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Barcelona: Proa, 1992
Description
The world-famous masterpiece by Nobel laureate Thomas Mann -- here in a new translation by Michael Henry Heim Published on the eve of World War I, a decade after "Buddenbrooks" had established Thomas Mann as a literary celebrity, "Death in Venice" tells the story of Gustav von Aschenbach, a successful but aging writer who follows his wanderlust to Venice in search of spiritual fulfillment that instead leads to his erotic doom. In the decaying city, besieged by an unnamed epidemic, he becomes obsessed with an exquisite Polish boy, Tadzio. "It is a story of the voluptuousness of doom," Mann wrote. "But the problem I had especially in mind was that of the artist's dignity."
Media reviews
The Bookman
This man in the gate of the cemetery is almost the Motiv of the story. By him, Aschenbach is infected with a desire to travel. He examines himself minutely, in a way almost painful in its frankness, and one sees the whole soul of this author of fifty-three. And it seems, the artist has absorbed the
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man, and yet the man is there, like an exhausted organism on which a parasite has fed itself strong. Then begins a kind of Holbein Totentanz. The story is quite natural in appearance, and yet there is the gruesome sense of symbolism throughout...
It is as an artist rather than as a story-teller that Germany worships Thomas Mann. And yet it seems to me, this craving for form is the outcome, not of artistic conscience, but of a certain attitude to life... Thomas Mann seems to me the last sick sufferer from the complaint of Flaubert. The latter stood away from life as from a leprosy. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member richardderus
The Book Report: I feel a complete fool providing a plot precis for this canonical work. Gustav von Ascherbach, literary lion in his sixties, wanders about his home town of Munich while struggling with a recalcitrant new story. His chance encounter with a weirdo, though no words are exchanged
My Review: I know this was written in 1911-1912, and is therefore to be judged by the standards of another era, but I am bone-weary of stories featuring men whose love for other males brings them to disaster and death. This is the story that started me on that path of dislike. Von Ascherbach realizes he's in love for the first time in his pinched, narrow life, and it's with a 14-year-old boy; his response is to make himself ridiculous, following the kid around, staying in his Venetian Garden of Eros despite knowing for sure there's a cholera epidemic, despite being warned of the dangers of staying, despite smelling decay and death and miasmic uccchiness all around, because he's in love. But with the wrong kind of person...a male. Therefore Mann makes him pay the ultimate price, he loses his life because he gives in and falls hopelessly, stupidly in love. With a male. Mann makes his judgment of this moral turpitude even more explicit by making it a chaste, though to modern eyes not unrequited, love between an old man and a boy. Explicit references to Classical culture aside, the entire atmosphere of the novel is quite evidently designed to point up the absurdity and the impossibility of such a love being rewarding or rewarded. It's not in the least mysterious what Mann's after: Denial, denial, denial! It's your only salvation, faggots! Deny yourself, don't let yourself feel anything rather than feel *that*!
This book offends my sensibilities. Gorgeously built images and sonorously elegant sentences earn it all of its points.
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between them, ignites in Herr von Ascherbach the need to get out of town, to get himself to the delicious fleshpots of the South. An abortive stay in Illyria (now Bosnia or Montenegro or Croatia, no knowing which since we're not given much to go on) leads him to make his second journey to Venice. Arriving in the sin capital of the early modern world, and even in the early 20th century possessed of a louche reputation, brings him into contact with two life-changing things: A beautiful teenaged boy, and cholera. I think the title fills you in on the rest.My Review: I know this was written in 1911-1912, and is therefore to be judged by the standards of another era, but I am bone-weary of stories featuring men whose love for other males brings them to disaster and death. This is the story that started me on that path of dislike. Von Ascherbach realizes he's in love for the first time in his pinched, narrow life, and it's with a 14-year-old boy; his response is to make himself ridiculous, following the kid around, staying in his Venetian Garden of Eros despite knowing for sure there's a cholera epidemic, despite being warned of the dangers of staying, despite smelling decay and death and miasmic uccchiness all around, because he's in love. But with the wrong kind of person...a male. Therefore Mann makes him pay the ultimate price, he loses his life because he gives in and falls hopelessly, stupidly in love. With a male. Mann makes his judgment of this moral turpitude even more explicit by making it a chaste, though to modern eyes not unrequited, love between an old man and a boy. Explicit references to Classical culture aside, the entire atmosphere of the novel is quite evidently designed to point up the absurdity and the impossibility of such a love being rewarding or rewarded. It's not in the least mysterious what Mann's after: Denial, denial, denial! It's your only salvation, faggots! Deny yourself, don't let yourself feel anything rather than feel *that*!
