gruesome too.
This is the entire plot, so if you are going to read the book or watch the film (the film is better) then don't read these spoilers.
free pdf Babette's Feast
July 22, 2021
I loved the beautiful prose in Isak Dinesen’s Out of Africa, so when I had the opportunity to read this short story, I jumped at it. It’s nearly impossible to compare a lengthier work with something of this brevity, however. This was a sweet story, if a little bit sentimental. It reminded me of the days when I read fables to my children. Certainly, there are lessons to be learned here. Lessons about acceptance, sacrifice, and gratitude. Oh, and as you may have guessed from the title, there’s a bit of cookery going on here. Actually, a very elaborate and scrumptious feast is described in wonderful detail. It would be a delight for all of the senses to sit down to a repast like this one! But it’s much more than the meal itself; it’s the heart and soul of the cook, in this case, Babette, that is devoted to the act of providing, of giving to another in thanks. But Babette can say it much better than I can!
“A great artist, Mesdames, is never poor. We have something, Mesdames, of which other people know nothing.”
“A great artist, Mesdames, is never poor. We have something, Mesdames, of which other people know nothing.”
March 29, 2025
Elon Musk, the billionaire adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, said: “The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy.”
The death of human empathy is one of the earliest and most telling signs of a culture about to fall into barbarism— Hannah Arendt
Original 2020 review, sometwhat edited: Rough and rougher times early June 2020, and I had just read Tom Stoppard's The Hard Problem and Bill McKibbens's Falter, both of which explore the question of whether we are "hard-wired" (somehow) for empathy/altruism. I see lots of righteous rage, peaceful marches, I see vandalism, I see police brutality, I see anarchistic destruction, I see police taking a knee to acknowledge wrongs, I see and feel a swirl of confusing issues and emotions. So I was thinking of an example of an artistic experience that might movingly represent Goodness, altruism, and recalled this 1987 winner of The Academy Award-winning foreign film, Babette's Feast, based on a short story by Isak Dinesen:
In the story Martine and Philippa live in a small village on Jutland in 19th-century Denmark. They are caretakers of a dwindling convent. A young Frenchwoman, who can cook, I note, comes to them and offers to cook for the community and does so for 14 years. Each year a French friend buys her a lottery ticket and one year she (quietly) wins it, 10,00 francs, which she spends (yep, all of its !) on one amazing meal, which I recommend your experiencing in the movie so you can taste and smell and see it, one of the very best eating scenes in the history of cinema. The meal is for the sisters and for the simple folks in the community. You will weep with joy and you will be very hungry as you watch. But this is the first time I have read the story, and I loved the simple beauty of it, the restraint, the heart in it.
Forgive me for sharing this, but, at the end, realizing that this fortune is now gone:
Martine tearfully says, "Now you will be poor the rest of your life", to which Babette replies, "An artist is never poor."
As it turns out she had been a five-star chef in Paris, having sought political asylum in Denmark.
Woo Hoo! Highly recommend.
In 1987 many restaurants created reasonable approximations of the feast for customers as a high price (so, no, they weren't giving it to the poor), but still:
https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/kb...
Trailer for the movie:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dPUf...
The death of human empathy is one of the earliest and most telling signs of a culture about to fall into barbarism— Hannah Arendt
Original 2020 review, sometwhat edited: Rough and rougher times early June 2020, and I had just read Tom Stoppard's The Hard Problem and Bill McKibbens's Falter, both of which explore the question of whether we are "hard-wired" (somehow) for empathy/altruism. I see lots of righteous rage, peaceful marches, I see vandalism, I see police brutality, I see anarchistic destruction, I see police taking a knee to acknowledge wrongs, I see and feel a swirl of confusing issues and emotions. So I was thinking of an example of an artistic experience that might movingly represent Goodness, altruism, and recalled this 1987 winner of The Academy Award-winning foreign film, Babette's Feast, based on a short story by Isak Dinesen:
In the story Martine and Philippa live in a small village on Jutland in 19th-century Denmark. They are caretakers of a dwindling convent. A young Frenchwoman, who can cook, I note, comes to them and offers to cook for the community and does so for 14 years. Each year a French friend buys her a lottery ticket and one year she (quietly) wins it, 10,00 francs, which she spends (yep, all of its !) on one amazing meal, which I recommend your experiencing in the movie so you can taste and smell and see it, one of the very best eating scenes in the history of cinema. The meal is for the sisters and for the simple folks in the community. You will weep with joy and you will be very hungry as you watch. But this is the first time I have read the story, and I loved the simple beauty of it, the restraint, the heart in it.
Forgive me for sharing this, but, at the end, realizing that this fortune is now gone:
Martine tearfully says, "Now you will be poor the rest of your life", to which Babette replies, "An artist is never poor."
As it turns out she had been a five-star chef in Paris, having sought political asylum in Denmark.
Woo Hoo! Highly recommend.
In 1987 many restaurants created reasonable approximations of the feast for customers as a high price (so, no, they weren't giving it to the poor), but still:
https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/kb...
Trailer for the movie:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9dPUf...
September 24, 2016
"Babetina gozba" je pravo malo remek-delo.
Život autorke ove novele, Karen Bliksen, priča je za sebe. Bila je pesnikinja, slikarka, plemkinja, vlasnica plantaže u Africi (da, da, dobro ste pročitali - vlasnica plantaže kafe, a predgrađe Najrobija gde se nalazila njena plantaža danas se zove Karen). Njena dela su doživela brojne ekranizacije, čak je i jedan asteroid nazvan po njoj :) Ali, ona je sebe najradije nazivala pripovedačem, i kako nam je to preneo u odličnom Pogovoru prevodilac Radoš Kosović, sebe je često poredila sa Šeherezadom.
Radnja "Babetine gozbe" odigrava se u 19.veku, na samom severu Norveške, i pored naslovne junakinje Babet, njene dve gazdarice, sestara Martine i Filipe, glavni junaci ove nadasve simaptične novele su i stanovnici malog gradića po imenu Berlevog.
"Babetina gozba" je pisana na prvi pogled lakim i pitkim stilom, koji lako uvlači čitaoca u Babetinu, Martininu i Filipinu svakodnevnicu. U isto vreme je odlično dočarana atmosfera malog gradića i mentalitet njegovih stanovnika.
Ocena: 5+
March 22, 2017
Best known for her award winning memoir Out of Africa, Karen Blixen also wrote several other works. In addition to being a farmer/rancher/adventurer, she was, in fact, a very good writer, and that is evident in this short work, Babette's Feast. It's the story of a French woman, exiled during the political upheaval in her country, who seeks asylum in a small Norwegian village with two pious sisters. But Babette has a secret, and when good fortune smiles upon her, she uses her secret to repay the sisters who took her in.
April 30, 2024
Babette's Feast
I have long admired the Danish writer Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen, 1885 -- 1962) even though I hadn't read her work in many years. When I read a friend's Goodreads review of Dinesen's "Babette's Feast", I was prompted at last to revisit this work. "Babette's Feast", a story of only 22 pages, was included in Dinesen's 1958 colection of stories, "Anecdotes of Destiny". It was made into a celebrated film in 1987 which received the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
Dinesen's tale is set in a small Norwegian village called Berlevaag in the mountains in the late 19th century. The setting has an archaic, distant feel captured by the beautiful Baroque character of Dinesen's English. The story involves two elderly sisters who have been raised in a strict Protestant religious sect which taught the shunning of the things of this world. Each of the sisters, Martine and Phillipa, had an experience with a man in early womanhood which verged on becoming sensual and romantic but failed. Many years later, the failed suitor of Phillipa sends a mysterious, shabbily dressed poor woman, Babette, to the sisters' house. She becomes their cook and maid and works without pay. When Babette wins a French lottery, she uses, without telling the sisters, the entire proceeds to stage an elaborate feast for the sisters and the dwindling members of the religious sect. The failed suitor of Martine many years earlier attends the feast. He has become a famous and powerful figure, General Loewenhielm. Dinesen's story builds carefully up to Babette's feast, describes its climactic moment, and then explores the aftermath. During the feast, General Loewenhielm, gives a speech which, like much else in the story and in Dinesen is both obscure and profound. Loewenhielm describes the "frail and foolish" character of humanity, but he finds that for a brief moment "mercy and truth have met together and righteousness and bliss have kissed one another."
