Under the Jaguar Sun

by Italo Calvino

Three tales, each dominated by one of three senses, present a married couple touring Mexico, a tyrant made prisoner of contradictory messages, and a fashionable Parisian and a drugged rock musician impassioned by scents

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Italy, Italian Literature, Classics, Literature, Literary Fiction

86 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Italo Calvino was born in Cuba and grew up in Italy. He was a journalist and writer of short stories and novels. His best known works include the Our Ancestors trilogy (1952-1959), the Cosmicomics collection of short stories (1965), and the novels Invisible Cities (1972) and If On a Winter's Night a Traveler (1979).

His style is not easy to classify; much of his writing has an air reminiscent to that of fantastical fairy tales (Our Ancestors, Cosmicomics), although sometimes his writing is more "realistic" and in the scenic mode of observation (Difficult Loves, for example). Some of his writing has been called postmodern, reflecting on literature and the act of reading, while some has been labeled magical realist, others fables, others simply "modern". He wrote: "My working method has more often than not involved the subtraction of weight. I have tried to remove weight, sometimes from people, sometimes from heavenly bodies, sometimes from cities; above all I have tried to remove weight from the structure of stories and from language."

Reviews

[Michael Finocchiaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unfortunately unfinished because Calvino passed after completing only three of the five planned stories, this is a late work where he wanted to do one story for each sense. Under the Jaguar Sun is about the sense of taste, A King Listens about the sense of hearing, and lastly The Name, The Nose about the sense of smell (obviously). Highly entertaining and typically imaginative of Calvino, these stories are unique and yet a bit frustrating because one wonders what he would have done with sight and touch...R.I.P. amico Italo!

[leynes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book at the American Bookshop in Milan, which is quite ironic as Calvino is one of Italy's most famous writers. I desperately wanted to pick up a book by a 'local' and when I saw this for a good price, immediately Matthew's (MCS-books) recommendation came to mind, and so I decided to pick this up.

Under the Jaguar Sun is a collection of three short stories, each focusing on a different sense: taste, hearing and smell. A couple on an culinary journey across Mexico are excited by the idea of a particular ingredient, suggested by ancient rituals of human sacrifice. Precariously balanced on his throne, a king is able only to listen to the sounds around him – sure that any deviation from their normal progression would mean the uprising of the conspirators that surround him. And three different men search desperately for the beguiling scents of lost women, from a Count visiting Madame Odile's perfumery, to a London drummer stepping over spent, naked bodies.

Calvino envisioned this book to grow into a broader collection spanning all of the senses, unfortunately, he died before he could complete this project, and thus it's wiser to consider these stories apart from one another; there's no frame story, no threat that weaves them together.

Please don't be fooled by my rating, it couldn't be more misleading as I absolutely loathed the first story (what a whopping one star that was), really adored the second one (five stars!) and highly appreciated the third (a good 4). This collection was an emotional rollercoaster, there was no middle ground, it was either intensified hatred or skyscraping love.

The reason for my hatred of the titular story, Under the Jaguar Sun, is a simpel one: I hate sensual stories, even just sensual themes in literature. As soon as it became clear that Calvino was linking the couple's taste for food with their sexual appetite, I was fucking out. I found it laughable and creepy, and whenever our protagonist talked about wanting to feast on his partner and devour her and actually chewing her flesh, I couldn't help but twist my mouth in disgust. (Tr)eat your girl right all you want but leave me out of it. The story's execution was way too clumsy for my taste and its final message had me rolling my eyes. Again, I'm all here for unsatisfied couples regaining their passion for one another, I just don't want to read about it.

And so with much lowered expectations, I started reading A King Listens and let me tell you, drop whatever you're doing and read this fucking story. It is now one of my all-time favorite short stories and I cannot believe that Calvino popped that out so effortlessly, like what? Ya gurl was shook! A King Listens is the embodiment of hearing. Written in second person, Calvino really gives you the feeling that you are sitting on a throne in a giant palace that functions as your ear, he transferred the King's paranoia and fears in regards to a possible rebellion and the usurpation of his throne to the reader; you feel haunted, you feel alone. It's so rare for a short story to elicit so much emotion from me.

The city crumples like a burning page. Run, without crown, without scepter; no one will realize that you are the king. There is no night darker than a night of fires. There is no man more alone than one running in the midst of a howling mob.

