204:, but without the irony. Joyce himself, in a letter, described it as 'a namby-pamby jammy marmalady drawersy ... style with effects of incense, mariolatry, masturbation, stewed cockles. ...' Iris Murdoch's style is more genteel, however: stewed prunes instead of cockles". Unimpressed, Stade concluded, "Writing this bad cannot be faked; more likely it gushes straight from the unrelieved sincerity of an author who needs mostly to deceive herself. A (rhetorical) question of Anne's, I take it, puts into words the conscious informing sentiment of these novels: 'Can anyone who has had it really give up the concept of God? The craving for God, once fully established, is perhaps incurable.' No doubt, but my own feeling is that sex this far sublimated is not more than the thing itself, but less. I much prefer to take my erotic fantasies raw. They are more nutritious that way."
221:
as so insufferably mature, cultivated, public-spirited and smug that the reader's first instinct is to close the book before it has begun and forswear the society of mature, cultivated, public-spirited persons for the rest of time." Hough concluded, "But Iris
Murdoch's writing has the power to engage the reader in its conflicts, even without the pleasures of recognition or sympathy; and though they are slow in developing, the conflicts are not absent. And as always with Iris Murdoch, the apparent moral simplicities prove ambiguous or uncertain."
160:
Gertrude once Guy has passed and ask her for money, but
Gertrude begins questioning Tim about his craft and winds up wanting to support him in other ways, namely giving him run of her home in the French countryside. This development upsets the plans for the future that the newly-wealthy Gertrude had begun to make with Anne.
220:
will be a disappointment. It is a long solid book, purposely digressive, and there is a good deal of hard slogging before we get to the main theme. The title promises more than the performance. There is only one nun and no soldiers at all." He added, "The married life of
Gertrude and Guy is presented
200:. Mostly it is nondescript. But when it dwells on the characters' transports of silent suffering or loquacious rapture ('He wanted to cry aloud and fall down and embrace her knees and kiss her feet'), when it dwells on the costumes of the women, then the prose is like that in the Nausikaa episode of
159:
One of the visitors to the
Openshaw flat is the youngish Tim Reede, an artist who cannot sell his work and who is lost without Guy’s support. He has a girlfriend named Daisy who dresses like a punk and talks and drinks like a sailor; they’re a perfect pair of starving misfits. Daisy makes Tim visit
155:
flat. His wife
Gertrude entertains the drop-ins, who were once part of a lively set that came by after work hours for a drink and chat. The visitors all relied on Guy for advice and money, and as he dies the varied people in the novel begin to fray. Gertrude is assisted in looking after Guy by Anne
163:
The Tim-Gertrude affair and subsequent marriage is the heart of the book, and it is a good study of class relations and the younger man-older woman romance. Tim is both a hero and a colossal screw-up, but he is also kind and lets
Gertrude’s friends run him down because it doesn’t bother her and he
185:
found: "There are lots of symbols in this novel. There are symbolic rocks, rugs, birds, an orchestra of china monkeys, a patch of cliff that looks like 'a head wearing a crown', its brow creepy with vines and its cheeks weepy from a hidden spring, things like that. When standing there before that
164:
still gets to be with her at the end of the day. Some of
Gertrude’s circle are genuinely concerned, but most are either in love with her or what she could do for them with Guy’s inheritance.
167:
There is a fair amount of treachery and coincidence in the novel, but the heavy touches are softened by consequences which
Murdoch lets play out in natural time.
316:
461:
151:
Guy
Openshaw is 44 years old and on his death bed. Cancer is coming down hard on Guy, and he cannot stand the stream of visitors to his
594:
114:
729:
29:
724:
560:
349:
719:
664:
517:
688:
610:
501:
437:
309:
696:
525:
618:
533:
453:
672:
645:
680:
413:
357:
272:
212:
602:
421:
405:
302:
637:
541:
238:
509:
389:
381:
243:
177:
156:
Cavidge, an old friend who has recently left the nunnery she had entered fifteen years earlier.
