The Magus
Author: John Fowles
Rating: â 5/5
Date Read: 2013/07/19
Pages: 656
The plot of The Magus is convoluted at best, but it may be more accurate to call it outlandish. On top of that, the writing is incredibly pretentious (think literary allusions, tossed among art references, scattered with untranslated French). These sound like criticisms, but they are actually reasons why I loved The Magus (after all, à chacun son goût). As you may have gathered, this will not be an easy book to review.
At the risk of sounding more than a little trite, this book is like an onion (you know, because of the layers). The interesting thing is that each layer of plot is self-contained, with only a feeling of dĂ©jĂ vu (or occasionally jamais vu) to remind you that these layers are connected to each other at the root. And as you cut into it, things become increasingly uncomfortable. But ultimately (and hereâs where the metaphor begins to fall apart), if you let them caramelize for long enough, get something delicious.
Fundamentally, The Magus is a meditation on the meaning of fiction, both in content and style. Fowles writes with wink: he apes âone twist after anotherâ writers like Alexandre Dumas, even as his high-minded characters dismiss them. Early in the novel, Conchis, the eccentric millionaire who drives the plot of the novel, claims âWords are for truth. For facts. Not fiction.â He then begets a world so fantastic that it could never happen in reality.
And therein lies the paradox of fiction: we go into it knowing that stories arenât true. When we read (or watch a movie, or see a play, etc.) we tacitly agree to be a player in a game. If the players pretend itâs real, weâll go along with it. The interesting thing is that, even though we know itâs not real, we may experience intense emotions (catharsis, whatever you want to call it), whereas the characters are unable to feel anything.
This is post-modernism at itâs best, and definitely worth a read if youâre into that sort of thing. Or even if youâre not. Itâs a damn good book.