One Man’s Bible /Gao Xingjian ,Harper Collins

I have always felt that a great part of literary value of any work is lost in translation. It is often difficult to capture the native charm of certain words, phrases and expressions in a translated version. Transcreation is a better word to use. But one cannot underestimate the worth of translators. I would have never read a Chinese Nobel laureate’s work otherwise but for Mabel Lee’s lucid translation of the original Chinese work.

One Man’s Bible is my second attempt to get a flavour of Chinese literature. I had struggled with the former a story about wolves. This one was much better. The book captures the history of the Chinese cultural revolution with its many excesses in detail.”The masses were like a pack of dogs slinking off to bite as the whip directed, thereby ensuring that they themselves would not be lashed.” The book is a literature of protest, of human dignity and of freedom from tyranny of any kind. People interested in political history of the times will find the book extremely informative.

Gao’s handling of human relationships demonstrates his skill as a master storyteller. When Margareth says “No you don’t understand, its impossible for a man to understand “ or when he writes “what she wants is love and what you want is freedom. You have paid too high a price for the small freedom of controlling your own freedom….” the voices could be from any part of the world from any period of human history.

Born in 1940 Gao Xingjian is a Chinese novelist, translator, dramatist, director, critic and artist, who was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 2000. “During the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), Gao was sent to a re-education camp because of his learning. He had started to write for himself, but fearing the consequences the aspiring writer burned a suitcase full of manuscripts, including novels, plays and articles, and spent six years at hard labor in the fields.”Part autobiographical in nature One Man’s Bible is a highly enjoyable book.



Ref:

http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/gao.htm

The Canterbury Tales: A retelling by Peter Ackroyd (Penguin )

“ Whanne that April with his shoures sote

The droughte of March hath perced to the rote.” Canterbury Tales. Prologue. Line 1.

“When the soft showers of April reach the roots of all things refreshing the parched earth” Peter Ackroyd retells

Almost three decades have passed since I read bits of The Canterbury Tales in Nevill Coghill’s brilliant translation of the famous medieval composition .Geoffrey Chaucer was born in London somewhere between 1341 and 1343 when English was gradually replacing French as the official language of the court. Son of a vintner Chaucer wrote in a language which was a different form of English which most of us found difficult to follow then .Canterbury Tales is considered to be one of the greatest poems of English Literature. I am not sure if students of literature read the text anymore. In the seventies and eighties the English literature syllabus of most Indian universities was dominated by works of British writers from all ages and genres. The syllabus has changed over the ages and most universities now have a more holistic coverage of world literature .Even the dinosaurian Calcutta University is gradually making its shift . Imagine my delight when I chanced upon the book in the fiction section of the library. Peter Ackroyd retells the story in prose for the enjoyment of contemporary readers. And Ackroyd succeeds in keeping me mesmerised and hooked to the narrative throughout.

Canterbury Tales presents a string of twenty four stories where tragedy,comedy,sex, salacious humour,high romance,heroic all blend together to portray the “variously moving forces” of fourteenth century London. A motley group of pilgrims meet at a London inn on their way to Canterbury and agree to take part in a story telling competition for entertainment during their five day journey from Southwark to Canterbury. It is agreed that the best story would win a supper at the inn on return. As they make their way on the road the travellers have great fun and try to outdo each other with their tales. The characters are drawn from all sections of the society-there’s a Knight , a burly miller, a handsome monk, a summoner, a modest nun, a cook, the good wife of bath who had five husbands, a choleric reeve, a poor parson, a doctor of physic who spoke eloquently about medicine and surgery and other equally interesting characters.

Peter Ackroyd is a historian and writer based in London. Ackroyd thinks the book should be read by contemporary readers simply because it is one of the best works of literature to date .Moreover it is a vivid portrayal of medieval Anglo-Saxon society and fourteenth century history .Ackroyd writes the story in an easy and fluent style which can be understood by all. Written for modern times it is a wonderful attempt to bring a classic work of literature to the masses that are generally more comfortable with prose than poetry. Ackroyd captures the spirit and essence of Chaucer’s narrative to a great extent. However for poetry lovers there is no alternative but to read the text in original along with its translation side by side, to get a true flavour of Chaucer’s mastery over the medium and his skill as a poet and storyteller.

If you have not read Chaucer I would definitely recommend readers to try the book just for the sake of the story itself.

Links:

Reviews

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/15/books/review/Bloom-t.html

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article5945019.ece

Text

http://www.librarius.com/canttran/gptrfs.htm

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/CT-prolog-para.html

Travels in the history of architecture by Robert Harbison published by Reaktion Books ,UK

This is a book on buildings through different ages of history.Harbison is a professor of architecture and the book is intended for students and researchers of architecture. Lot of it is academic stuff but it is lot of history as well. To a random reader like me it is like travelling through different cultures and societies as stories from history are weaved into each narrative.It is a good book to read and can be used as a reference point for travellers who love to visit historical monuments . The chapters cover Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Romanesque, Gothic,Renaissance,Mannerism,Baroque,Historicism and Modernism styles of architecture.The technical details might be too heavy for the uninitiated .But the historical narrative is captivating.

The Egyptians were obsessed with Death and deified crocodiles, snakes and baboons .Tomb robbery was common and the pharaohs themselves usurped, re-labelled and reoccupied the temples and tombs of their predecessors .The importance of the boat in ancient Egypt, the ceremonial journeys on boats by the Gods can be compared to similar Hindu rituals. The multiple burial sites for Osiris whose dismembered body ended up in thirteen locations finds resonance in the Hindu mythology of dismembering of Sati’s body and the monuments built in various locations of India where the parts of the body fell.

The Doric temple is the greatest Greek contribution to the history of architecture. We find description of the concept of the first shopping mall in Roman architecture, the public baths, the libraries sports fields ,etc .The Colosseum was at one time home for 420 different species of plants some so rare that it was assumed that the seeds were brought from Persia. Gothic style began in a small area in northern France .The author traces the evolution of the style through the descriptions of the beautiful cathedrals and of its extreme example in Beauvais where the high vaults collapsed 24 years after completion and had to be rebuilt with the doubling of bays and piers in the choir.

There are interesting details of Michelangelo’s great architectural project at San Lorenzo, the library vestibule. Michael Angelo could not come from Rome to supervise its construction so he sent a clay model for Ammannati to interpret. The library had a section for rare books too.

In describing Bernini’s Baroque creations the author refers to the canal in Varsailles which is actually like the figure of a cross and measures three miles long on its axis where thousands died of malaria digging artificial water features. It reminds us once again the plight of hapless workers who sometimes even gave their lives in building such architectural wonders


The language of the book is academic and is essentially meant for the student of architecture .But the abundance of historical detail can be enjoyed by ordinary readers too. The book is full of illustrations and has beautiful b/w photographs.An excellent book to be added to your institutional or private library.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Travels-History-Architecture-Robert-Harbison/dp/186189435X#_