In its few short pages, "Babetter's Feast" is a powerfully enigmatic tale which suggests competing ways of understanding life. There is a strongly religious component of grace and God's love for sinful humanity. There is also the sense of a too-narrow spirituality in the lives of the sisters and their shunning of sexuality and the joys of the world. Then there is Babette whose life suggests the nature and importance of artistic creativity. The threads of the story come together in a dazzling way.
"Babette's Feast" is a moving, enigmatic tale of religion, sensuality, and art. The story has a depth underlying its Baroque, elaborate veneer. I was glad to reread this story and to remember after many years my fascination with the writing of Isak Dinesen.
Robin Friedman
I have long admired the Danish writer Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen, 1885 -- 1962) even though I hadn't read her work in many years. When I read a friend's Goodreads review of Dinesen's "Babette's Feast", I was prompted at last to revisit this work. "Babette's Feast", a story of only 22 pages, was included in Dinesen's 1958 colection of stories, "Anecdotes of Destiny". It was made into a celebrated film in 1987 which received the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
Dinesen's tale is set in a small Norwegian village called Berlevaag in the mountains in the late 19th century. The setting has an archaic, distant feel captured by the beautiful Baroque character of Dinesen's English. The story involves two elderly sisters who have been raised in a strict Protestant religious sect which taught the shunning of the things of this world. Each of the sisters, Martine and Phillipa, had an experience with a man in early womanhood which verged on becoming sensual and romantic but failed. Many years later, the failed suitor of Phillipa sends a mysterious, shabbily dressed poor woman, Babette, to the sisters' house. She becomes their cook and maid and works without pay. When Babette wins a French lottery, she uses, without telling the sisters, the entire proceeds to stage an elaborate feast for the sisters and the dwindling members of the religious sect. The failed suitor of Martine many years earlier attends the feast. He has become a famous and powerful figure, General Loewenhielm. Dinesen's story builds carefully up to Babette's feast, describes its climactic moment, and then explores the aftermath. During the feast, General Loewenhielm, gives a speech which, like much else in the story and in Dinesen is both obscure and profound. Loewenhielm describes the "frail and foolish" character of humanity, but he finds that for a brief moment "mercy and truth have met together and righteousness and bliss have kissed one another."
In its few short pages, "Babetter's Feast" is a powerfully enigmatic tale which suggests competing ways of understanding life. There is a strongly religious component of grace and God's love for sinful humanity. There is also the sense of a too-narrow spirituality in the lives of the sisters and their shunning of sexuality and the joys of the world. Then there is Babette whose life suggests the nature and importance of artistic creativity. The threads of the story come together in a dazzling way.
"Babette's Feast" is a moving, enigmatic tale of religion, sensuality, and art. The story has a depth underlying its Baroque, elaborate veneer. I was glad to reread this story and to remember after many years my fascination with the writing of Isak Dinesen.
Robin Friedman
June 1, 2021
Martine and Philippa, two pious ascetic sisters, take Babette, a French refugee, into their home, and little they know how this simple act of compassion will change their lives. When good fortune befalls Babette, she favors her mistresses with a sumptuous feast, and this generous act transforms the persons of Babette, the sisters, and those who are connected with them who attend the feast.
Babatte's Feast is a sensitive story about generosity, tolerance, acceptance, and healing. Martine and Philippa were first skeptical of having a catholic among them since they themselves belonged to a Lutheran religious sect. But sympathy and compassion drive them so to act. During the long years of association, they come to respect and tolerate one another; and the feast is the culmination of that association, whereby they understand and accept each other as humans, as children of God, beyond all man-made divisions. The generosity of Babette and sisters to one another and their collective generosity toward their friends heal the troubled minds of all, and they also come to understand true spirituality.
Isak Dinesen writes this short work beautifully. She brings the characters into life in such a way that you connect with them immediately. And she takes you right into the depths of these characters and exposes their thoughts, emotions, and vulnerabilities. I'm quite amazed at how she's achieved such a feat in so short a work. This is my first exposure to Isak Dinesen/Karen Blixen, and I'm already admiring her writing art. I would certainly read more of her works.
Babatte's Feast is a sensitive story about generosity, tolerance, acceptance, and healing. Martine and Philippa were first skeptical of having a catholic among them since they themselves belonged to a Lutheran religious sect. But sympathy and compassion drive them so to act. During the long years of association, they come to respect and tolerate one another; and the feast is the culmination of that association, whereby they understand and accept each other as humans, as children of God, beyond all man-made divisions. The generosity of Babette and sisters to one another and their collective generosity toward their friends heal the troubled minds of all, and they also come to understand true spirituality.
Isak Dinesen writes this short work beautifully. She brings the characters into life in such a way that you connect with them immediately. And she takes you right into the depths of these characters and exposes their thoughts, emotions, and vulnerabilities. I'm quite amazed at how she's achieved such a feat in so short a work. This is my first exposure to Isak Dinesen/Karen Blixen, and I'm already admiring her writing art. I would certainly read more of her works.
December 7, 2016
This is an astonishingly good story, there is an awful lot packed into a small space. What I enjoyed most about this story is the sustained irony, the way that familiar things are stood on their heads, and how well the writer plays variations on a theme.
A great deal of this story's effect depends on familiarity with some once well-known Christian themes and images, which may make it less accessible for some.
August 23, 2018
3.5/Realmente tengo muy pocas palabras hacia este cuento/relato. Es bonito, suave, sin ningún aspaviento, y con un final un tanto peculiar. Sí, algo así.
November 27, 2020
En un idílico fiordo noruego, con unos personajes que parecen inmateriales, se desarrolla esta preciosa historia escrita por Isak Dinesen, famosa sobre todo por su libro Memorias de África. Si buscas una narración llena de bondad y feelgood – pero que no sea ñoña – este es tu libro.
Yo había visto la película hace tiempo, así que no he tenido sorpresas en la lectura, pero me ha resultado muy agradable. El estilo es simple y lleno de belleza, acorde con un entorno prístino y natural, lleno de espiritualidad.
El bien, la bondad y la belleza lo llenan todo, especialmente los que irradian las dos hermanas:
De jóvenes, Martine y Philippa habían sido extraordinariamente bonitas, con esa belleza casi sobrenatural de los frutales en flor o de las nieves perpetuas.
Las descripciones son preciosas:
Babette había puesto una fila de velas en el centro de la mesa; las pequeñas llamas brillaban sobre las chaquetas, los vestidos negros y el uniforme escarlata y se reflejaron en los ojos claros y húmedos.
En resumen, esta historia es un placer para los sentidos que, de la misma manera que el festín que prepara Babette, logra despertar la sensualidad dormida y el deseo de felicidad.
Yo había visto la película hace tiempo, así que no he tenido sorpresas en la lectura, pero me ha resultado muy agradable. El estilo es simple y lleno de belleza, acorde con un entorno prístino y natural, lleno de espiritualidad.
El bien, la bondad y la belleza lo llenan todo, especialmente los que irradian las dos hermanas:
De jóvenes, Martine y Philippa habían sido extraordinariamente bonitas, con esa belleza casi sobrenatural de los frutales en flor o de las nieves perpetuas.
Las descripciones son preciosas:
Babette había puesto una fila de velas en el centro de la mesa; las pequeñas llamas brillaban sobre las chaquetas, los vestidos negros y el uniforme escarlata y se reflejaron en los ojos claros y húmedos.