This book offends my sensibilities. Gorgeously built images and sonorously elegant sentences earn it all of its points.
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LibraryThing member strandbooks
This is a strange, creepy little novel. I can't decided if the character Aschenbach is really a pedophile or just enthralled with the youth and beauty of a teenage boy that has been lost to him for years.
LibraryThing member debnance
I liked and disliked this book. Mann has his character, Aschenbach, preach a little more than I like, preaching his thoughts about beauty and writing and control. That's what I disliked. For the first third of the book, I could barely force myself to keep reading.Then Aschenbach falls in love and
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begins to tail the object of his affection all over Venice. The story takes a different turn and the writing moves from a rant about virtue to a real story. Venice is beautifully depicted and Aschenbach becomes a real, brilliant, tortured human being. That's what I liked. Show Less
LibraryThing member john257hopper
This one creeps up on you slowly throughout. It begins very slowly and frankly rather tediously, with the author spending a large number of words on very little. But the protagonist's obsessions, with the young boy he stalks, and with his fear of and longing for oblivion, gradually take over the
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narrative, and his mental decay mirrors the physical decay of Venice and the growing menace of the disease plaguing the city. Leave quite an emotional impact. Show Less
LibraryThing member Terpsichoreus
A literary achievement with the psychology of Tolstoy and a Greek commitment to the story itself; and that is not the only thing about this book that is 'Greek'. A treatise on Death, Life, Sex, Desire, and Fear which is both enticing and terrifying, and for the self-same reason.
Here is the face of
Eminently pleasing and disturbing, this battle between the barely-restrained Epicurean and the resignedly Absurdist meets the latter's comic fruition in the former's faux-tragic inaccessibility.
Here is the face of
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wretched animal man, teeth bared and cloudy desperation mocking the vision. Mann's most succinct and powerful images and meanings are always reversed, for the sense that the raw and brutal emotion herein is become feral is mitigated by the fact that it is twisted back upon the self as only such a morally indistinct, labyrinthine mass may so twist.Eminently pleasing and disturbing, this battle between the barely-restrained Epicurean and the resignedly Absurdist meets the latter's comic fruition in the former's faux-tragic inaccessibility.
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LibraryThing member AlisonY
This edition was a collection of 7 of Mann's short stories, of which Death in Venice was the last. The others were 'Little Herr Freidemann', 'The Joker', 'The Road to the Churchyard', 'Gladius Dei', 'Tristan', and 'Tonio Kroeger'.
I started off with very high hopes - I loved the first story 'Little
Unfortunately, as I worked my way through the stories I grew more and more disenchanted with them. The majority of the stories felt like they were building up to a great twist which never happened. More often than not they ended with the inner turmoil and wrangling of the protagonist about either his own soul or that of society in general. Mann was heavily influenced by Freud and Neitzsche, and in many stories there was a lot of psychological introspection and classical allusions which grew tiring after a while.
As 'Death in Venice' is the most well known of Mann's short stories, I expected that the best had been kept till last, but alas by the time I'd got to it I was worn down by the ever decreasing circles of the previous stories and found it over-hyped. His obsession with the young boy in Venice didn't engage me - I again felt there was too much psycho-babble which distracted from the story and the emotions of the protagonist.
Perhaps if I'd read the story 'Death in Venice' in isolation I'd have enjoyed it more, but I just felt there was too much repetition of the same theme throughout most of the stories. I almost feel disappointed that this is my conclusion; there is no doubt that Mann can be an exquisite writer, and each story started with a fantastically imaginative setting. I just wish that he'd concentrated more on the plot and less on the philosophising.
I can see how many would enjoy his work, but this just wasn't for me.
