It is in quest of the fire they lack, the fire of love, that women pursue artists and give themselves to them.” Women themselves do not have the sacred fire (there are exceptions: Sappho, Emily Bronte). The fire that burns in artists is visible to women, by means of an instinctive faculty. “Because they are creators, artists possess the secret of love. Swedish women, of course, are useful to young poets-in-the-making with patriarchal instincts and ancient attitudes towards women’s roles as muses and sexual objects: Yet, they “spiritually” identify with Stockholm.

There seems to be a consensus in the world how to categorise Swedes, and the general common denominator between the analysts is that they have never lived in Sweden or talked to a Swede, or read a Swedish author. I hate when people assume by hearsay that they know exactly what Sweden is like, and what they can expect of it. “Spiritually, he would feel at home in Stockholm, he suspects. Or is it a critical analysis of the mindset of the early 1960s, showing the reality of that time ruthlessly in order to make a subtle statement on the era without embracing those attitudes in 2002, when the novel was published?Īpart from the problematic relationship of 1960s South Africa to the rest of the world, I was appalled by the stereotypical description of women from Provence, London, small towns in England or Sweden. Does he reflect Coetzee’s own development? If so, there is a huge amount of prejudice and misogyny in his world view, almost painfully evident in every sentence. This makes me wonder what the character meant to the author. There is no other way to describe what I felt, page after page, digging deeper into his psyche filled with pretentious nothingness and arrogance. It is the search of the poet for the right modus vivendi to develop his creativity. The character is called John, and aspires to become a poet, or writer in general, while trying to fit in by taking a job as a computer programmer. There are autobiographical elements in the story of the young man who leaves Cape Town in 1962 to start a new life in London. But it has left me agonising over its content in a way I did not anticipate at all. It is very easy to read, and in fact, I finished it in an afternoon.

This one is clear-cut, with simple language and a typical coming-of-age plot. What can I say? This is the tenth novel (or so, I just made a quick calculation in my head) by Coetzee that I have read, and it leaves me puzzled in a way that the others do not, even though they may be less approachable, more brutal and enigmatic.

Youth by jm coetzee