En resumen, esta historia es un placer para los sentidos que, de la misma manera que el festín que prepara Babette, logra despertar la sensualidad dormida y el deseo de felicidad.
December 25, 2020
«In questo mondo qualsiasi cosa è possibile»
Calici tintinnanti, brodo di tartaruga, scampanellìi delle slitte, ricordi lontani che appaiono come visioni, vetri appannati dai quali guardare, alla luce tremula delle candele, canti sommessi che colmano i cuori, neve che scende a fiocchi durante la notte.
“Quella sera tante cose erano state, in un modo o nell’altro, al di là d’ogni comprensione.”
Quale migliore lettura da regalarsi nel giorno di Natale, ricordando il magnifico film visto un milione di anni fa?
Per una strana associazione di idee, sulla quale non starò a indagare più di tanto, il desiderio improvviso di rileggere (e guardare nuovamente) The Dead di James Joyce.
“In quei momenti si rendevano conto che Babette era profonda, e che negli abissi del suo essere v'erano passioni, ricordi e desideri di cui esse non sapevano nulla.”
Calici tintinnanti, brodo di tartaruga, scampanellìi delle slitte, ricordi lontani che appaiono come visioni, vetri appannati dai quali guardare, alla luce tremula delle candele, canti sommessi che colmano i cuori, neve che scende a fiocchi durante la notte.
“Quella sera tante cose erano state, in un modo o nell’altro, al di là d’ogni comprensione.”
Quale migliore lettura da regalarsi nel giorno di Natale, ricordando il magnifico film visto un milione di anni fa?
Per una strana associazione di idee, sulla quale non starò a indagare più di tanto, il desiderio improvviso di rileggere (e guardare nuovamente) The Dead di James Joyce.
“In quei momenti si rendevano conto che Babette era profonda, e che negli abissi del suo essere v'erano passioni, ricordi e desideri di cui esse non sapevano nulla.”
October 24, 2021
Your art has value, even if you do not express it. A great love has value, even if it is never consummated. Your genius has value, even if your entire life it remains squelched. Your deepmost personality has value, even if it is thoroughly hidden by your introverted tendencies. Your life has value, even if you make ‘wrong choices’ every step of the way. Taken to its logical extreme, the idea driving this story tells us that everything has intrinsic value. You do not need success or adulation or even self-expression for that to be true. If it’s in you, it counts. And, according to Dinesen, once we fully comprehend this truth we have experienced grace.
The other message I get from this story is that whatever success we happen to enjoy in life derives mostly from our compulsion to share our intrinsic value with others, and from luck.
This is a heartening and emboldening story for any artist, plumber, scientist, barista or thinker plugging away in obscurity.
The other message I get from this story is that whatever success we happen to enjoy in life derives mostly from our compulsion to share our intrinsic value with others, and from luck.
This is a heartening and emboldening story for any artist, plumber, scientist, barista or thinker plugging away in obscurity.
January 20, 2016
This was a short novella about a young woman Babette who finds shelter from the civil war in France with two sisters. She stays for many years, cooking the bland food the expect but than asks a favor. She wants to prepare a French feast for the women and their guests on their Father's birthday.
Enjoyed this very much. There is some subtle humor and even a bit of a mystery. Who really is this mysterious Babette? Why at her dinner do the guests find themselves changing? Quite a good story from an author I have long wanted to read.
Enjoyed this very much. There is some subtle humor and even a bit of a mystery. Who really is this mysterious Babette? Why at her dinner do the guests find themselves changing? Quite a good story from an author I have long wanted to read.
June 3, 2021
I have not read anything by Dinesen before and knew nothing of the story either. It was a beautiful and lovely story from beginning to end. Babette is a French woman who comes to live with a pious Christian family in Norway. She prepares an elaborate feast to show her gratitude to the sisters who took her in as their cook when she fled France. It is an act of self-sacrifice by Babette and one that shows the sisters how creativity, talents and abilities can be used for good. Their religious beliefs guided their decisions and actions their entire lives. They found importance in providing charity to others and not placing value on earthy things. I loved the way the characters were connected and how the emotions really came through in the prose.
May 2, 2021
I saw the film many years ago and so remembered the basic plot. The story is wonderfully understated and I loved the contrasts between the austere lives of the small religious community in Norway and the lavish meal Babette prepares for them, something she used to do and was famous for in Paris.
March 4, 2023
Un maravilloso cuento sobre la felicidad y el talento.
July 9, 2025
“Righteousness and bliss shall kiss one another.”
I’ve been wanting to read this for ages, and it was well worth waiting for. It’s a unique little story: two young girls live in the 1800’s within a staid and strict religious community along a Norwegian fjord. They grow up, give up love affairs, and one day, they take in a French stranger, a woman who had been arrested as a Pétroleuse (what a great word, meaning someone who set fire to houses with petroleum), presumably a French Revolution refugee.
They hire her as a cook, and the result is something mystical that ultimately champions the artistic life.
“She had appeared to be a beggar; she turned out to be a conqueror.”
Now that’s a wonderful little story, very much a Blixen/Dinesen one, and for me it’s the writing that carries it off, with lines like “As young girls, Martine and Philippa had been extraordinarily pretty, with the almost supernatural fairness of flowering fruit trees or perpetual snow.”
Somehow Blixen makes you feel all of it together by the end--a simple piety, some revolutionary verve, and the strength to tackle your artistic dreams. She was a brilliant story-weaver, a Scheherazade I could listen to for 1001 nights.
I’ve been wanting to read this for ages, and it was well worth waiting for. It’s a unique little story: two young girls live in the 1800’s within a staid and strict religious community along a Norwegian fjord. They grow up, give up love affairs, and one day, they take in a French stranger, a woman who had been arrested as a Pétroleuse (what a great word, meaning someone who set fire to houses with petroleum), presumably a French Revolution refugee.
They hire her as a cook, and the result is something mystical that ultimately champions the artistic life.
“She had appeared to be a beggar; she turned out to be a conqueror.”
Now that’s a wonderful little story, very much a Blixen/Dinesen one, and for me it’s the writing that carries it off, with lines like “As young girls, Martine and Philippa had been extraordinarily pretty, with the almost supernatural fairness of flowering fruit trees or perpetual snow.”
Somehow Blixen makes you feel all of it together by the end--a simple piety, some revolutionary verve, and the strength to tackle your artistic dreams. She was a brilliant story-weaver, a Scheherazade I could listen to for 1001 nights.
November 11, 2024
En un tranquilo pueblecito de Noruega hay una austera comunidad religiosa que tras la muerte de su pastor trata de no perder las buenas costumbres que durante años les han unido. El factor que mueve la trama de esta novelita corta es la llegada a este lugar de Babette, una mujer que llega sin nada desde Francia en torno a 1871.
Babette entra a trabajar en la casa de las hijas del pastor y pasará allí más de una década. Sin embargo, a priori, nunca parece estar integrada del todo y se la percibe como alguien misterioso y “de fuera”. Pasa el tiempo… y verdaderamente nadie la conoce. ¿Cómo se sentirá ella al respecto?
Lo que da nombre a la novela es precisamente un evento organizado por la propia Babette, en honor al pastor quiere realizar un banquete e invitar a toda la comunidad… Pese a la sorpresa general, deciden asistir.
Una historia donde realmente pasa muy poco, que habla de comunidad y familia, de los lazos que nos unen, de gratitud. Que pone en perspectiva lo que de verdad importa y el distinto valor que damos a los bienes. Para recordarnos el poder de la comida para unir a las personas y crear recuerdos inolvidables, para agradecer a aquellos que nos han reunido tantas veces alrededor de una mesa solo para hacernos pasar un buen momento y cuidarnos. Como un acto, puede cambiarlo todo para siempre.
Al mismo tiempo, el libro habla también de algo tan atemporal como la dificultad de lograr el equilibrio entre lo austero y el disfrute, el vivir a todo trapo o con cabeza por lo que pueda ocurrir mañana. Así, a pesar de ser una historia sencilla, también tiene un componente simbólico.
Un libro encantador de esos que te deja el corazón calentito y perfecto para leer en torno a las fechas navideñas. Ha sido mi primer contacto con la obra de Isak Dinisen (seudónimo de Karen Blixen) pero me gustaría en los próximos meses seguir indagando, seguramente iré a por su escrito más conocido, ‘Memorias de África’.
Por cierto, delicia las ilustraciones de Noemí Villamuza. Y aprovecho para recomendaros el episodio del podcast Grandes Infelices dedicado a la autora.
Babette entra a trabajar en la casa de las hijas del pastor y pasará allí más de una década. Sin embargo, a priori, nunca parece estar integrada del todo y se la percibe como alguien misterioso y “de fuera”. Pasa el tiempo… y verdaderamente nadie la conoce. ¿Cómo se sentirá ella al respecto?
Lo que da nombre a la novela es precisamente un evento organizado por la propia Babette, en honor al pastor quiere realizar un banquete e invitar a toda la comunidad… Pese a la sorpresa general, deciden asistir.
Una historia donde realmente pasa muy poco, que habla de comunidad y familia, de los lazos que nos unen, de gratitud. Que pone en perspectiva lo que de verdad importa y el distinto valor que damos a los bienes. Para recordarnos el poder de la comida para unir a las personas y crear recuerdos inolvidables, para agradecer a aquellos que nos han reunido tantas veces alrededor de una mesa solo para hacernos pasar un buen momento y cuidarnos. Como un acto, puede cambiarlo todo para siempre.
Al mismo tiempo, el libro habla también de algo tan atemporal como la dificultad de lograr el equilibrio entre lo austero y el disfrute, el vivir a todo trapo o con cabeza por lo que pueda ocurrir mañana. Así, a pesar de ser una historia sencilla, también tiene un componente simbólico.
Un libro encantador de esos que te deja el corazón calentito y perfecto para leer en torno a las fechas navideñas. Ha sido mi primer contacto con la obra de Isak Dinisen (seudónimo de Karen Blixen) pero me gustaría en los próximos meses seguir indagando, seguramente iré a por su escrito más conocido, ‘Memorias de África’.
Por cierto, delicia las ilustraciones de Noemí Villamuza. Y aprovecho para recomendaros el episodio del podcast Grandes Infelices dedicado a la autora.
April 26, 2022
Wer die dänische Verfilmung dieser kleinen Novelle aus den 80er Jahren kennt, wird sich an einen ruhigen Film erinnern, in dem es um eine französische Köchin im norwegischen Exil geht, die in einem Haus von zwei pietistischen Schwestern lebt und arbeitet. Die beiden alten Damen lehnen die Sinnesfreuden aufgrund ihres Glaubens ab, am Ende kocht Babette aufwendig französisch im Stile der Haute Cuisine. Es gibt ein Fest. Alle haben sich lieb, Dankbarkeit, Barmherzigkeit und so weiter und so fort.
Umso überraschter war ich, als ich nun Blixens Novelle las. Denn Babette ist da nicht selbstlose Dienerin, die die Tischgesellschaft mit einem opulenten Mahl glücklich machen will. Sie strotzt quasi von Überzeugung und sieht sich als Künstlerin, die endlich mal ihr Können zeigen will. Das Kochen dient also nicht in erster Linie dem Genuss der Bekochten, sondern der Befriedigung des Egos der Köchin. Babette will am Ende nicht wieder nach Paris zurück, da die Herrschaften, denen sie früher gedient hat, nicht mehr leben. Sie sagt:
"Sie waren dazu erzogen und geübt, mit größerem Aufwand, als Sie, meine lieben Damen [die Schwestern], auch nur begreifen und glauben können, dazu erzogen, dass sie verstehen konnten, was ich für eine Künstlerin bin. Ich konnte sie glücklich machen. Wenn ich mein Allerbestes gab, konnte ich sie vollkommen glücklich machen. [...] Für einen Künstlerin ist es schrecklich und unerträglich, wenn er dazu ermutigt wird, nur sein Nächstbestes zu geben und dafür noch Beifall bekommt. Durch die ganze Welt schallt unablässlich der eine Schrei aus dem Herzen des Künstlers: Erlaubt mir doch, dass ich mein Äußerstes gebe!"
Mit anderen Worten: nicht das Einfache und Schlichte kann vollkommen befriedigen. Nur das Beste vom Besten und wenn alle ihr Äußerstes geben, führt dazu, dass vollkommenes Glück erreicht wird. Das steht so im krassen Gegensatz zu anderen Filmen, in denen es um die hohe Kochkunst geht, z.B. dem Animationsfilm Ratatouille. Da erlebt der Antiheld Restaurantkritiker sein vollkommenes Glück, als er das einfache Gemüsegericht aus seiner Kindheit serviert bekommt. Dieser scheiß Leistungsgedanke, von wegen man immer sein Bestes geben muss, damit andere zufrieden sind, mag ja ein Spiegelbild der Zeit gewesen sein und ist es auch leider heute noch. Aber ihre Schildkrötensuppe (ist tatsächlich die Vorspeise des Festmahls) kann sich Babette in ihren Künstlerhals schütten. Eine einfache Kartoffelsuppe mit ner Butterstulle ziehe ich dem immer noch vor.
Umso überraschter war ich, als ich nun Blixens Novelle las. Denn Babette ist da nicht selbstlose Dienerin, die die Tischgesellschaft mit einem opulenten Mahl glücklich machen will. Sie strotzt quasi von Überzeugung und sieht sich als Künstlerin, die endlich mal ihr Können zeigen will. Das Kochen dient also nicht in erster Linie dem Genuss der Bekochten, sondern der Befriedigung des Egos der Köchin. Babette will am Ende nicht wieder nach Paris zurück, da die Herrschaften, denen sie früher gedient hat, nicht mehr leben. Sie sagt:
"Sie waren dazu erzogen und geübt, mit größerem Aufwand, als Sie, meine lieben Damen [die Schwestern], auch nur begreifen und glauben können, dazu erzogen, dass sie verstehen konnten, was ich für eine Künstlerin bin. Ich konnte sie glücklich machen. Wenn ich mein Allerbestes gab, konnte ich sie vollkommen glücklich machen. [...] Für einen Künstlerin ist es schrecklich und unerträglich, wenn er dazu ermutigt wird, nur sein Nächstbestes zu geben und dafür noch Beifall bekommt. Durch die ganze Welt schallt unablässlich der eine Schrei aus dem Herzen des Künstlers: Erlaubt mir doch, dass ich mein Äußerstes gebe!"
Mit anderen Worten: nicht das Einfache und Schlichte kann vollkommen befriedigen. Nur das Beste vom Besten und wenn alle ihr Äußerstes geben, führt dazu, dass vollkommenes Glück erreicht wird. Das steht so im krassen Gegensatz zu anderen Filmen, in denen es um die hohe Kochkunst geht, z.B. dem Animationsfilm Ratatouille. Da erlebt der Antiheld Restaurantkritiker sein vollkommenes Glück, als er das einfache Gemüsegericht aus seiner Kindheit serviert bekommt. Dieser scheiß Leistungsgedanke, von wegen man immer sein Bestes geben muss, damit andere zufrieden sind, mag ja ein Spiegelbild der Zeit gewesen sein und ist es auch leider heute noch. Aber ihre Schildkrötensuppe (ist tatsächlich die Vorspeise des Festmahls) kann sich Babette in ihren Künstlerhals schütten. Eine einfache Kartoffelsuppe mit ner Butterstulle ziehe ich dem immer noch vor.