I started off with very high hopes - I loved the first story 'Little
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Herr Friedemann', about a disabled young man whose unrequited love for the wife of the town's new lieutenant-colonel ends tragically. It was beautifully written and very compelling.Unfortunately, as I worked my way through the stories I grew more and more disenchanted with them. The majority of the stories felt like they were building up to a great twist which never happened. More often than not they ended with the inner turmoil and wrangling of the protagonist about either his own soul or that of society in general. Mann was heavily influenced by Freud and Neitzsche, and in many stories there was a lot of psychological introspection and classical allusions which grew tiring after a while.
As 'Death in Venice' is the most well known of Mann's short stories, I expected that the best had been kept till last, but alas by the time I'd got to it I was worn down by the ever decreasing circles of the previous stories and found it over-hyped. His obsession with the young boy in Venice didn't engage me - I again felt there was too much psycho-babble which distracted from the story and the emotions of the protagonist.
Perhaps if I'd read the story 'Death in Venice' in isolation I'd have enjoyed it more, but I just felt there was too much repetition of the same theme throughout most of the stories. I almost feel disappointed that this is my conclusion; there is no doubt that Mann can be an exquisite writer, and each story started with a fantastically imaginative setting. I just wish that he'd concentrated more on the plot and less on the philosophising.
I can see how many would enjoy his work, but this just wasn't for me.
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LibraryThing member knfmn
a 160 page celebration of a pederast and his target. I find it interesting that Mann is revered as an author, but most people would be hard-pressed to come up with 3 books that he wrote. I found this book unimaginative and prone to rambling. Not my idea of a good book.
LibraryThing member Danielle23
A great book with a very appropriate ending. Very beautifully written.
LibraryThing member kambrogi
Some brilliant classics never age. Their eternal conflicts remain relevant and their complexity is sufficient to provide a challenge with each reading. Death in Venice is one of those.
In this novella, Mann investigates the battle between the mind and the body, the head and the heart, the noble and
In this novella, Mann investigates the battle between the mind and the body, the head and the heart, the noble and
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the savage. Gustav von Aschenbach, an aging writer, has dedicated his life to intellectual pursuits, living each day on the highest plane of a carefully-controlled artistic and spiritual life. But a sudden desire for the exotic takes him to Venice, where his life of dignity and restraint falls away. Caught by lust in a climate of decadence and disease, he is helpless to resist the lure of hedonism that finally spells his doom. Show Less
LibraryThing member dczapka
I have to start this review with a confession: I did not read this translation of Death in Venice. I didn't even read a printed book version of Death in Venice; rather, I found a translated version of the text online. (I sure hope it was posted legally...) So since I can't say a whole lot about
The novella's plot concerns Gustav von Aschenbach, a world-famous author who has recently been ennobled and has decided, through a set of unusual circumstances, that he needs to take a break. He decided to vacation in Venice, where he becomes infatuated with a young Polish boy, Tadzio, who is vacationing there with his family. The better part of the tale involves Aschenbach's steadily increasing interest in the young boy, and the lengths that he goes to for this longing.
The real strength of the novella is in the character of Gustav, who is dominant in every scene, despite the work being told in the third-person. He comes off at first as a very snooty type, but the more time we spend with him--and the more unhinged he becomes as a result of his obsession--the more interested we become in him. His depth is revealed slowly and patiently by Mann: we begin by knowing only his reputation, we then get a fine sense of the person beneath the veneer, and are left with a final sentence that is both achingly sad and bring the whole tale full-circle.
Nevertheless, the story does suffer from exceptionally slow pacing at its start, a problem that I hesitate to blame on the long, languorous construction of the original German prose. The first two chapters, as Aschenbach prepares to depart for Venice, crawl along at a snail's pace, providing us with extraordinary insight into Aschenbach's creative faculties and theories of aesthetics, but not giving us enough reason to remain invested in it. The purpose ultimately reveals itself as his obsession with Tadzio becomes more complete (and more artistic, technically), but there feels like too much of a divide between the theory and the practice, and it ends up falling short.