The last story, The Name, the Nose, was brilliant as well, albeit more confusing and ambitious than the other two. Again, Calvino managed to encapsulate the sense of smelling with his words, which is a feat that I respect, not many writers can do that. My only criticism is the fact that the story should've been longer: its ending was way too rushed and over-the-top and the character of Monsieur de Sainte-Caliste, in particular, would've warranted further examination. I think the entire murder-subplot should've been omitted for more of his musings.

All in all, I am incredibly happy that I've read this short story collection as it made me "hungry" for more of Calvino's work. (Olivia and her boo from the first story would be proud of me; shove ya hunger elsewhereee!) Thanks again, Matthew, for this great recommendation!

[Kamrani Adnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

مجموعه داستان خوبی از کالوینو بود ولی چیزی که داشت صفر یا صد بودن داستان‌ها بود! یا واقعا عالی بودن و یا چنگی به دل نمیزدن

به اولین نویسنده‌ایی رسیدم که مثل بورخس می‌نوشت، البته نه خیلی مثل او!
بورخس اصلا به رمان اعتقاد نداشت و سعی میکرد تا حد امکان نوشته‌هاش مختصر اما گیج کننده باشه! کالوینو هم اتفاقا داستان های خیلی کوتاهش بیشتر به دل می‌نشست!
بخاطر حس خوبی که این کتاب بهم داد ۴ ستاره دادم وگرنه شاید کمتر بود کیفیت کلیش
شاهکار این مجموعه هم فکرکنم داستان بازی بود، یک داستانِ یک صفحه‌ایی!
و البته گوسفندسیاه، شاه گوش می‌کند، همبستگی، پیش ازآنکه بگویی سلام و...

[sAmAnE · Rating 3 out of 5]

مجموعه داستانی از ایتالو کالوینو... من مجموعه داستان کتاب "کلاغ آخر از همه می‌رسد" را بیشتر پسندیدم.

[Renklikalem · Rating 5 out of 5]

jaguar gunes altinda calvino’nun olumunden sonra yayinlanan bir kitap. calvino esasen bu kitaptaki oykuleri gorme ve dokunma uzerine de yazacagi iki metinle birlikte bes duyuya ayirdigi bir kitapta yayimlamayi planliyormus ancak omru yetmemis ne yazik ki. koklama, tat alma ve duyma uzerine yazdigi oykuler toplanmis bu kitapta.

bazi kisimlarda gereksiz oldugunu dusundugum detaylarda boguldugumu ve fazla uzatildigini dusunsem de cok lezzetli, kafa acan nefis uc ayri metin.

oyku sevmiyorsaniz, calvino okumaya veya calvino oykulerine baslamak icin ideal kitap oldugunu soyleyemem ama oyku severseniz ve biraz zorlayan metinler okumayi seviyorsaniz mutlaka okuyun.

ben bunu cok sevdim ama sanirim calvino’nun ilk donem oykulerini bir parca daha keyifle okudum.

[Argos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Calvino usta yazmayı planladığı beş duyumuzdan üçünü yazabilmiş, koku alma, tat alma ve duyma. Ölümü nedeniyle diğer iki duyu dokunma ve görme ne yazık ki yazılamamış. Tadı damakta kalan bir kısa seri olmuş.

İlk öyküde koku alma duyumuzu anlatıyor, koku ile mutluluğu da sefilliği de kazanıp kaydetmek mümkün. Aşkı da yakalarsınız, ölümü de. Koku üstüne yazılan çok kitap ve film olduğundan (özellikle kadın kokusu) bu öykü çok çarpıcı değil.

İkinci öykü kitaba adını veren ve en beğendiğim öykü. Ama adı keşke ilk düşündüğü gibi “tatma, bilme" olsaydı. Evlilikte yaşanılan sıkıntıları, eşler arasındaki soğukluğu, otantik Meksika yemeklerinden antik Olmek (ya da Zapotek) uygarlıklarının kurban kültüne uzanarak anlatması muhteşem. Tam bir Calvino klasiği.

Üçüncü öyküde sarayındaki her sesi büyük bir tedirginlikle dinleyen kral ile duyma-işitme duyumuzu anlatan yazar bu öyküde de otokrasilerde, diktatörlüklerde ezen-yöneten sınıfın en büyük cezayı duydukları ile çektiklerini hicvederken aslında bu rejimlerin korku imparatorluğu yaratırken korkunun esiri olduğunu vurguluyor.

Kısa üç öykü, sadece Calvino okurlarına değil her kitapsevere öneririm.

[Anastasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Για άλλη μια φορά ο Italo Calvino με το μοναδικό, αξεπέραστο ύφος του και τον μαγευτικό του λόγο μας ταξιδεύει στον χώρο των αισθήσεων. Απομονώνοντάς τες τονίζει τη σημασία κάθε μίας στην καθημερινότητάς μας, το ρόλο που διαδραματίζουν στον τρόπο που βιώνουμε τον χωροχρόνο και που επηρεάζουν τον ψυχισμό μας. Τρεις αυτοτελείς ιστορίες, με διαφορετικές αφηγηματικές τεχνικές και υφολογικά στοιχεία, ικανές να διασκεδάσουν, να προβληματίσουν να προκαλέσουν συνειρμούς.

"και η επιμονή δεν είναι ποτέ τόσο εύθραυστη όσο τη στιγμή του μεγαλύτερου θριάμβου της."

"Κάθε προσπάθειά σου να ξεφύγεις από το κλουβί σου είναι προορισμένη να αποτύχει: είναι μάταιο να ψάχνεις να βρεις τον εαυτό σου σε έναν κόσμο που δεν σου ανήκει, που ίσως δεν υπάρχει."

[Tanya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this small collection of 3 of his short stories. I wish he had enough time to finish this book and we had stories about all 5 senses.

Hands down the best part about these stories is the language they are written with. It was simply beautiful. I feel like the translation was done really well too. My favorite story is the second one. The one about the king sitting on his throne and listening to his palace. It was so fascinating.

This collection is a must-read. I'd highly encourage everyone to give it a go.

[Mevsim Yenice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muhteşem 3 öykü ve yine Calvino elbette.

[Irmak ☾ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall Rating: 4 stars.

•Under the Jaguar Sun ‣ 3.5 stars.

•A King Listens ‣ 4 stars.

•The Name, The Nose ‣ 4 stars.

[Aslı Can]

Eğer okumak istediğiniz ya da okuduğunuz ilk Italo Calvino kitabıysa; Jaguar-Güneş Altında Italo Calvino'nun edebiyatına hafif ve temkinli bir giriş olabilir. Okuması ve takip etmesi diğer kitaplarına nazaran kolay ama Italo ile henüz tanışmış sayılmazsınız, onda daha ne numaralar var.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tre racconti che coinvolgono i sensi; nell’intento dello scrittore avrebbero dovuto essere cinque, ma la morte glielo ha impedito. Comunque i cinque sensi sono coinvolti ugualmente nella lettura, i due mancanti nei racconti, la vista e il tatto, li mettiamo in opera noi lettori mentre leggiamo il libro.
Il mio preferito è stato il secondo, che dà il titolo all’opera, “Sotto il sole giaguaro”, il cui protagonista è il gusto. Siamo in Messico, con la sua cucina ricca di sapori forti e contrastanti, durante un viaggio in cui lui e lei, Olivia, sono due turisti curiosi e interessati. Il viaggio si svolge dentro di loro, con una guida turistica d’eccezione, il gusto, attraverso il quale si manifestano passioni, con le forme potenti che la terra scelta per viaggiare conosce bene: la storia del Messico è piena di guerre mortali tra uomo e natura, che si placavano solo con sacrifici agli dei, anche umani. Offrirsi come cibo all’altro, darsi in pasto ai denti digrignati dell’altro e infine congiungersi, divenire cibo l’uno per l’altro è un atto di cannibalismo emotivo, di forte sensualità, in cui sensi ed eros si mescolano indissolubilmente, in un racconto che è anche profumato di cibi e colorato degli ingredienti della straordinaria cucina messicana.
Il primo racconto, “Il nome, il naso”, dedicato all’olfatto, mi è piaciuto meno perché mescola storie diverse, accomunate dal finale, l’ho trovato un po’ confusionario. L’Ultimo racconto, “Un re in ascolto”, è dedicato all’udito, è bello anch’esso perché tratta della forza e contemporaneamente della estrema debolezza del potere, che rende prigioniero colui che ce l’ha, prigioniero della paura di perderlo; l’unico difetto che vi ho trovato è che la storia è troppo portata alle lunghe, a momenti noiosa. In ogni caso la fantasia di Calvino mi lascia sempre stupefatta.