November 1, 2020
I'd seen the movie adaptation, but this was my first read of the tale that inspired it. It is a simple, elegant tale celebrating food, art, beauty, and what these can do for humanity. At times I found it overwritten, and the meal felt as if it passed far too quickly. Being used to the movie, in which you have the opportunity to see the gradual realization of the sublime, I wanted more time with the characters as they ate, to see and feel the impact of the feast on them. Still, it was a lovely story and well-worth the read.
June 20, 2020
"No mundo todo, um longo lamento é emitido pelo coração do artista:
Permitam-me dar o máximo de mim!
Permitam-me dar o máximo de mim!
December 12, 2024
Un racconto nemmeno tanto lungo, da leggere in poche ore, che si rivela un’opera commovente, un fulgente gioiello letterario ricco di sentimenti autentici sul quale, a fine lettura, viene spontaneo fare una breve ma profonda riflessione. “Il Pranzo di Babette” scritto da Karen Blixen [1885-1962] narra la vita semplice e rinunciataria di due anziane sorelle norvegesi, Martina e Camilla, figlie di un decano ormai defunto che ha raccolto intorno a sé un piccolo ma fedele gruppo di adepti che, una volta morto il loro Maestro, continuano a pregare con le due figlie di questi considerate le continuatrici del verbo condiviso con il loro padre e a cui si rivolgono, sempre bene accetti e ricompensati anche i bisognosi e gli emarginati. Nel loro fare del bene le due sorelle accolgono in casa una cuoca francese, di nome Babette che, perso il marito sovversivo nel corso di moti rivoluzionari, ha trovato scampo lontano dalla patria; può sembrare strana ed eccentrica questa scelta di Martina e Camilla, considerate le loro ristrettezze, ma Babette regalerà, dopo aver vinto inaspettatamente una lotteria milionaria, tra smarrimento e sbalordita partecipazione dei pochi seguaci della congrega, un pranzo indimenticabile per l’ eccellente qualità e la regale quantità delle portate e dei manicaretti che Babette avrà preparato con tutta la sua partecipazione emotiva di cristiana condivisione materiale e spirituale. Un apologo che offre un’intensa emozione e partecipe sensibilità durante la sua lettura e genera alla fine puri sentimenti di cristiana fratellanza.
February 20, 2025
# short stories in the shortest month #19
A Festa de Babette, de Karen Blixen
Li esta “história do destino” há muito, muito tempo, logo no ano em que foi editada em Portugal e, obviamente, não me recordava de nada, mas foi melhor assim, pois consegui sentir toda emoção que me causou como se fosse uma novidade.
Pode a soma de uma série de vitórias, espalhadas por muitos anos e muitas nações, ser uma derrota? O General Loewenhilem tinha satisfeito os desejos do Tenente Loewenhilem e ultrapassa as suas ambições. Poderá dizer-se que tinha conquistado o mundo inteiro. E o resultado era este: o homem de meia-idade, imponente, sábio nos seus usos do mundo, voltava-se para o seu vulto ingénuo de rapaz e perguntava-lhe, com gravidade, com amargura até, o que ganhara ele com isso. Alguma coisa se perdera.
“A Festa de Babette” é um conto sobre o que se é, o que se foi e o que se poderia ter sido, sobre oportunidades e vidas perdidas e de como enfrentar uma existência austera, ou que se tornou austera devido às circunstâncias, com nobreza e estoicismo.
Ou então Babette estava sentada no tripé da cozinha, imóvel, as mãos fortes no regaço e os olhos negros muito abertos, qual enigmática e fatal Pitonisa sentada em sua trípode. Em momentos assim compreendiam que Babete era uma pessoa profunda e que nos recessos do seu ser habitavam paixões, lembranças e saudades que elas desconheciam. Um leve arrepio gelava então as duas irmãs, que no seu íntimo pensavam: “Talvez ela seja afinal uma prétrolouse.”
Quando se dá aquilo que foi de forma preguiçosa traduzido como “festa”, Babette, uma refugiada francesa da malograda Comuna de 1871, já vive na casa das piedosas irmãs Martine e Philippa há 12 anos. O banquete que decide organizar para os membros de uma despojada facção religiosa calvinista é mais do que um festim dos sentidos, é uma prova de virtude e um momento de superação das próprias limitações, sejam elas pessoais ou culturais.
A Festa de Babette, de Karen Blixen
Li esta “história do destino” há muito, muito tempo, logo no ano em que foi editada em Portugal e, obviamente, não me recordava de nada, mas foi melhor assim, pois consegui sentir toda emoção que me causou como se fosse uma novidade.
Pode a soma de uma série de vitórias, espalhadas por muitos anos e muitas nações, ser uma derrota? O General Loewenhilem tinha satisfeito os desejos do Tenente Loewenhilem e ultrapassa as suas ambições. Poderá dizer-se que tinha conquistado o mundo inteiro. E o resultado era este: o homem de meia-idade, imponente, sábio nos seus usos do mundo, voltava-se para o seu vulto ingénuo de rapaz e perguntava-lhe, com gravidade, com amargura até, o que ganhara ele com isso. Alguma coisa se perdera.
“A Festa de Babette” é um conto sobre o que se é, o que se foi e o que se poderia ter sido, sobre oportunidades e vidas perdidas e de como enfrentar uma existência austera, ou que se tornou austera devido às circunstâncias, com nobreza e estoicismo.
Ou então Babette estava sentada no tripé da cozinha, imóvel, as mãos fortes no regaço e os olhos negros muito abertos, qual enigmática e fatal Pitonisa sentada em sua trípode. Em momentos assim compreendiam que Babete era uma pessoa profunda e que nos recessos do seu ser habitavam paixões, lembranças e saudades que elas desconheciam. Um leve arrepio gelava então as duas irmãs, que no seu íntimo pensavam: “Talvez ela seja afinal uma prétrolouse.”
Quando se dá aquilo que foi de forma preguiçosa traduzido como “festa”, Babette, uma refugiada francesa da malograda Comuna de 1871, já vive na casa das piedosas irmãs Martine e Philippa há 12 anos. O banquete que decide organizar para os membros de uma despojada facção religiosa calvinista é mais do que um festim dos sentidos, é uma prova de virtude e um momento de superação das próprias limitações, sejam elas pessoais ou culturais.
February 1, 2019
فلش بک - یک دهه پیش
کریسمس بود و روز جشن، اعضای کلیسا در چنین روزی سنگ هم از آسمان میافتاد خود را به کلیسا میرساندند تا در مراسم شرکت کنند. اندکی پیش از شروع جشن در حیاط ایستاده بودم و بیرون را نگاه میکردم. خانمی از ترس دیر رسیدن به مراسم، دوان دوان به سمت کلیسا میآمد. چند قدم مانده بود وارد کلیسا شود که پیرمردی فرتوت و خمیده از زن درخواست مقدار اندکی پول به عنوان عیدی تولد مسیح کرد و زن با تحکم و صدایی بلند گفت: "من به جای اینکه پولم رو بدم امثال تو، میبخشم به کلیسا و اونا خودشون هرطوری نیاز باشه خرجش میکنن". این را گفت و وارد شد. آن روز و آن جلسه تمام مدت حواسم به رفتار آن خانم بود، به نحوهی سرود خواندنش، دعا کردنش، هللویا گفتنش و برای خداوند جست و خیز کردنش؛ یک لحظه هم تصویر برخوردش با پیرمرد از جلوی چشمم دور نشد. در آن زمان نمیتوانستم بفهمم چه بلایی سر ما آمده که دستور صریح و یقینی مسیح را نادیده میگیریم و بعد خیلی ساده مشغول آیینهای دینی میشویم و خودمان را پیرو عیسی هم میدانیم
زيرا كه رحمت را پسند میکنم و نه قربانی را، و معرفت را بيشتر از قربانیهای سوختنی - هوشع: 6:6
دوم - یک داستان آشنا
اگر بخواهم ابتدا چند سطر در مورد مهانی بابت بنویسم، تنها به کار بردن واژگانی مانند مذهبی و زهدپیشه کافی است تا بدون هیچ توصیف اضافیای حس و حال حاضر بر کتاب آنطور صریح و واضح به مخاطب منتقل شود ( با یک اووق غلیظ) که بدون هیچ اتلاف وقتی از خیر خواندن کتاب و نوشتهی مرتبط با آن بگذرد. اما اشتباه نکنید. این داستان مذهب نیست، بالعکس، روایتی است در مخالفت با اخلاق مذهبی و تمثیلی از یکی از مهمترین آموزههای مسیحیت به نام فیض
داستان کتاب برای ما ایرانیان بسیار آشناست، به قولی ما خودمان از بر هستیم. یک جامعه مذهبی (فرقی هم نمیکند از کدام نوعش) و آدمهایی پرمدعا که مشکلات و فجایع بزرگ را نمیبینند و اما وقتی نوبت به احکام و آیینهای دینی میرسد، ذرهبین-به-دست، مو را از ماست میکشند بیرون. اما این همهی ماجرا نیست.
سوم - مهمانی بابت
کتاب داستان جامعهای کوچک، مذهبی و متعصب در نروژ را به تصویر میکشد که از هر خوشیای بابت رستگاری و رفتن به بهشت چشمپوشی کردهاند و زندگی را به خودشان و دیگران زهرمار کردند. روزی منفورترین و عجیبترین فرد این اجتماع، خانم بابت - زنی خارجی و غیرمذهبی - که از قضا خدمتکار خانوادهی کشیش است برندهی مبلغ هنگفتی در کشور خود میشود و پیش از ترک روستا، میزبانی مهانی صدمین سالگرد موسس کلیسا را به عهده میگیرد. او هفتهها زمان صرف تدرک مقدمات میهمانی میکند، در حالی که تمام اعضای کلیسا بهطور پنهانی با یکدیگر عهد کردهاند که در مهمانی شرکت کنند، اما هیچ توجهی به خدمات زن و غذاهای عجیب و غریبی که درست کرده است نکنند و بعد از مراسم دعا خانه را ترک کنند. مهمانی آغاز میشود، اعضای کلیسا غذاها را میخورند، شرابها را مینوشند و بدون هیچ حرفی - حتی یک تشکر خشک و خالی - میزبان را ترک میکنند. مهمانی تمام میشود، اما زن خدمتکار روستا را ترک نمیکند، نمیتواند که ترک کند. او که در گذشته سرشناسترین آشپز فرانسوی بوده، تمام ثروت هنگفت خود را صرف پذیرایی از مهمانها کردهاست. در واقع مبلغی که او خرج مهمانی کرده، معادل پذیرایی از همین تعداد مهمان در بهترین رستوران فرانسه بوده
چهارم - فیضِ فراموششده
شاید اگر من هم مدتها پیش مقالهی فیلیپ یانسی در کتاب اعجاب فیض دربارهی این داستان تمثیلی و کاملا الهیاتی را نخوانده بودم، از آن به مثابهی داستانی بیمحتوا و تخیلی عبور میکردم. اما انجیل میگوید که چنین داستانی، دو هزار سال پیش در ابعادی بسیار وسیعتر اتفاق افتاده است. در زبان فارسی فیض معادل بخشش و لطف است، اما این معنی از مفهوم و نقشی که فیض در الهیات مسیحی دارد متمایز است. در الهیات مسیحی فیض یعنی هدیهای که به بهای تمام دارایی اهداکننده تمام میشود ولی برای دریافتکننده رایگان است. این مفهوم مستقیما به فدیه شدن عیسی مسیح بر روی صلیب اشاره دارد
زيرا در آن هنگام كه هنوز ما درمانده بوديم، مسيح در زمانی كه خدا معين كرده بود در راه بیدينان جان سپرد. به ندرت میتوان كسی را يافت كه حاضر باشد حتی برای يک شخص نيكو از جان خود بگذرد، اگرچه ممكن است گاهی كسی به خاطر يک دوست خيرخواه جرأت قبول مرگ را داشته باشد. اما خدا محبّت خود را نسبت به ما کاملا ثابت كرده است. زيرا در آن هنگام كه ما هنوز گناهكار بوديم، مسيح به خاطر ما مرد. رومیان 5: 6 - 8
در واقع همانگونه که بابت تمام دارایی خود را صرف کسانی کردند که لیاقت آن را نداشتند، (بنا بر روایت کتابمقدس) مسیح هم بر روی صلیب برای کسانی فدا شد و به کسانی عشق ورزید که لیاقت چیز دیگری را داشتند:
و چون به موضعي كه آن را كاسه سر مي گويند رسيدند، او را در آنجا با آن دو خطاكار، يكي بر طرف راست و ديگري بر چپ او مصلوب كردند. عيسي گفت: «اي پدر اينها را بيامرز، زيرا كه نمي دانند چه مي كنند.» پس جامه هاي او تقسيم كردند و قرعه افكندند. لوقا 23: 33 و 34هدفم از این پاراگراف پیش کشیدن موضوعات کلامی یا تعریف از مسیحیت و توضیحِ چیستی فیض نیست، بلکه میخواهم برگردم به پاراگراف نخست و بپرسم چرا کلیسا دیگر ساطع کنندهی فیض نیست؟ چرا در بهترین حالت خود نسخهی بهروز شدهی فریسیان زمان عیسی هستیم؟
یک روز زنی تنفروش در وضعیتی اسفناک، بیخانمان و بیمار، در حالی که از خریدن غذا برای دختر خردسالش عاجز بود با حالتی گریان پیش من آمد و گفت که دختر دوسالهاش را برای استفادهی جنسی به گروهی از مدان فروخته است. او ناچار به انجام این کار بود تا خرج اعتیادش را تامین کند. تحمل شنیدن این داستان برایم غیرممکن بود. از یک سو باید ماجرای این زن را فورا به پلیس گزارش میدادم و از سوی دیگر نمیدانستم به زن چه بگویم. عاقبت از او پرسیدم که آیا تا به حال شده از کلیسا کمک بخواهد؟ نگاه تعجبزده و معصومانهاش را هرگز فراموش نمیکنم. با حالتی گریان گفت: کلیسا! چرا من باید به آنجا بروم؟ من به اندازهی کافی از خودم متنفرم. انها فقط میتوانند این احساس را بدتر کنند
آنچه در این مورد مایهی حیرت من شد این بود که افرادی نظیر این زن از عیسی گریزان نبودند، بلکه همیشه نزد او میآمدند. هر قدر آنها وضعیت خود را وخیمتر احساس میکردند، بیشتر عیسی را به عنوان پناهگاه خود میدیدند. از قرار معلوم مردم رنجدیدهای که زمانی به دور عیسی جمع میشدند، اکنون در میان پیروان او جایی برای خود نمیبینند. چه اتفاقی افتاده است؟ برداشت آزاد از کتاب اعجاب فیض / فیلیپ یانسی
ریچارد نیبور جملهی معروفی دارد با این مضمون که: جنبشهای بزرگ مسیحی به دلیل کشف حقیقتی ناشناخته ایجاد نمیشوند، بلکه این تحولات زمانی به وقوع میپیوندد که کسی حقیقتی را که همواره در کتابمقدس وجود داشته، جدی میگیرد
October 10, 2011
This is absolutely wonderful!!!!
This novella is only 52 pages long. There is no possible excuse for not being able to find time to read this book. I remember the wonderful movie, but this is even better. The characterizations of the people are funny and moving. Great prose. I adore it. Add it to the top of your reading lists.
I have read about half, 25 pages.
I read Out of Africa ages ago. Was it this good?! Should I reread it?
On completion:
Oh, it was too short! I got interested and then a door was slammed in my face. The movie adds more, and that is good. But the person writing this review, me, doesn't like short stories. If you like short stories or short novellas it is wonderful. Not only does it deal with culinary art, and it is an art, it also deals with how people of different cultures view and judge each other. Not being a cook myself, it was the latter theme that I fastened upon.
The prose is wonderful. It has a style that fits the time and place, a teeny village at the northern edge of Norway in the mid 1800s. I will give you an example so you can judge :
Her mistresses at first had trmbled a little, ust as the Dean had once done, at the idea of receiving a Papist under their roof. But they did not like to worry a hard-tried fellow-creature with catechization; neither were they sure of their French. They silently agreed that the example of a good Lutheran life would be the best means of converting the servant. In this way Babette's presence in the house became, so to say, a moral spur to its inhabitants.
They had distrusted Monsieur Papin's assertion that Babette could cook. In France, they knew, people ate frogs. They showed Babette how to prepare a split cod and an ale-and-bread soup; during the demonstration the Frenchwoman's face became absolutely expressionless. But within a week Babette cooked a split cod and an ale-and-bread soup as well as anybody born and bred in Berlevvaag.
The idea of French and luxury and extravagance next had alarmed and dismayed the Dean's daughters. The first day after Babette had entered their service they took her between them and explained to her that they were poor and that to them luxurious fare was sinful. Their own food must be as plain as possible..... (page 16)
The humor is subtle. Often it concerns cultural differences.
The ending of the book....well I think the message was a bit different from that in the movie! I very much liked this book, but it was way, way, way too short. That is why I am reducing the stars. It is probably just me who has a hard time with short novels.
This novella is only 52 pages long. There is no possible excuse for not being able to find time to read this book. I remember the wonderful movie, but this is even better. The characterizations of the people are funny and moving. Great prose. I adore it. Add it to the top of your reading lists.
I have read about half, 25 pages.
I read Out of Africa ages ago. Was it this good?! Should I reread it?
On completion:
Oh, it was too short! I got interested and then a door was slammed in my face. The movie adds more, and that is good. But the person writing this review, me, doesn't like short stories. If you like short stories or short novellas it is wonderful. Not only does it deal with culinary art, and it is an art, it also deals with how people of different cultures view and judge each other. Not being a cook myself, it was the latter theme that I fastened upon.
The prose is wonderful. It has a style that fits the time and place, a teeny village at the northern edge of Norway in the mid 1800s. I will give you an example so you can judge :
Her mistresses at first had trmbled a little, ust as the Dean had once done, at the idea of receiving a Papist under their roof. But they did not like to worry a hard-tried fellow-creature with catechization; neither were they sure of their French. They silently agreed that the example of a good Lutheran life would be the best means of converting the servant. In this way Babette's presence in the house became, so to say, a moral spur to its inhabitants.
They had distrusted Monsieur Papin's assertion that Babette could cook. In France, they knew, people ate frogs. They showed Babette how to prepare a split cod and an ale-and-bread soup; during the demonstration the Frenchwoman's face became absolutely expressionless. But within a week Babette cooked a split cod and an ale-and-bread soup as well as anybody born and bred in Berlevvaag.
The idea of French and luxury and extravagance next had alarmed and dismayed the Dean's daughters. The first day after Babette had entered their service they took her between them and explained to her that they were poor and that to them luxurious fare was sinful. Their own food must be as plain as possible..... (page 16)
The humor is subtle. Often it concerns cultural differences.
The ending of the book....well I think the message was a bit different from that in the movie! I very much liked this book, but it was way, way, way too short. That is why I am reducing the stars. It is probably just me who has a hard time with short novels.
July 9, 2022
Well and to be honest, the 1987 movie version of Isak Dinesen’s 1958 short story Babette’s Feast (Babettes gæstebud in its original Danish) is and always will be a hands-down personal favourite (and a film I have actually watched and enjoyed at least eight times and still counting). For yes, I simply and totally adore the cinematography of the film, the intense aesthetic descriptiveness and how the dialogues (in both Danish and French) manage to convey intense emotionality, tenderness, pathos and at times also sly and delightful humour but all without even once becoming too overwrought, without rendering the Babette’s Feast movie too exaggerated (and how Babette is visually depicted and how it is also demonstrated by the words she, Philippa and Martine utter during the course of the film that she, that Babette is indeed a true artist with her wonderful and versatile cookery skills and that her talents as a master chef are also and indeed as much an artistic skill as if Babette were an opera singer, a writer or a painter). And furthermore, the historical background information visually and orally encountered as Babette relates her life story to Martine and Philippa (how Babette was made a refugee during the Paris Commune bloodshed of 1871, how she lost both her husband and her son during the riots and how she thus also now no longer has any real connections to France), this is both intensely educational and also makes one understand both why Babette has no real desire to return to France and why for her spending all of her lottery winnings on a French Dinner party for Martine, Philippa and the rest of the inhabitants of a very remote and removed from society in general tiny Danish village has been and is so very much important to and for her.
However, as much as I really and absolutely do love love love Babette’s Feast the movie, the 52 page Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen) short story on which the film is based has actually proven to be rather disappointing in some ways (and definitely shows one of those rare instances where I actually much prefer a movie version of a piece of prose writing to the original text, to the original printed narrative). Because albeit there are (and in particular at the beginning of the story) many instances of textual brilliance from Isak Dinesen’s pen, the main storyline of Babette’s Feast in my humble opinion remains rather majorly on the surface, does not delve deeply enough either with regard to verbal description or with regard to sufficiently portraying the tragedies of not only Babette’s life but also regarding Martine, Philippa and their erstwhile lovers (which probably would not have bothered me all that much if I had not watched the movie version before reading Babette’s Feast, but since in the film, delving into the emotional background of in particular the main characters is a main and primary component, not really finding this all that much conveyed and featured by Isak Dinesen’s printed words has been a rather unexpected and frustrating reading shock).
And of course, not to mention that the historical background information on the Paris Commune and how Babette loses both her husband and her son also and equally remains annoyingly on the surface within Isak Dinesen’s presented narrative, leaving me still able and willing to appreciate Babette’s Feast as a story (and as a historical document) but also and indeed finding it all much too short, too lacking in description, too unsubtle and rather devoid of the descriptive depth and delightfulness encountered in the film for me to truly be able to enjoy Babette’s Feast as a short story as much as I have always adored and treasured the movie version (even though I do find Isak Dinesen’s musings regarding how Babette thinks about her culinary talents and her artistry interesting, that Babette can find it inherently unproblematic to be cooking expensive dinners for the aristocracy whilst at the same time despising their attitudes towards the working classes and fighting against this on the Paris barricades, that Babette can in other words separate her cooking as an art form and to make her noble clientele happy from her despising the general and arrogant mindset of the French aristocracy).
However, as much as I really and absolutely do love love love Babette’s Feast the movie, the 52 page Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen) short story on which the film is based has actually proven to be rather disappointing in some ways (and definitely shows one of those rare instances where I actually much prefer a movie version of a piece of prose writing to the original text, to the original printed narrative). Because albeit there are (and in particular at the beginning of the story) many instances of textual brilliance from Isak Dinesen’s pen, the main storyline of Babette’s Feast in my humble opinion remains rather majorly on the surface, does not delve deeply enough either with regard to verbal description or with regard to sufficiently portraying the tragedies of not only Babette’s life but also regarding Martine, Philippa and their erstwhile lovers (which probably would not have bothered me all that much if I had not watched the movie version before reading Babette’s Feast, but since in the film, delving into the emotional background of in particular the main characters is a main and primary component, not really finding this all that much conveyed and featured by Isak Dinesen’s printed words has been a rather unexpected and frustrating reading shock).