Some may very well give up on the novella before they get very far into it, and I would hardly blame them: I almost did myself. But if you can get past the exposition and reach Venice with Aschenbach, Mann takes hold and steers the story well from there. There's enough mystery and intrigue to keep the reader on his toes--even if the title of the work renders the ending less than a surprise--and there are passages of true beauty throughout. As long as you can get through the slow start, Death in Venice proves itself to be a worthy and enrapturing read.
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this translation, I will have to limit myself to talking about Mann's story--which, I do hope, is more enthralling in its native German than it is in translation.The novella's plot concerns Gustav von Aschenbach, a world-famous author who has recently been ennobled and has decided, through a set of unusual circumstances, that he needs to take a break. He decided to vacation in Venice, where he becomes infatuated with a young Polish boy, Tadzio, who is vacationing there with his family. The better part of the tale involves Aschenbach's steadily increasing interest in the young boy, and the lengths that he goes to for this longing.
The real strength of the novella is in the character of Gustav, who is dominant in every scene, despite the work being told in the third-person. He comes off at first as a very snooty type, but the more time we spend with him--and the more unhinged he becomes as a result of his obsession--the more interested we become in him. His depth is revealed slowly and patiently by Mann: we begin by knowing only his reputation, we then get a fine sense of the person beneath the veneer, and are left with a final sentence that is both achingly sad and bring the whole tale full-circle.
Nevertheless, the story does suffer from exceptionally slow pacing at its start, a problem that I hesitate to blame on the long, languorous construction of the original German prose. The first two chapters, as Aschenbach prepares to depart for Venice, crawl along at a snail's pace, providing us with extraordinary insight into Aschenbach's creative faculties and theories of aesthetics, but not giving us enough reason to remain invested in it. The purpose ultimately reveals itself as his obsession with Tadzio becomes more complete (and more artistic, technically), but there feels like too much of a divide between the theory and the practice, and it ends up falling short.
Some may very well give up on the novella before they get very far into it, and I would hardly blame them: I almost did myself. But if you can get past the exposition and reach Venice with Aschenbach, Mann takes hold and steers the story well from there. There's enough mystery and intrigue to keep the reader on his toes--even if the title of the work renders the ending less than a surprise--and there are passages of true beauty throughout. As long as you can get through the slow start, Death in Venice proves itself to be a worthy and enrapturing read.
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LibraryThing member Stormrose
4/20. A gorgeous, sensual, intellectually brilliant novella. The caveat is simple: the second chapter is torture. Torture. You have to trust Mann to know what he's doing, and sure enough, he does, and soon we're plunged into the vivid, sweltering world of venice, whose influence slowly overcomes
Here's how it works: at first, I had to force myself to read it (coincides with rationalist part of Aschenbach's mind) with thoughts of "famous novel, famous novelist, I'm sure it gets better ARGH!"
Then I had to force myself to stop (coincides with passionate overthrow of reason). A brilliant construction.
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Aschenbach's moralistic, rational thoughts and plunge him into a dionysion revel of passion and sensuous emotion. Watch out for the many red-haired men, and be prepared for the last chapter, when the whole novel seems to plunge into a bachanaid. Here's how it works: at first, I had to force myself to read it (coincides with rationalist part of Aschenbach's mind) with thoughts of "famous novel, famous novelist, I'm sure it gets better ARGH!"
Then I had to force myself to stop (coincides with passionate overthrow of reason). A brilliant construction.
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LibraryThing member janemarieprice
[Death in Venice] by [[Thomas Mann]]
Gustav Aschenbach, writer and nobleman, spurred by artistic restlessness, embarks on a trip to Venice. Once there he falls in love with a beautiful young boy. Meanwhile, Venice is dealing with an epidemic. Aschenbach slowly succumbs to both the disease of the
Aschenbach’s obsession with the boy Tadzio is extremely complex, an aspect that made the stalking relationship . Tadzio is both an object of art and a vestige of Aschenbach’s lost youth. “Icon and mirror!” Ultimately, Aschenbach’s inability to escape his excess is a mark of his artistic nature – what today we would consider living on the fringe becomes damning. “We may deny the abyss and acquire dignity but, no matter how we try, it attracts us.” Mann was convinced that any artist could only deny their passions for so long.