[Olivia-Savannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read one other Calvino work and I found this one just to be as abstract and weird as that one. And I think I… I think I like it? I can’t explain it. Sometimes it weirds me out, but then sometimes I turn the text around and seem to understand what the point is. And when I do, I appreciate it. I don’t think the weirdness and whimsicality will be for everyone, but it works for me. The collection is incomplete as the author passed before finishing all the intended stories. I liked the second short story least but that may be because it was told in second person and felt a bit repetitive. The last short story was my favourite. It made me think about smells and identity in a way I hadn’t before. The story was intriguing too. It was only after reading the collection that I saw we were reading about some of the senses, and more elements of the stories fell into place within my mind.

[Ned Rifle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before reading any Calvino I had noted with dismay that none of his novels ever really get much beyond the 200 page mark, how foolish I was to worry. From what I have read stories of any size can satiate and I am now happy for their warm abundance. These are three stories about three senses - do not listen to the quibbles about how the two other senses were to have stories and that it would all be housed in an elaborate frame story, these are illusion, they never existed. These stories do, and they're lovely.

[NAMIK SOMEL · Rating 4 out of 5]

İçerisinde son derece ilginç öyküler barındırıyor.
Özellikle Ad Burun öyküsünün finali ve kokunun yoğun hissedilişi çok güzel aktarılmış.
Ama favorim bir kral ve bir tutsağın duyduğu aynı seslerin yarattığı algının anlatıldığı Kulak Kesilmiş Bir kral adlı öykü..

[Amaranta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mi ero dimenticata la bellezza della prosa di Calvino. Ti prende, ti travolge, ti butta a terra e ti lascia intontito. La parola è tutto e qui è padrona.
Il libro, pubblicato postumo, avrebbe dovuto contenere 5 racconti che riguardano i 5 sensi. Ce ne sono solo tre: olfatto, gusto e udito. I racconti sono splendidi e dispiace proprio che manchino gli ultimi due sensi, vista e tatto, che da quel che qui ci rimane non potevano che essere di pari livello.
Il mio preferito è quello da cui la raccolta prende il titolo, per il piacere con cui l’autore descrive il cibo, un rituale importantissimo per la terra in cui vivo, una danza fra i commensali sensuale e mistica.
“Un libro che sto scrivendo parla dei cinque sensi, per dimostrare che l’uomo contemporaneo ne ha perso l’uso. Il mio problema scrivendo questo libro è che il mio olfatto non è molto sviluppato, manco d’attenzione auditiva, non sono un buongustaio, la mia sensibilità tattile è approssimativa, e sono miope” .

[Anoud · Rating 5 out of 5]

6 ⭐
Yes, out of 5
I'm well aware that I placed this book under "poetry" and that'll be that.

[Elis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Calvino costruisce tre storie sulla scoperta dei sensi e sull'importanza che hanno nella vita di ognuno. In "Sotto il sole giaguaro" sono analizzati solo tre dei sensi: la ricerca di una fanciulla tramite l'olfatto, il piacere o disgusto del cibo attraverso il gusto e la solitudine di un re che ha affilato l'udito.

Si prende consapevolezza attraverso queste brevi storie di un qualcosa che spesso non ci rendiamo conto di possedere ma che sono inevitabilmente gli attrezzi fondamentali della nostra vita. Calvino fa anche questo!

[Alina · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this collection of three short stories, Italo Calvino places the senses at the very centre of experience. Each tale orbits a different sense: 'Under the Jaguar Sun' around taste, 'A King Listens' around hearing, and 'The Name, the Nose' (unsurprisingly) around smell. Yet, as always with Calvino, the senses never remain isolated; they intertwine with memory, imagination, and desire.

Very satisfying to read, particularly ‘The King Listens’ (which had a hint of ‘Invisible Cities’, published more than a decade earlier).

'The city holds the roar of an ocean as in the whorls of the shell, or of the ear: if you concentrate on listening to the waves, you no longer know what is palace and what is city, ear, shell.
Among the sounds of the city you recognize every now and then a chord, a sequence of notes, a tune: blasts of fanfare, chanting of processions, choruses of schoolchildren, funeral marches, revolutionary songs intoned by a parade of demonstrators, anthems in your honor sung by the troops who break up the demonstration, trying to drown out the voices of your opponents, dance tunes that the loudspeaker of a nightclub plays at top volume to convince everyone that the city continues its happy life, dirges of women mourning someone killed in the riots. This is the music you hear; but can it be called music? From every shard of sound you continue to gather signals, information, clues, as if in this city all those who play or sing or put on disks wanted only to transmit precise, unequivocal messages to you. Since you mounted the throne, it is not music you listen to, but only the confirmation of how music is used: in the rites of high society, or to entertain the populace, to safeguard traditions, culture, fashion. Now you ask yourself what listening used to mean to you, when you listened to music for the sole pleasure of penetrating the design of the notes.' (The King Listens)

'In this seesawing of the scale of odors, I was lost, I could no longer discern the direction of the memory I should follow: I knew only that at one point of the spectrum, there was a gap, a secret fold where there lurked that perfume which, for me, was a complete woman.' (The Name, the Nose)

'But the memory was like a trompe-l'oeil, and when I examined it a little, it gave me a sense of multiplied distance, in space and in time.' (Under the Jaguar Sun)

These stories, written between 1972 and 1984 in Paris and Rome, were meant to form part of a larger project: 'The Five Senses.' Calvino, however, died before he could complete the stories dedicated to vision and touch. One cannot help but wonder what those unwritten pieces might have revealed and how they might have bound this collection into an even more unified whole.

‘The obstinacy on which power is based is never so fragile as in the moment of its triumph.’

[Mahrya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Normally, I hate the word "sensual" because it reminds me of essential oils and the phrase "taking a lover," and lying about on the divan whilst eating succulent grapes dripping with the juices of summer, but this collection contains essays about the senses, so I think the word actually applies in this case. If I'm remembering correctly, this is Calvino's last book. He was going to write five essays for five senses, but he died before he got there. The essay on taste is my favorite. It's about spices and the desire/repulsion for cannibalism, and it's well--very sensual.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Italo Calvino's Under the Jaguar Sun consists of three short stories, each highlighting one of the human senses, in this case: taste, sound, and smell. Unfortunately, Calvino did not live long enough to add stories about the other senses, but what exists is worth reading on its own merits, particularly the first two stories. The story "Under the Jaguar Sun" is about an Italian couple's journey to Oaxaca and the strong tastes of the dishes in the local cuisine. Along the way, the subject of cannibalism among the pre-Columbian Zapotecs is introduced. I also loved "The King Listens," about a monarch who feels imprisoned on his throne while straining to interpret stray sounds that reach his ears.

[Tatevik · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to really love this book, but I couldn't get attached to it as I would love to.

Tasting...
Listening...
Smelling...

I could almost understand what the author wanted for me to feel. But something was wrong. Calvino is not my cup of tea after all. Nope.

[ed_ nuovo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uc oykuden (koku, tat ve isitme) olusan, yazarin olumu nedeniyle diger iki duyuya ait oykuleri eksik kalan bir eser. Calvino her zamanki deneysel tarziyla cok etkili. Bu sefer de sasirtmadi.

"Sen akip giden zamani dinlersin: Ruzgarinkini andiran bir ugultu; sarayin koridorlarinda esen ruzgar ya da kulaginin icinde. Krallarin saati olmaz. Zamanin akisina onlarin yon verdigi dusunulur; mekanik bir duzenegin kurallarina tabi olmak, kralligin gorkemiyle bagdasmazdi."

[Aravindakshan Narasimhan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though these 3 stories are pretty much stand alone ones, one senses a light thread that knots, beyond it all being a story on senses, at least 2 stories if not all 3.

There is always a general consensus that humans are civilised creatures, in stark contrast to a barbaric primitive being, who can differentiate various things by his gifted elements which are other wise mono for a primitive soul.


And this consensus is what is shattered by calvino in two tales, which involves taste and smell.