And of course, not to mention that the historical background information on the Paris Commune and how Babette loses both her husband and her son also and equally remains annoyingly on the surface within Isak Dinesen’s presented narrative, leaving me still able and willing to appreciate Babette’s Feast as a story (and as a historical document) but also and indeed finding it all much too short, too lacking in description, too unsubtle and rather devoid of the descriptive depth and delightfulness encountered in the film for me to truly be able to enjoy Babette’s Feast as a short story as much as I have always adored and treasured the movie version (even though I do find Isak Dinesen’s musings regarding how Babette thinks about her culinary talents and her artistry interesting, that Babette can find it inherently unproblematic to be cooking expensive dinners for the aristocracy whilst at the same time despising their attitudes towards the working classes and fighting against this on the Paris barricades, that Babette can in other words separate her cooking as an art form and to make her noble clientele happy from her despising the general and arrogant mindset of the French aristocracy).
June 1, 2015
Martine and Philippa are austere, elderly sisters who still retain traces of their former ravishing beauty. Their father was a strict Puritan minister, and they had devoted their lives to serving with him. Babette is their unassuming French maid who has won a windfall in the lottery. Instead of leaving the sisters, as they fear, she chooses to treat them and their guests to a sumptuous feast. Although all the money will be blown in one night, Babette insists there is nothing she would rather do. Martine and Philippa have serious misgivings, but let her go ahead.
A story doesn't have to be long to pack a powerful punch. For a start, you can almost smell the fragrance of the French banquet cooking. She intends to serve dishes such as Potage a'la Tortue (Turtle Soup), Blinis Demidoff (pancakes with caviar) and Cailles en Sarcophage (quail in puff pastry with truffle sauce), along with the best vintage wines. To me, the story is also full of far-reaching, theological analogies.
a) Appearances can be deceptive. How ironic that the sisters initially assumed they needed to give Babette cooking instructions, and how obediently she always stuck to the limit they set. God may do the same with us, if we insist He stays in a box. It also shows us not to underestimate those who appear quietest and most humble.
b) The presence of Lorens Loewenthielm at the dinner is significant. He's a King Solomon type of character, having achieved everything he'd ever striven for. Decorated, admired and envied, only he knows the depth of his own emptiness. He alone of the guests has the background to grasp the incredible gift of grace which is taking place. Babette is far more than the person the others think she is. And those who think they're extending grace may, in fact, be recipients of a far larger grace. Most of the others only went along to humour the sisters and their strange housemaid, described as 'the dark Martha in the house of their two fair Marys.'
c) The biggest point of all is that grace is infinite. Even Martine and Philippa, who consider such luxurious fare a sinful sign of excess, are lavished with the gift. They don't realise the magnitude of what haggard, wild-eyed Babette is giving them - yet she still chooses to give it. Grace is not contingent on what we have figured out or done, in other words, how deserving we are. It makes no conditions and singles out nobody in particular. (Get the sisters' vast understatement, 'It was quite a nice dinner, Babette.')
Maybe stories such as this is what it will take to impress some truths on some readers. It reminds me of the parables of Jesus, which he claimed to have told for the same reason. Yes, I can imagine him beginning, 'There were once two elderly sisters who were still very beautiful. And they had a maid...'
For a story such as this, short is perfect.
A story doesn't have to be long to pack a powerful punch. For a start, you can almost smell the fragrance of the French banquet cooking. She intends to serve dishes such as Potage a'la Tortue (Turtle Soup), Blinis Demidoff (pancakes with caviar) and Cailles en Sarcophage (quail in puff pastry with truffle sauce), along with the best vintage wines. To me, the story is also full of far-reaching, theological analogies.
a) Appearances can be deceptive. How ironic that the sisters initially assumed they needed to give Babette cooking instructions, and how obediently she always stuck to the limit they set. God may do the same with us, if we insist He stays in a box. It also shows us not to underestimate those who appear quietest and most humble.
b) The presence of Lorens Loewenthielm at the dinner is significant. He's a King Solomon type of character, having achieved everything he'd ever striven for. Decorated, admired and envied, only he knows the depth of his own emptiness. He alone of the guests has the background to grasp the incredible gift of grace which is taking place. Babette is far more than the person the others think she is. And those who think they're extending grace may, in fact, be recipients of a far larger grace. Most of the others only went along to humour the sisters and their strange housemaid, described as 'the dark Martha in the house of their two fair Marys.'
c) The biggest point of all is that grace is infinite. Even Martine and Philippa, who consider such luxurious fare a sinful sign of excess, are lavished with the gift. They don't realise the magnitude of what haggard, wild-eyed Babette is giving them - yet she still chooses to give it. Grace is not contingent on what we have figured out or done, in other words, how deserving we are. It makes no conditions and singles out nobody in particular. (Get the sisters' vast understatement, 'It was quite a nice dinner, Babette.')
Maybe stories such as this is what it will take to impress some truths on some readers. It reminds me of the parables of Jesus, which he claimed to have told for the same reason. Yes, I can imagine him beginning, 'There were once two elderly sisters who were still very beautiful. And they had a maid...'
For a story such as this, short is perfect.
July 16, 2020
Nakon što sam pročitala zadnju rečenicu, zastala sam i zapitala se ako sam štogod propustila. Divno je bilo to što je nakon romana odmah i „bilješka o autorici“ koju je napisala Irena Lukšić. U tom tekstu se dotična osvrnula i na sam roman. Hvala joj na tome!
Ništa mi nije promaknulo već je moj dojam jednostavno mlak, mogla bih čak reći i razočaravajući. Moram priznati da je teško na stotinjak stranica puno toga niti iznijeti pa je jednostavnije sve bitno nekako prožeti kroz tekst, a onda na nama ostaje da sve to pohvatamo i dokučimo. Ja sam od onih koji žele čitajući, iz samog teksta doći do onoga što je onaj tko je pisao to htio. Možda sam lijena pa mi svo ovo mozganje oko tema u romanu ne pričinja zadovoljstvo.
Stilski, baš zato i suhoparno, ali odlične teme (o njima piše dovoljno u GR tekstu) koje su se mogle toliko bolje razraditi. Likovi interesantni i žao mi je da ih nismo još i bolje „upoznali“. Rado ću posegnuti za njezinim drugim romanom „Moja Afrika“.
„Jezik“, rekao je jedan sjedobradi brat, „jezik je mali organ, ali jako razmetljiv. Čovjeku neukrativo zlo, prepun smrtonosnog otrova.“
„U našem lijepom svijetu sve je moguće.“
Ništa mi nije promaknulo već je moj dojam jednostavno mlak, mogla bih čak reći i razočaravajući. Moram priznati da je teško na stotinjak stranica puno toga niti iznijeti pa je jednostavnije sve bitno nekako prožeti kroz tekst, a onda na nama ostaje da sve to pohvatamo i dokučimo. Ja sam od onih koji žele čitajući, iz samog teksta doći do onoga što je onaj tko je pisao to htio. Možda sam lijena pa mi svo ovo mozganje oko tema u romanu ne pričinja zadovoljstvo.
Stilski, baš zato i suhoparno, ali odlične teme (o njima piše dovoljno u GR tekstu) koje su se mogle toliko bolje razraditi. Likovi interesantni i žao mi je da ih nismo još i bolje „upoznali“. Rado ću posegnuti za njezinim drugim romanom „Moja Afrika“.
„Jezik“, rekao je jedan sjedobradi brat, „jezik je mali organ, ali jako razmetljiv. Čovjeku neukrativo zlo, prepun smrtonosnog otrova.“
„U našem lijepom svijetu sve je moguće.“
October 7, 2018
Still as mystifying as when I first read it 15 years ago, but a much better read this time around because I've had those last 15 years to explore obsecure cuisines and cooking methods from around the world and learn their histories and origins. With that background, I now have a better appreciation of Babette's feast, which was her gift and sacrifice.
The movie is good too btw.
The movie is good too btw.
May 23, 2022
Dražesno.
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