Even in translation, one can see what a gifted writer Mann is. The story is meticulously crafted. Varying motifs are repeated throughout, piecing together parts of the story and larger classical references. But my favorite portions were Mann’s observations on the human mind – things I have thought from time to time but wondered if anyone else ever thought this way. Deep insights that become silly in a few moments of thought:
“Weary and yet mentally agitated, he spent the protracted mealtime considering abstract, in fact transcendental matters; he reflected on the mysterious combination of regularity and individuality that is requisite for the creation of human beauty; this led him to general problems of form and art; and finally he concluded that these thoughts and discoveries of his resembled those apparently felicitous inspirations in dreams which, when you are fully awake again, prove to be totally insipid and worthless.”
And the daily interactions of strangers:
“Nothing is stranger or more ticklish than a relationship between people who know each other only by sight, who meet and observe each other daily – no, hourly – and are nevertheless compelled to keep up the pose of an indifferent stranger, neither greeting nor addressing each other, whether out of etiquette or their own whim. Between them there exists a disquiet, a strained curiosity, the hysteria of an unsatisfied, unnaturally repressed need for recognition and exchange of thoughts – and also, especially, a sort of nervous respect.”
Gustav Aschenbach, writer and nobleman, spurred by artistic restlessness, embarks on a trip to Venice. Once there he falls in love with a beautiful young boy. Meanwhile, Venice is dealing with an epidemic. Aschenbach slowly succumbs to both the disease of the
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body and the temptations of his own mind.Aschenbach’s obsession with the boy Tadzio is extremely complex, an aspect that made the stalking relationship . Tadzio is both an object of art and a vestige of Aschenbach’s lost youth. “Icon and mirror!” Ultimately, Aschenbach’s inability to escape his excess is a mark of his artistic nature – what today we would consider living on the fringe becomes damning. “We may deny the abyss and acquire dignity but, no matter how we try, it attracts us.” Mann was convinced that any artist could only deny their passions for so long.
Even in translation, one can see what a gifted writer Mann is. The story is meticulously crafted. Varying motifs are repeated throughout, piecing together parts of the story and larger classical references. But my favorite portions were Mann’s observations on the human mind – things I have thought from time to time but wondered if anyone else ever thought this way. Deep insights that become silly in a few moments of thought:
“Weary and yet mentally agitated, he spent the protracted mealtime considering abstract, in fact transcendental matters; he reflected on the mysterious combination of regularity and individuality that is requisite for the creation of human beauty; this led him to general problems of form and art; and finally he concluded that these thoughts and discoveries of his resembled those apparently felicitous inspirations in dreams which, when you are fully awake again, prove to be totally insipid and worthless.”
And the daily interactions of strangers:
“Nothing is stranger or more ticklish than a relationship between people who know each other only by sight, who meet and observe each other daily – no, hourly – and are nevertheless compelled to keep up the pose of an indifferent stranger, neither greeting nor addressing each other, whether out of etiquette or their own whim. Between them there exists a disquiet, a strained curiosity, the hysteria of an unsatisfied, unnaturally repressed need for recognition and exchange of thoughts – and also, especially, a sort of nervous respect.”
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LibraryThing member FPdC
Portuguese translation of the german original Der Tod in Venedig. The story of a forbidden and self-destructive passion of an old writer by a boy incarnating his ideal of classical beauty. A poignant portrait of love and decadence.
LibraryThing member indygo88
I'm not sure what the problem was with this audiobook & myself, but I just couldn't get into it. Perhaps I was distracted while listening & didn't get a full appreciation, but I honestly just couldn't wrap my head around it & when the ending came, rather abruptly, I had to rewind several times to
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be sure it really was the end. And still, I was left with a dazed look on my face. Having not previously read this or any translation of it, I think I may have been better off not going with the audio. Show Less
LibraryThing member rizeandshine
Death in Venice was well-written and kept my interest, but it was also creepy and depressing. II enjoyed the irony of how the main character, Gustav, changed in such a short time over the course of the book, due to his obsession. He began to look and act like those he had previously thought
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ridiculous. When he first reached Venice, I pictured Gustave a bit like Peter Ustinov in Evil Under the Sun. By the end, he was a sad caricature of his former self. Show Less
LibraryThing member BayardUS
So this tale is brief, somewhere between a short story and a novella. The first portion introduces the main character and discusses his views on literature, some of which are striking and some of which are gobbledygook. The setting then changes to Venice, where the main character falls in love with
Here the narrative spurs no such higher-level analysis. Instead we are left with the narrative of an old man pining for the underage boy from afar, then meeting his fate. This makes for less than an appealing story, and the prose does not make up for this defect. This novella isn't horrible, but you're better-off rereading Lolita or reading anything with a character that is more dynamic. I will probably try another Thomas Mann work (likely The Magic Mountain), but this book has tempered my expectations.