445:
109:
68:
586:
485:
429:
397:
365:
192:
578:
477:
373:
713:
341:
267:
469:
326:
207:
182:
132:
42:
187:
216:
by stating: "Even to Iris
Murdoch fans, of whom I am one of the most constant,
28:
294:
135:. The setting is England and two of the main characters are Gertrude, a
152:
136:
128:
298:
140:
186:
face, even Tim feels 'full of grace'." Noting references to
196:
he added, "Speaking of Joyce, I should mention the prose of
656:
629:
570:
552:
333:
108:
100:
92:
84:
74:
64:
56:
48:
38:
210:was also unimpressed, beginning his review in the
595:The Three Arrows & the Servants and the Snow
310:
8:
21:
317:
303:
295:
27:
20:
229:
7:
462:The Sacred and Profane Love Machine
266:Hough, Graham (18 September 1980).
14:
689:Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals
237:Stade, George (4 January 1981).
611:Acastos: Two Platonic Dialogues
1:
350:The Flight from the Enchanter
665:Sartre: Romantic Rationalist
582:(with J. B. Priestley, 1964)
518:The Book and the Brotherhood
697:Existentialists and Mystics
590:(with James Saunders, 1969)
746:
438:A Fairly Honourable Defeat
730:Chatto & Windus books
526:The Message to the Planet
239:"A Romance for Highbrows"
26:
673:The Sovereignty of Good
502:The Philosopher's Pupil
725:Novels by Iris Murdoch
414:The Time of the Angels
273:London Review of Books
213:London Review of Books
646:Poems by Iris Murdoch
422:The Nice and the Good
406:The Red and the Green
16:Novel by Iris Murdoch
681:The Fire and the Sun
720:1980 British novels
510:The Good Apprentice
33:First edition cover
23:
382:An Unofficial Rose
244:The New York Times
178:The New York Times
171:Critical reception
139:, and Anne, an ex-
22:Nuns and Soldiers
707:
706:
641:(1978, rev. 1984)
561:Something Special
542:Jackson's Dilemma
494:Nuns and Soldiers
446:An Accidental Man
218:Nuns and Soldiers
198:Nuns and Soldiers
124:Nuns and Soldiers
120:
119:
85:Publication place
69:Chatto and Windus
49:Cover artist
737:
619:The Black Prince
587:The Italian Girl
534:The Green Knight
486:The Sea, The Sea
454:The Black Prince
398:The Italian Girl
319:
312:
305:
296:
290:
289:
287:
285:
263:
257:
256:
254:
252:
234:
76:Publication date
31:
24:
745:
744:
740:
739:
738:
736:
735:
734:
710:
709:
708:
703:
652:
638:A Year of Birds
625:
566:
548:
329:
323:
293:
283:
281:
265:
264:
260:
250:
248:
236:
235:
231:
227:
173:
149:
93:Media type
77:
34:
17:
12:
11:
5:
743:
741:
733:
732:
727:
722:
712:
711:
705:
704:
702:
701:
693:
685:
677:
669:
660:
658:
654:
653:
651:
650:
642:
633:
631:
627:
626:
624:
623:
615:
607:
599:
591:
583:
579:A Severed Head
574:
572:
568:
567:
565:
564:
556:
554:
550:
549:
547:
546:
538:
530:
522:
514:
506:
498:
490:
482:
478:Henry and Cato
474:
466:
458:
450:
442:
434:
426:
418:
410:
402:
394:
386:
378:
374:A Severed Head
370:
362:
358:The Sandcastle
354:
346:
337:
335:
331:
330:
324:
322:
321:
