Describe Appertaining To Books The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr (gesammelte Werke in fünf Bänden #3)
| Title | : | The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr (gesammelte Werke in fünf Bänden #3) |
| Author | : | E.T.A. Hoffmann |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 384 pages |
| Published | : | April 29th 1999 by Penguin Classics (first published 1819) |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Classics. European Literature. German Literature. Fantasy. Literature. 19th Century. Cultural. Germany |
E.T.A. Hoffmann
Paperback | Pages: 384 pages Rating: 3.99 | 1493 Users | 100 Reviews
Explanation To Books The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr (gesammelte Werke in fünf Bänden #3)
It was E. T. A. Hoffmann (1776-1822) who first explored many of the themes and techniques which were later used by writers from Dickens to Dostoyevsky, Poe to Kafka, Baudelaire to Marquez. His career reached a glorious climax in The Tomcat Murr, perhaps the strangest novel of the nineteenth century.. "Hoffmann was a follower of Cervantes and Sterne, a pioneering 'magic realist', fascinated by Gothic horror, extreme mental states and supernatural events occurring within sharply (and sometimes satirically) rendered social settings. A talented composer and painter, he portrayed himself in the guise of Johannes Kreisler - the hypochondriac, antisocial and moody but brilliant musician. In this astonishing book, a vain and very bourgeois tomcat sets out to write his memoirs, using a biography of Kreisler as a blotting pad. By a printer's error, the two lives get spliced together into a bizarre double narrative. A supreme example of literary bravado, The Tomcat Murr is also shot through with the warmth, humanity and almost uncanny ability to captivate his readers which make Hoffmann the greatest of German story-tellers.Details Books Supposing The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr (gesammelte Werke in fünf Bänden #3)
| Original Title: | Lebensansichten des Katers Murr |
| ISBN: | 0140446311 (ISBN13: 9780140446319) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Series: | gesammelte Werke in fünf Bänden #3 |
Rating Appertaining To Books The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr (gesammelte Werke in fünf Bänden #3)
Ratings: 3.99 From 1493 Users | 100 ReviewsWrite Up Appertaining To Books The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat Murr (gesammelte Werke in fünf Bänden #3)
This was an initially fun read--I love the concept of a cat's autobiography spliced with a human Kapellmeister's shuffled biography, which the cat supposedly found in the wastepaper basket and wrote on the back of. The cat Murr, as are most cats, is very full of himself and his scholarly, poetical abilities and enjoys namedropping constantly in a hilarious manner. The Kapellmeister Kriesler, however, is supposedly a thinly disguised version of the author Hoffman himself, and his story becomesIt's always rewarding when you read a book like this - two hundred years old and full of references to bourgeois German society - and find that it is genuinely funny, that the humour transcends cultural and historical boundaries. Here, the characteristics of the pretentious, deluded cat Murr and the intense, anti-social composer Kriesler are easily identifiable in any era. Murr engages in a sort of bildungsroman, starting off as a precocious kitten fond of half-reading classics and amusing
It's a classic for a reason. I needed some time / pages to get into it, but once I did, it became very enjoyable. It's got two volumes and Hoffmann had a third one planned (but died too soon), so one should keep that in mind when finishing the book.
IntroductionFurther ReadingNote on the Illustrations--The Life and Opinions of the Tomcat MurrEditor's PostscriptNotes
MOST HONEST PORTRAYAL OF A TOMCAT EVER. (Not for children.)
Cats are supreme and disdainful creatures so in their judgments of humanity they show no quarterI dont see why an agreeable domestic pet with a happy natural disposition shouldnt be taught to read and write, or indeed why such a little creature couldnt rise to become a scholar and poet. Is that so unprecedented a thing? I wont go so far as to quote the Thousand and One Nights as the best historical source, and a source full of pragmatic authenticity; I will just remind you, my dear fellow, of
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