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a fourteen year-old boy. Though you could argue the love stems from the perspective of a lover of beauty, or the old pining for the virtues of the young, the clearest explanation is that the main character feels romantic love towards the young boy. This is by no means a death-stroke to a story; Lolita dealt with a similar premise, and the crowning achievement of that novel was that it made you sympathize with the main character even with his reprehensible behavior and views. Once you took the time to consider the situation in the abstract the main character's behavior became abhorrent, but before that occurred the narrative made you sympathize with a character who was engaged in some of the most terrible actions possible, forcing you to re-examine your sympathies and they ways that fiction and point-of-view can warp your perspective. Here the narrative spurs no such higher-level analysis. Instead we are left with the narrative of an old man pining for the underage boy from afar, then meeting his fate. This makes for less than an appealing story, and the prose does not make up for this defect. This novella isn't horrible, but you're better-off rereading Lolita or reading anything with a character that is more dynamic. I will probably try another Thomas Mann work (likely The Magic Mountain), but this book has tempered my expectations.
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LibraryThing member PennyAnne
Another book that has been luking on my shelves for years. I did try to read this book when I first got it but could not get past the first chapter - I found it tedious and overblown. On trying for a second time I found myself enjoying the intellectual challenge of the writing although perhaps not
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the the central focus of the storyline - ageing German intellectual falls in love and starts stalking a Polish adolescent he encounters during a summer stay in the increasingly pestilential city of Venice. Some heavyhanded use of repeating motifs but overall worth the effort. Show Less
LibraryThing member JimmyChanga
Though it had some really well-written passages, I couldn't really connect with it. I know the point isn't the minimal plot, but that the plot is more of a jumping off point for Mann's theories about beauty, youth, art and erotics. But this "point" somehow seems heavyhanded to me, and not very
"If you open a newspaper today, almost all you read about is Thomas Mann. He's been dead thirty years now, and again and again, endlessly, it's unbearable. Even though he was a petty-bourgeois writer, ghastly, uninspired, who only wrote for a petty-bourgeois readership. That could only interest the petty-bourgeois, the kind of milieu he describes, it's uninspired and stupid, some fiddle-playing professor who travels somewhere, or a family in Lübeck, how lovely, but it's nothing more than someone like Wilhelm Raabe. What rubbish Thomas Mann churned out about political matters, really. He was totally uptight and a typical German petty-bourgeois. With a greedy wife." -- Thomas Bernhard
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interesting, especially near the end."If you open a newspaper today, almost all you read about is Thomas Mann. He's been dead thirty years now, and again and again, endlessly, it's unbearable. Even though he was a petty-bourgeois writer, ghastly, uninspired, who only wrote for a petty-bourgeois readership. That could only interest the petty-bourgeois, the kind of milieu he describes, it's uninspired and stupid, some fiddle-playing professor who travels somewhere, or a family in Lübeck, how lovely, but it's nothing more than someone like Wilhelm Raabe. What rubbish Thomas Mann churned out about political matters, really. He was totally uptight and a typical German petty-bourgeois. With a greedy wife." -- Thomas Bernhard
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LibraryThing member bakabaka84
I actually liked this one more than I thought I was going to. At first I thought I was going to be turned off by the topic, an older man chasing after a young boy, which I will admit is somewhat creepy. However, once you get past that the you find that the book has many layers. To get the most out
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of the book one should have some passing knowledge of Nietzsche's Birth of Tragedy, as one of the central themes is how Aschemback goes from Appolonian restrained life to a Dionysian one of obsession once he meets Tadzio and how he struggles and is eventually doomed by this. There was also nice irony in that the inspiration for Ashenmack's urge to travel came from a personification of Death and that when he finally reaches Venice he's ferried across the lagoon by a representation of Charon who ironically says that you will pay. In fact Aschemback is visited many times throughout the book by personifications of Death each representing a point where he could turn back, yet as Aschemback slips deeper into the Dionysian mode he ignores the warnings. Overall if you can get past the creepy man stalking a young boy and look at it through its Greek & Nietzsche influences you will find a very enjoyable book. Show Less
LibraryThing member PilgrimJess
This is a book which I really struggled to finish as on numerous occasions was so tempted to just pack it in. I was certainly grateful that it only ran to 64 pages. I found myself reading nearly every paragraph twice as each seemed so conveluted.
