Eclectic, nostalgic, creative, and sometimes otherworldly.
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
Doug Emmett’s work as Director of Photography in this film is stunning, and the reason why I think the movie itself is so powerful.
We are all searching. Sometimes what you’re looking for is right in front of you. Sometimes not.
A.S. Byatt’s “Possession”
I broke the cardinal, ubiquitous rule any aficionado of good fiction always swears by. Never watch the movie before reading the book. I’ve deviated from this before and emerged relatively unscathed. This time was different. Here’s why.
“Possession” is – as the cover indicates – a story of romance, but not just in the traditional sense. At over five hundred pages, the novel itself could be a metaphor for the author’s amorous connection to language. Any writer who composes compelling narrative replete with letters, poetry and journal excerpts must have a larger than life appreciation for the intricacies of storytelling. Combine that with not one, but four protagonists and what you have is a recipe either for disaster, or the makings of one of the most intricately woven stories in modern English literature.
From the very beginning of the novel, Byatt requires a great deal from her audience. In the first chapter she introduces a literary style some readers might find daunting, but more on that later. First, the characters.
Roland Mitchell and Maud Bailey are matched perfectly. Their quest for knowledge, coupled with their personal struggles, creates a tension that serves a two-fold purpose. First, Byatt forces the pair together in a quest to discover the connection between two Victorian poets, Randolph Henry Ash and Christabel LaMotte. In this role, Roland is something of an adventure seeker, tamed by Maud’s indelible practicality and staunch feminist worldview. Second, as the pair maneuvers the unpredictability that defines their research and the nature of their relationship, they realize feelings begin to emerge and the plight of Christabel and Randolph become their own in a very unique way.
If the two couples and their inexplicable, yet complex commonalities comprised the bulk of this novel, I would give it five stars without hesitation and laud it as a beautifully romantic tale with a literary twist. But that is not the case.
At first glance, the poetry, letters and journal entries of Byatt’s 19th century characters are a welcome enhancement to the story. The correspondence evolves from a thoughtful exchange about literature, philosophy and religion to whimsically lyrical expressions of feeling, albeit forbidden. The story progresses in kind, and the occasional break in the narrative that ingratiated readers to the characters very quickly becomes tedious and annoying.
Byatt’s literary genius is brought to bear as the plot reaches its apex, though the author’s mastery of the English language is not the Achilles’ heel of the narrative. The novel is highly cerebral and requires the reader’s complete and undivided attention. Having a dictionary handy wouldn’t hurt either.
While the story is compelling and the characters are as realistic as an author can make them, this book should not be a first choice for a bit of Sunday afternoon light reading. In fact, there is nothing particularly “light” about the book in any respect. Not the dense weight of the novel, or the sheer number of pages so filled with text that one would think this a textbook on literary theory, which it well could be for all the references to research material and historical documents.
I must confess that I put the book down with just over one hundred pages left to read. Although this is my first experience with an A.S. Byatt novel, I will not abandon her work completely simply because I find her approach slightly unpalatable. This book needs more time to grow on me before I attempt it again.
Sometimes I function better when I can give a thought my undivided attention. Usually, I think most clearly at my desk in the office. Tonight, its on the sofa in my living room with my laptop.
In case you were wondering, I’m using Wunderkit.
The highlight of my week. A gift entrusted to me by a dear friend. I say “entrusted” because a gift should never be merely accepted. It should be put to good use. We are stewards, even of the gifts we receive, are we not?
“For one human being to love another is
perhaps the most difficult task of all,
the epitome, the ultimate test.
It is that striving for which all other striving
is merely preparation
- Rainer Maria Rilke
