Gilgamesh by John
Gardner, John
Maier (1985; 304 Pages; Softcover; Vintage)
“The story of Gilgamesh, an
ancient epic poem written on clay tablets in a cuneiform alphabet, is as
fascinating and moving as it is crucial to our ability to fathom the time and
the place in which it was written. Gardner's version restores the poetry of the
text and the lyricism that is lost in the earlier, almost scientific
renderings. The principal theme of the poem is a familiar one: man's persistent
and hopeless quest for immortality. It tells of the heroic exploits of an
ancient ruler of the walled city of Uruk named Gilgamesh. Included in its story
is an account of the Flood that predates the Biblical version by centuries.
Gilgamesh and his companion, a wild man of the woods named Enkidu, fight
monsters and demonic powers in search of honor and lasting fame. When Enkidu is
put to death by the vengeful goddess Ishtar, Gilgamesh travels to the
underworld to find an answer to his grief and confront the question of
mortality.” – Amazon.
This is the first book I’ve
got this February. It was a double whammy choice for me, as it is both an early
epic (Maier contests that choice of category) and the last John Gardner book,
published two years after his death. The fact that it was only $1.39 with $3.99
shipping didn’t hurt either. I had a paperback copy of Gilgamesh before
(different translation) which I sold, but it is the sort of thing I feel I
should have in the Archive, and I have sometimes felt a nagging absence.
It is a very scholarly
edition, which I must confess put me off back in the day when I first tried to
read it in a library copy. I was still grieving the loss of Gardner and
looking for something more personal of him; the notes and apparatus (the John
Maier side of things) were not what I was expecting. Perhaps I was looking for
something like Grendel. I’ve come to more appreciate this kind of thing
now.
Gardner left a completed typescript of his translation, which he had worked on for years in conjunction with Maier. So, it is more complete than, say, Tolkien’s translation of Beowulf, also published posthumously, but made for private use and never completed. This is the only John Gardner (for a certain value of Gardner) that I lacked. After a new reading it will go quietly onto my shelves. And that, as it were, will be that.
Ah, good lord, these are
breathless days in my part of the woods. Although it is autumn, it feels more
like late summer; there has been no cold front yet to sweep away the bad
quality air and though leaves have been falling pretty constantly there has
been no really Leafallish-day with a constant patter of falling leaves like
rain. And no rain, at that; much of the earth is shriveling up into gravel and
grits, to use John Gardner’s phrase. Kind of ironic, considering the flood
earlier this year. I have the suspenseful feeling that "we shall not 'scape a brawl, For now, these hot days, is the mad blood stirring."
There is the constant bang
of acorns on the gazebo roof, and the squirrels are scattering shattered pecan
shells everywhere. The lizards, so abundant this year, seem to be thinning out,
the butterflies scarcer and startling, and the dragonflies bigger. For a while
I could hear crows in the morning, but they seem to be moving on. Usually by
this time of year you can hear the hawks screaming; where are they? A little
fox has been haunting the yard around the bird feeders.
I was kind of surprised when
I confirmed that I have no copy of Braveheart in the Archive. I could
have sworn I did, although maybe I was confusing it with Rob Roy. Not
only did I search the Niche, but I had to check the physical DVD stacks before
I was absolutely sure. I imagine a copy would not be hard or expensive to find,
and it comes up regularly on TV. There are plenty more movies ahead of it in
the queue. Still, it is a movie I would
think I would have.
Halloween approaches, but so
does the double anniversary of the passing of my mom (the 22nd) and
my older brother Mike (the 21st). A melancholy time that takes much
of the oomph out of the approaching holiday and tends to slow me down. In some
ways (rather superficial ways) Halloween is already over for me. I’ve had my
Pumpkin Delights (perhaps not so delightful when you are on Ozempic) and my
Mellocreme Pumpkins for the year. In fact, I’m already looking around for eggnog
and fruitcake. But before you know it, it will be the anniversary of Pop’s
passing (Nov. 22) and Thanksgiving. But at least the prepping for that does not
allow so much time for depression.
Although it is technically
Fall, it feels like late summer. I leave (leaf?) you with this thought:
LATE SUMMER
I, dusty and bedraggled as I am,
Pestered with wasps and weeds and making jam,
Blowzy and stale, my welcome long outstayed,
Proved false in every promise that I made,
At my beginning I believed, like you,
Something would come of all my green and blue.
Mortals remember, looking on the thing
I am, that I, even I, was once a spring.
--C. S. Lewis, 1898-1963.
Yesterday my brother John
and I went to the Seguin Public Library bookstore, where we hadn’t been for
months. I was able to find a couple of great books for $5.
The Great Divorce: A Dream,
by C. S. Lewis (1946, this Edition 2009 by HarperOne)
“[William] Blake wrote the
Marriage of Heaven and Hell. If I have written of their Divorce, this is not
because I think myself a fit antagonist for so great a genius, nor even because
I feel at all sure that I know what he meant. But in some sense or other the
attempt to make that marriage is perennial. The attempt is based on the belief
that reality never presents us with an absolutely unavoidable
"either-or"; that, granted skill and patience and (above all) time
enough, some way of embracing both alternatives can always be found; that mere
development or adjustment or refinement will somehow turn evil into good
without our being called on for a final and total rejection of anything we
should like to retain. This belief I take to be a disastrous error.” – from the
Preface.
I have long had a paperback
of this book, and was glad to get a newer softcover edition, with French
cover-flaps, no less, easier on both hand and eye. I always have a twinge of
guilt getting something like this, however: what if someone in the same
position as I was forty years ago would have liked to find this book and I (who
have no real crying need of it) have just snatched it away? On the other hand,
I might just be another step on the way to its real destination. A secondhand
book, inscribed to “my favorite boss/pastor” by a squiggly name that I can’t
quite make out.
