|
|
|
|
Ottoman Shadow Theater |
| Section: BOOK WORLD / FEATURED BOOK: Orhan Pumuk's The White Castle |
| Author: Talat S. Halman |
| Publication: The world & I online |
| Issue Date: 6/1/1991 |
| Size: 3,525 Words, 21,842 Characters |
|
"To be a writer is to wear masks," Orhan Pamuk observed last year. In a talk he gave in Izmir, Turkey, he also said, "Every writer has an artificial, feigned, fake side to him." "As a novelist," he added, "I no longer want to be omniscient. I would rather command limited knowledge--and mastery of the art of fiction."
The White Castle reveals the quintessential aesthetic strategy that the 38-year-old author has thus mapped out. It is a masquerade, an intellectual game, an unabashed trompe l'oeil, a literary intrigue. Pamuk has avoided "know-it-all" narration; instead, he has opted for in-depth vision for his shadowy protagonists.
Shadows, not necessarily in the Platonic or Sufi sense, are the "heroes" of this chiaroscuric novel. Significantly (as I was told by the book's transla...
. . .
...nd courageously claim a richer vocabulary without succumbing to the taboos imposed on today's Turkish writers by the stewards of "pure Turkish," who prefer neologisms, Pamuk will probably produce great fiction that can stand on its own vis-a-vis the masterworks of the modern world. Meanwhile, we can relish his first four novels and revel in the beautiful English version of The White Castle.
(812 of 21,842 characters)
Do you want to read
the whole article? You can
purchase it here.
Subscriber Login |
|
|
Publication Details
(The World & I Online) |
|
The World & I Online is a
comprehensive academic resource that encompasses a broad range of
articles by scholars and experts in the areas of Global Studies,
Liberal Arts, Fine & Applied Arts, General Science, and Spanish.
Originally published monthly in print as The World & I, our site
includes the complete contents since 1986 and continues to publish
a new issue online each month. |
|
Individual Subscription
|
 |
|
|
|
College Orders (based
on full-time enrollment) |
|
-
2 to 5 Computers |
|
-
Up to 1,000 Students |
|
-
1,001 to 2,500 Students |
|
-
2,501 to 5,000 Students |
|
-
5,001 to 10,000 Students |
|
-
10,001 or More Students |
|
|
|
Public Library Orders |
|
-
2 to 5 Computers |
|
-
6 to 50 Computers |
|
-
51 to 100 Computers |
|
For over 100
computers, call 866-211-6040. |
|
|
