I am always interested in reading books featuring intellectuals and teachers, as there is so much to explore in terms of connectivity and intellectual topics in general. Elizabeth Finch by Julian Barnes whose writings I usually appreciate in terms of deep intellectual take promised such a feast for the brain.
Featuring the homonymous teacher of ´culture and civilization´, it is written by one of her teacher, Neil, with whom she had a platonic relationship for around 20 years until her death. It is a relatively short novel, of around 170 pages, but does have the potential to take on different topics, including the relationship between teacher and student or life seen and lived through intellectual categories.
I was definitely interested in the first part of the book - around 40-50 pages, as it does have an unfolding story. Elizabeth is strict in her professoral position - ´I am not employed to help you (...) I am here to assist you to think and argue and develop minds of your own´ - inspiring as only a mentor can be - ´I was clever in her presence, I knew more, I was more cogent; and I was desperate to please her´ - while remaining an intellectual mystery no matter how often they used to talk and meet - ´Elizabeth Finch who stood before us was the finished article, the sum of what she had made herself, what others had helped her make, and what the world had provided´.
The more ´mysterious´ part is enfolding as Neil is left after her death her manuscripts and he is trying to put together a book about her, which ends to be a philosophical - mostly stoic - collection of thoughts. In this moment, the story is broken and all the potential of the book vanishes.
Do we need to delve into stoic philosophy when developing Finch´s story can actually lead to more narrative consistency? Philosophical thoughts inserted into a story, as collection of ideas for example, do not look very entincing, especially when the novel is supposed to be so short. It looks like stealing away precious space from the story itself.
Elizabeth Finch left me with a deep feeling of unaccomplishment.
Rating: 2 stars
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