There is this subtle juxtaposition of cultured and uncultured, sacred and profane in these 2 stories.


Whether you agree or disagree , after discerning it that is, the fact that calvino's prose is fluid, though a bit loitering, whets our appetite, rises our hair in tune to his literary cadences, and crave for, to satisfy our venal and indulging desires, more of this, is inevitable.


I wish I could write a detailed review of my short-communicated interpretation...

[Hamideh · Rating 3 out of 5]

کتابفروشی که میرم همینطوری بیرون نمیام کلی با کتابفروش تبادل نظر میکن��... کلی کتاب بهم معرفی می کنن اما من همون موقع کتاب رو نمیخرم باید یه اجماعی دست بده به این صورت که کتاب به تواتر بهم معرفی بشه... این کتاب هم همینطور بود خیلی بهم معرفی شد از طرف کتابفروش ها و من بالاخره راضی شدم بخرمش و تا نیمه اول کتاب از خریدش بسیار راضی بودم.
این کتاب مجموعه داستانه خوندنه اون نیمه اول به نخوندنش می ارزه.

[Leyendo en el sofá · Rating 4 out of 5]

No he leído mucho de Calvino pero este texto sin dudas es altamente recomendable. Un viaje por el sentido del gusto , de los platos mexicanos, la relación con lo sagrado, en fin. Tiene de todo un poco y un final bien surrealista.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains fascinating and disturbing, captivating and vivid portrait of three of the senses.

[Parisa Soltani · Rating 3 out of 5]

هر وقت رویای چیزی رو می بینیم اون دیگه هیچ وقت حقیقی نمی شه .



شاه گوش می کند ( عشق دور از خانه )

[Inderjit Sanghera · Rating 5 out of 5]

Under the Jaguar Sun is Calvino’s exploration of our senses; sensuous and salacious, Calvino is able to render even the most mundane of smells into something magical, our tongue and mouth become receptacles to the most titillating of flavours and the silver cadence of a woman’s voice is transformed into a symbol of love.
The set of stories starts with Under the Jaguar Sun, a story about a somewhat disaffected couple and their holiday to Mexico. The couple gradually become fascinated with a cannibalistic ritual associated with the food they eat, indeed the food they eat is described in great detail, every morsel of food is consumed beneath the cacophony of emotions which beset the couple as they journey further and further in Mexico’s macabre history. Eating becomes a form of communication in a world in which words mean so little, our tongues and teeth cease to communicate via voices, but instead transmit their desires and obsessions via taste, that most amorous of senses;

“And I couldn’t help remarking how certain manifestations of Olivia’s vital energy, certain prompt reactions or delays on her part, yearnings or throbs, continued to take place before my eyes, losing none their intensity, with only one significant difference; their stages was no longer the bed of our embraces but a dinner table.”

The bitterness of walnut sauce, the heat of jalapenos, all of these tastes increase their sensory receptivity, the world transformed into a world of taste, as they begin to fantasise about that most unknown of tastes; human flesh. Their minds febrile with their cannibalistic fantasies, they use taste to travel back in the past to a cannibalistic ritual, as the narrator feels the knife of the priest-cut cut his throat as he feels himself become one with world and their bodies become one with the food they are eating.

A King Listens is the story of a paranoid king who hears the endless echo of insurgency in his palace walls, which are transformed into a giant ear, receptors of the rebellion which is taking place in his mind.
“The palace is a clock: its ciphered sounds follow the course of the sun; invisible arrows point to the change of the guard on the ramparts with a scuffle of hob-bailed boots, a slamming of rifle-buts, answered by the crunch of gravel under the tanks kept ready in the forecourt.”
Repetition is the reassurance which the king needs to prevent paranoid ideas about rebellion entering his head, so long as sounds remain the same, his reign will remain the same too. However he hears the sound has never heard before; the sound of a woman singing, the silvery cadence of her voice envelops his heart and disturbs his soul, he tries to reach it, to capture it, to kiss and caress the sound of her song, but fails to do so, but not before becoming surrounded in a world of pure sound;
“If you raise your eyes, you will see a glow. Above your head the imminent morning is brightening in the sky : that breath against your face is the wind stirring the leaves. You are outside again, the dogs are barking, the birds awake the colours return to the world’s surface, things reoccupy space, living beings again give signs of life…now a noise, a rumble, a roar occupies all space, absorbs all sighs, calls sobs…”
The final story, The Name, The Rose, is an elegiacal celebration of smell, as three different men; a disaffect musician, a dandy and a caveman search for the sultry scent of a unknown woman. It is the most poetic novella in the collection, perfume becomes an art form which can only be truly discerned by the truest artist of all; a man in love. Their noses are indifferent to the beauty of the smell; the execrable scent of excrement is given as much important as the indescribable loveliness of a woman’s perfume, what matter is the ability of our noses to see the world via a carousel of smells;

