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Loading... Silence (original 1966; edition 2006)by Endo Shusaku
Work InformationSilence by Shūsaku Endō (1966)
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While being myself a Christian, I am always afraid that books written by Christian authors turn out to be 'preachy' or pretend that if you only believe in God everything will turn out fine. I therefore rather avoid Christian books. This book, however, is something else entirely. It has sharp edges, very disturbing scenes, ask difficult questions and has the courage not to answer them. The characters Endo creates are superb and real. I am very glad the great Martin Scorsece is making a movie about this, so more people can discover this masterpiece. Who else but Endo is credited with the notion of, "an ordeal such that, please note, the ethical is the temptation."—Silence (and Trembling) (1966). Given he is writing over a century after this combination of words has appeared on paper somewhere, we are not shocked by the nature of the final temptation, though perhaps bemused that our protagonists are unprepared to exegete around it. The close reader will apprehend that the absence of a language barrier is due to the fact that, by their due diligence in preparation for this journey, our priests have watched a lot of anime on videocassette. no reviews | add a review
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"Shusaku Endo's classic novel of enduring faith in dangerous times "Silence I regard as a masterpiece, a lucid and elegant drama."--The New York Times Book Review Seventeenth-century Japan: Two Portuguese Jesuit priests travel to a country hostile to their religion, where feudal lords force the faithful to publicly renounce their beliefs. Eventually captured and forced to watch their Japanese Christian brothers lay down their lives for their faith, the priests bear witness to unimaginable cruelties that test their own beliefs. Shusaku Endois one of the most celebrated and well-known Japanese fiction writers of the twentieth century, and Silence is widely considered to be his great masterpiece"-- No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)895.635Literature Literature of other languages Asian (east and south east) languages Japanese Japanese fiction 1945–2000LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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Even though I like Inoue, the priest Rodrigues main tormentor, knew where it would end, it wasn't just an interesting philosophical or theological discussion, but the narrative was strong and drove the discussion. Rodrigues often discussed how Kichijiro would be a great Christian if times were easy, though he is also talking about himself by the end. Yet all the Christians in the book suffer for their faith, but even though there is a lot to think about in how torture and violence is used to "persuade" people -- or yourself -- especially in our age, people often do things they dislike just to get along, thinking we are helping out ourselves and others in the short or long run. How much are you willing to sacrifice to stay true to ourselves and our faith while living in society, especially if you live in one which does not share your values? Even though Endo pushes his characters to their extreme, that is at the heart of the book.