314:
307:
299:
292:
291:
258:
228:
226:
223:
172:
169:
148:
145:
118:
117:
112:
106:
105:
102:
98:
97:
94:
90:
89:
88:United Kingdom
86:
82:
81:
78:
75:
72:
71:
66:
62:
61:
58:
54:
53:
50:
46:
45:
40:
36:
35:
32:
15:
13:
10:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
742:
731:
728:
726:
723:
721:
718:
717:
715:
699:
698:
694:
691:
690:
686:
683:
682:
678:
675:
674:
670:
667:
666:
662:
661:
659:
655:
648:
647:
643:
640:
639:
635:
634:
632:
628:
621:
620:
616:
613:
612:
608:
605:
604:
600:
597:
596:
592:
589:
588:
584:
581:
580:
576:
575:
573:
569:
562:
558:
557:
555:
553:Short stories
551:
544:
543:
539:
536:
535:
531:
528:
527:
523:
520:
519:
515:
512:
511:
507:
504:
503:
499:
496:
495:
491:
488:
487:
483:
480:
479:
475:
472:
471:
467:
464:
463:
459:
456:
455:
451:
448:
447:
443:
440:
439:
435:
432:
431:
430:Bruno's Dream
427:
424:
423:
419:
416:
415:
411:
408:
407:
403:
400:
399:
395:
392:
391:
387:
384:
383:
379:
376:
375:
371:
368:
367:
363:
360:
359:
355:
352:
351:
347:
344:
343:
342:Under the Net
339:
338:
336:
332:
328:
320:
315:
313:
308:
306:
301:
300:
297:
279:
275:
274:
269:
262:
259:
246:
245:
240:
233:
230:
224:
222:
219:
215:
214:
209:
205:
203:
199:
195:
194:
189:
184:
180:
179:
170:
168:
165:
161:
157:
154:
146:
144:
142:
138:
134:
130:
126:
125:
116:
115:0-7011-2519-5
113:
111:
107:
103:
99:
95:
91:
87:
83:
79:
73:
70:
67:
63:
59:
55:
51:
47:
44:
41:
37:
30:
25:
19:
695:
687:
679:
671:
663:
644:
636:
617:
609:
603:The Servants
601:
593:
585:
577:
540:
532:
524:
516:
508:
500:
493:
492:
484:
476:
470:A Word Child
468:
460:
452:
444:
436:
428:
420:
412:
404:
396:
388:
380:
372:
364:
356:
348:
340:
327:Iris Murdoch
282:. Retrieved
277:
271:
261:
249:. Retrieved
242:
232:
217:
211:
208:Graham Hough
206:
201:
197:
191:
183:George Stade
176:
174:
166:
162:
158:
150:
133:Iris Murdoch
123:
122:
121:
43:Iris Murdoch
18:
390:The Unicorn
280:(18): 12–13
188:James Joyce
175:Writing in
52:Will Carter
714:Categories
657:Philosophy
268:"Gertrude"
247:. New York
225:References
127:is a 1980
325:Works by
65:Publisher
563:" (1957)
366:The Bell
80:Sep 1980
57:Language
284:5 April
251:5 April
202:Ulysses
193:Ulysses
60:English
700:(1997)
692:(1992)
684:(1977)
676:(1970)
668:(1953)
649:(1997)
630:Poetry
622:(1987)
614:(1986)
606:(1980)
598:(1973)
545:(1995)
537:(1993)
529:(1989)
521:(1987)
513:(1985)
505:(1983)
497:(1980)
489:(1978)
481:(1976)
473:(1975)
465:(1974)
457:(1973)
449:(1971)
441:(1970)
433:(1969)
425:(1968)
417:(1966)
409:(1965)
401:(1964)
393:(1963)
385:(1962)
377:(1961)
369:(1958)
361:(1957)
353:(1956)
345:(1954)
334:Novels
153:London
39:Author
571:Plays
137:widow
129:novel
101:Pages
96:Print
286:2016
253:2016
147:Plot
110:ISBN
190:'s
141:nun
131:by
104:512
716::
276:.
270:.
241:.
181:,
143:.
559:"
318:e
311:t
304:v
288:.
278:2
255:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.