These translations of Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s fiction introduce the
writer to a new generation of readers. The Swiss writer Friedrich
Dürrenmatt (1921–90) was one of the most important literary figures
of the second half of the twentieth century. During the years of the
Cold War, arguably only Beckett, Camus, Sartre, and Brecht rivaled him
as a presence in European letters. Yet outside Europe, this prolific
author is primarily known for only one work, The Visit. This second
volume of Selected Writings reveals a writer who may stand as
Kafka’s greatest heir. Dürrenmatt’s novellas and short stories
are searing, tragicomic explorations of the ironies of justice and the
corruptibility of institutions. Apart from The Pledge, a requiem to
the detective story that was made into a film starring Jack Nicholson,
none of the works in this volume are available elsewhere in English.
Among the most evocative fiction included here are two novellas: The
Assignment and Traps. The Assignment tells the story of a woman
filmmaker investigating a mysterious murder in an unnamed Arab country
and has been hailed by Sven Birkerts as “a parable of hell for an
age consumed by images.” Traps, meanwhile, is a chilling comic
novella about a traveling salesman who agrees to play the role of the
defendant in a mock trial among dinner companions—and then pays the
ultimate penalty. Dürrenmatt has long been considered a great
writer—but one unfairly neglected in the modern world of letters.
With these elegantly conceived and expertly translated volumes, a new
generation of readers will rediscover his greatest works.
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Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9780226531182
Publisert
2018
Utgave
1. utgave
Utgiver
Vendor
University of Chicago Press
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter