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De wateren werden stil by Aldous Huxley
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De wateren werden stil (1936)

by Aldous Huxley, Marianne Philips

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1,3141914,338 (3.67)53
WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY DAVID BRADSHAW Anthony Beavis is a man inclined to recoil from life. His past is haunted by the death of his best friend Brian and by his entanglement with the cynical and manipulative Mary Amberley. Realising that his determined detachment from the world has been motivated not by intellectual honesty but by moral cowardice, Anthony attempts to find a new way to live. Eyeless in Gazais considered by many to be Huxley's definitive work of fiction.… (more)
Member:melomaan
Title:De wateren werden stil
Authors:Aldous Huxley
Other authors:Marianne Philips
Info:Den Haag : Zuid-Hollandsche Uitgevers Mij.; 400 p, 23 cm; http://opc4.kb.nl/DB=1/PPN?PPN=098658492
Collections:Your library
Rating:****
Tags:britse literatuur, engeland, roman, 1e druk, fictie, aldous huxley, pacifisme, zelfmoord, school, londen, filosofie

Work Information

Eyeless in Gaza by Aldous Huxley (1936)

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Showing 1-5 of 16 (next | show all)
An engaging and clever novel that tells the story of Anthony Beavis' life in a non-chronological masterpiece. Beautifully the tale moves from decade to decade, event to event, backwards and forwards in time whilst even more majestically all coming together to create the story itself. A fantastic read. ( )
  Dzaowan | Feb 15, 2024 |
Reason read: 2023, Oct botm Reading 1001

This story takes place during the early 1900s to 1930's and tells the story of Anthony Beavis. He lost his mother and then he lives much of his life closed off emotionally from others. He has affairs with older women and their daughters. He betrays his one good friend and is admittedly a coward. After going through several relationships, death of his friend, an encounter with a doctor in Mexico, Anthony has a heart change. He becomes an active pacifist. Historically the book is set during the WWI, post WWI, Spanish Civil War, the depression, and pre WWII with a look at the decadence of Germany with it s Cabaret life style. The story is not told chronologically and jumps back and forth from time before and after the death of his friend, Brian. This was a definite turning point for Anthony. The characters are numerous and a bit hard to keep track of all them but the story line is linked to there motivations and desires and their overall change. The side trips into dialogues of philosophizing could have been shortened and this would have not hurt the story in any way. The book is not the one people think of when they think of Huxley but it is probably his best book. I will remember this one. The title is from the Bible story of Samson after Delilah betrays him to the philistines and he is blinded and made to work as a slave. ( )
  Kristelh | Nov 2, 2023 |
Eyeless in Gaza is considered a novel that is difficult to read because of its narrative structure consisting of random flash backs. It is Aldous Huxley's most autobiographical novel. With this in mind, the key to the structure of the novel is the author's birthdate. Aldous Huxley was born on 26 July 1894. The main character in the book was born on that date, and the flash backs to apparently random dates can be understood as mental flashbacks. This is just the way the mind works! The structure of the novel is entirely clear after the reader has internalized the age of the main character.

I have read many books by Aldous Huxley but never a biography. The introduction by David Bradshaw merely consists of a short biography of Huxley's life, without any interpretation of the novel. The novel's plot mirrors the life of the author, with focal points around the tree most traumatic events in Huxley's life being the death of his mother, his temporary loss of eye sight and the suicide of his brother.

I would not agree to the idea that Eyeless in Gaza is Huxley's most philosophical novel, but it is perhaps the heaviest, most pondersome. Most of his other novels are light and humorous. ( )
  edwinbcn | Dec 22, 2021 |
"Hell is the incapacity to be other than the creature one finds oneself ordinarily behaving as."

Eyeless in Gaza was first published in 1936 and said to be the most auto-biographical of all Huxley's works. The novel centres around Anthony Beavis and his group of friends spanning their lives from childhood to middle age during the first decades of the 20th century. The story is told in non-sequential chapters and from differing characters' perspective.

It is a pretty hefty tome and isn't a particularly easy read yet many commentators seem to believe it to be the greatest of the author's books, so why didn't I like it more?

Firstly; it's length, it's just too long, featuring far too many inconsequential details and sub-plots that add nothing to the overall tale.

Secondly; I found it far too difficult. The non-sequential nature of the novel did have the effect of allowing two strands of the story, one taking place in 1914 featuring the sad demise of Beavis's childhood friend Brian, the other following Anthony's and Mark's trip to Mexico to join an insurrection there in 1934, to come to a climax almost simultaneously for the reader. However, on the other hand this disjointed style hindered rather than aided my understanding of the overall message that Huxley was trying to convey. I found myself trying to remember just who the characters were and what their relationships were in the various time periods. On several occasions I found myself flipping back to a previous chapter to remind myself. Perhaps a series of flashbacks would have proved more manageable.

Thirdly; there were just too many big ideas vying for prominence, ideas concerning the great social and artistic upheavals of the day being espoused by wealthy privileged individuals who seem to have little contact or in common with the masses making them seem like unreliable commentators. Equally I found the overall bleak outlook, the defeatism and pacifism on show at the end of the novel something of a dampener. Huxley seems be trying to prove that there is more to life than love but ultimately concludes that really there isn't.

On a couple of occasions I was tempted to give up on this book but there also elements of this book which I found enjoyable. The characterisation was generally well done as was the depiction of their surroundings. At times Huxley displays a certain satirical humour whilst at times, particularly the section involving Anthony and Mark in Mexico, the author proves that he could, if he wanted to be, an entertaining storyteller.

Having read and enjoyed the author's Brave New World I was looking forward to reading this book but found it somewhat over-blown and disappointing. Oh well, you can't win 'em all. ( )
  PilgrimJess | Oct 15, 2019 |
That was the chief difference between literature and life. In books, the proportion of exceptional to commonplace people is high; in reality, very low.

Practically bed ridden, incapacitated and unable to sleep I completed this chewy hulk of a novel in 24 hours. Overflowing with ideas, Eyeless asks about Action: what is one to do? Anthony, one of the novels chief characters remains preoccupied with freedom throughout his life. The narrative rotates between 5 or so timelines and flips back to each periodically, like Moloch gleefully dealing Texas Hold'em. Others are debauched or likewise stalwarts in various ideologies. Huxley asserts through the fog of politics and history that a point might be, just keep it simple. Take it easy on your colon. Don't try to fuck people over. Make amends. There are no overt references to gardens, but I accept that such is implied. This was published in 1936 and with Spain and the Dark Times on the horizon, this is penned in a certain panic. I wondered whether our own anxiety will crystalize in such a masterful experiment. ( )
  jonfaith | Feb 22, 2019 |
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Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Huxley, Aldousprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Hawinkels, PéTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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'Eyeless in Gaza at the Mill with slaves' - Milton
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The snapshots had become almost as dim as memories.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY DAVID BRADSHAW Anthony Beavis is a man inclined to recoil from life. His past is haunted by the death of his best friend Brian and by his entanglement with the cynical and manipulative Mary Amberley. Realising that his determined detachment from the world has been motivated not by intellectual honesty but by moral cowardice, Anthony attempts to find a new way to live. Eyeless in Gazais considered by many to be Huxley's definitive work of fiction.

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