“I knew nothing of her, but I felt I knew all in that perfume; and I would have desired a world without names, where that perfume alone would have sufficed as name and as all the words she could speak to me: that perfume I knew was now lost in Madame Odile’s liquid labyrinth, evaporated on my memory, so that I could not summon it back even by remembering her when she followed me into the conservatory with the hydrangeas.”
The men fail to realise that they are in fact being led by the nose and the perfume which has perforated their souls and they are following is in fact the smell of death. Under the Jaguar Sun is a wonderful, original and beautiful exploration of our senses, a masterpiece whose lack of length is made up for by its sensuous brilliance.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Un libro che sto scrivendo parla dei cinque sensi, per dimostrare che l'uomo contemporaneo ne ha perso l'uso”: così Calvino disse in una delle sue ultime conferenze. La sua morte prematura rese questo progetto incompiuto, ma la prima opera postuma, “Sotto il sole giaguaro”, una raccolta in cui vennero riuniti tre racconti già apparsi precedentemente e aventi come oggetto di indagine olfatto, gusto e udito, venne comunque pubblicata.
In questi tre racconti, che dovevano essere cinque, i protagonisti cercano di farsi guidare da un certo senso per conoscere il mondo esterno, o meglio per riconoscere il mondo esterno, in quanto esso è fatto di cose già conosciute, ma date per scontate. Pertanto, l'esperienza sensoriale dei protagonisti si trasforma in un'esperienza extra-sensoriale, un modo per conoscere meglio se stessi e per riflettere su quanto i sensi siano importanti, fondamentali, per la nostra vita, sia esteriore che interiore. Sensazione, percezione e pensiero sono legati indissolubilmente, e affinando i sensi, sopiti nell'uomo moderno, si affina anche la mente, vivendo più intensamente e più consapevolmente: questo sembra suggerire Calvino.
Il primo racconto, “Il nome, il naso”, gioca con l'intreccio di tre vicende, che vedono altrettanti uomini – un giovane dongiovanni parigino, un uomo primitivo e un musicista londinese – farsi guidare dal proprio olfatto per trovare un oggetto del desiderio, in tutti e tre i casi un individuo femminile, dotato di un odore misterioso e seducente.
Il secondo racconto, “Sotto il sole giaguaro”, che dà il nome all'intera opera, ci parla di una coppia in un momento di crisi coniugale che, durante un viaggio in Messico, riscopre l'amore e i sentimenti tramite il senso del gusto (questo racconto era già apparso col titolo “Sapore Sapere”).
Il terzo racconto, “Un re in ascolto”, ci mostra un sovrano paranoico (e un po' kafkiano) che, impossibilitato a lasciare il suo trono per la paura di perderlo, deve imparare a vivere esclusivamente attraverso il proprio udito, con i suoni che diventano gli unici fenomeni sensoriali con cui può percepire e capire tutto ciò che è intorno a lui, tutto ciò che accade nel suo castello, nella sua città, nel suo regno. La sua figura è un'allegoria del potere che logora.
Un Calvino meno noto, corporeo, di una vividezza a tratti gioiosa e giocosa, a tratti cupa e macabra; le narrazioni in questi racconti sembrano assumere una dimensione tragica. Forse questa lettura risulta meno d'impatto sul lettore rispetto ad altre sue opere, ma Calvino sa sempre offrire innumerevoli spunti di riflessione, dandoci molto da pensare. Un pungolo inesauribile, il suo genio, che fa rivivere nel mondo scritto le esperienze sensoriali del mondo non scritto e che, in un sinergico gioco di specchi tra queste due sfere della vita, sa restituire nuovo vigore a entrambi.