I believe in free speech and not in censorship so
I did not like the main character much and felt him conceited and self-centred. The writing style and plot was painfully slow. I am not too great on my Greek mythology so struggled to the relevance on more than one occasion and the ending seemed somewhat inadequate.
On the whole not my type of book and not one that will live long in the memory. If truth be told it felt like a book written with the express aim of winning a literary prize, to satisfy the so called intelligenzia rather than for the pleasure of the general public but at least it was so short
I believe in free speech and not in censorship so
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have no real problem with the subject matter even if it does smack of paedophilia, which to every right-minded person should be abhorant. All the same I am amazed that a book like this was ever published but then perhaps paedophilia was not as well publized by the press as it is today. I believe that Mann himself struggled with his own sexuality so perhaps this book is a symbol of that inner struggle.I did not like the main character much and felt him conceited and self-centred. The writing style and plot was painfully slow. I am not too great on my Greek mythology so struggled to the relevance on more than one occasion and the ending seemed somewhat inadequate.
On the whole not my type of book and not one that will live long in the memory. If truth be told it felt like a book written with the express aim of winning a literary prize, to satisfy the so called intelligenzia rather than for the pleasure of the general public but at least it was so short
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LibraryThing member DK_Atkinson
According to modern writing standards, the language can come off as contrived. I enjoyed the depth of writing and the use of imagery.
LibraryThing member jmoncton
Gustav von Aschenbach, a lonely German author, decides to take a long vacation in Venice, away from the drudgery of his normal life. In Venice he spies a young Polish boy, vacationing with his family. von Aschenbach becomes obsessed with this beautiful young boy trying to catch sight of him all
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over the city. Many people compare this to Lolita except von Aschenbach is a pedophile interested in young boys. Although he is definitely attracted to the boy, he never really approaches him, or crosses that line where he plots a seduction. For me, the story was just ok, but I really enjoyed the intro to this audiobook. Author Michael Cunningham who discusses the new translation of this German novella and all the nuances and little decisions involved in creating a good translation of a classic Show Less
LibraryThing member pauliensijbers
Wonderful thoughts on beauty. Feeling Mann's 'sehnsucht' was a confronting experience. Embracing it is still one of the best choices I ever made.
LibraryThing member nosajeel
A compact novella without a wasted word or image, Death in Venice is clearly the work of a master--but it is a master whose obsession with myth and "grand" themes leaves behind much of the particular, humor, quirkiness and irony that I would generally prefer to find in a book. So no particular
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judgment on the merits, really just a matter of not being entirely to my taste. Show Less
LibraryThing member msjoanna
It was nice to hear this translation, which is different from and much easier for the modern reader the one that I read in college. I enjoyed hearing the names and places spoken by a reader on this CD version rather than stumbling over them in print. As a warning, if you aren't familiar with the
Highly recommended.
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story, I would save the forward for the end. Michael Cunningham has written an excellent and insightful forward, but it does discuss the plot in detail, so if the story is new to you, skip the first two tracks on the first disk, then come back and listen to them at the end. Highly recommended.
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Subjects
Awards
Language
Original language
German
Original publication date
1912
Physical description
197 p.; 17 cm
Local notes
6a ed.; 188 p.
Other editions
La muerte en Venecia by Thomas Mann (Paper Book)