Grendel, by John Gardner (First Edition, Alfred A. Knopf 1971)
I have long had both a
paperback and a softcover edition of Grendel and have wanted a proper
hardback copy. Well now I have one, in an almost pristine condition, for $3.
It is odd to think it was a
mere ten years between publication of Grendel and Gardner’s death, and
even stranger to me to realize I was only aware of him for maybe four years
before he was gone. His work seemed so timeless. It’s also odd that I’ve only
just watched Grendel, Grendel, Grendel, the 1981 animated adaptation,
and that I’ve just found out that the Jim Henson Company has a live-action
adaptation in the works, starring Jeff Bridges as Grendel and Dave Bautista as
Beowulf. Even the recently acquired The Truth About Dragons (published
1970, just one year before Grendel) opens with a retelling of Beowulf
from the dragon’s point of view. All-in-all, finding this copy seems strangely
fated.
Fantastic Films October 1978 was the
first place I ever saw anything about the Ralph Bakshi production of The
Lord of the Rings. Also, by chance, it announced the coming film, Metamorphoses,
later renamed Winds of Change. It never had a wide release, so I never
saw it, though I was always interested in at as an animated film. With the
widespread net of YouTube, I was finally able to watch it in the last few
years.
Metamorphoses tried
to be the rock era's answer to Fantasia,
but its original run was critically reviled and closed as soon as it opened.
According to many of its crew, many problems with the production, music and
plotting were to blame.
“On May 3, 1979, it was
reissued under a new title, Winds of Change, with seven
minutes trimmed from the first cut of 89 minutes, with different (disco – dear
me) music and narration by Peter
Ustinov added. The five stories told in the film were
reshuffled and the main character renamed as ‘Wonder maker’. – Wikipedia.
As it turned out, it was probably
not worth a 45 year wait. I found the animation to be blurry and unfinished
looking, the character design a little too cartoony for the subject matter, and
the fact that Peter Ustinov (usually an excellent voice actor) had to carry the
entire movie as the only voice (including narrator, young boys, and all women) probably
didn’t do the film any favors. His work was much better in the next film.
“Grendel Grendel Grendel is
a 1981 Australian animated
film written,
directed and designed by Alexander
Stitt and starring Peter
Ustinov. It was based on John Gardner's
novel Grendel.
“Like Gardner's novel, the
film is a retelling of part of the epic poem Beowulf from
the monster Grendel's
point of view. Grendel (voiced by Ustinov) is by turns a thoughtful and
contemplative character and a rampaging monster who attacks the mead
hall of
an early Danish kingdom, biting the head off of one would-be defender.
“Stitt acquired the film
rights to Grendel in 1978, and work was commenced at Melbourne
Al et al. Studios the following year. The film was conceived as a coproduction
with producer Phillip Adams,
under the banner of Animation Australia. Although completed in 1981, it was not
released in US theatres until the spring of 1982. Because of its limited
appeal, broadcasting of the film was largely restricted to art theatres in
urban centres.” – Amazon.
Another movie I did not see
at the time; I did not even know it existed until years later and only watched
it recently (in fact just yesterday) on YouTube. It was a transfer from a 1984
videotape. At first, I did not much care for the style of the animation, but by
the end I had become quite engaged with the narrative. It was not, of course,
as metaphysically complicated as Gardner’s book, and Grendel was made a little
nicer and Beowulf a little worse; in other words, simplified for the big
screen. But Ustinov was a much better fit for the character, along with an
ensemble cast. One wonders what John Gardner’s relationship with the film was
like. I imagine he simply sold the rights. Since he died soon after the film
came out, he didn’t have much time to react to it.
So, connecting strands with my
recent reading: Peter Ustinov, John Gardner, Beowulf. All reaching back to at
least 1978.
Freud’s Last Session (DVD,
March 2024, 1 Hour 48 Minutes, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
“London, September 3rd,
1939. The world is on the brink of war. In his final days, Sigmund Freud
(Anthony Hopkins), a recent escapee with his daughter from the Nazi regime,
receives a visit from the formidable Oxford Don, author C.S. Lewis (Matthew
Goode). On this day, two of the greatest minds of the twentieth century
intimately engage in a monumental session over the belief in the future of
mankind and the existence of God.” – Amazon.
Movies about C. S. Lewis are
becoming quite the cottage industry; not bad for a fusty old English apologist
who’s been dead for as long as I’ve been alive. But the truth is, I suppose, is
that’s he’s more alive (certainly livelier) than most of the famous people of
his time or many of those who are chasing fame today. It seems strange that
Anthony Hopkins, who played Lewis himself in Shadowlands, should be playing his
antagonist (which might be a strong term; they are both quite cordial) now. I can’t help but think that this movie was influenced by The
Question of God by Dr. Armand M. Nicholi Jr., which uses a similar debate
between the two men to examine their views on life and religion (update: I find now that it is).
Dragon Slayer: The Story of Beowulf, by Rosemary
Sutcliff (Puffin Books, 1961; This Edition 1986, Illustrations by Charles
Keeping) That was the cover I was expecting, which was bad enough; this is the cover I got:
Not the one I would have
chosen (and there were several to choose from), but at least it retains the interior
artwork by Charles Keeping, which I have seen everywhere for years when looking
for Beowulf illustrations. Rosemary Sutcliff was famous when I was a child for
her numerous retellings of myths and legends (which I would have thought would
be right in my wheelhouse), but somehow I never did feel compelled to read any
of her works. I suppose now I have come to it and shall soon see if I have been
missing anything. The subject of Beowulf would certainly be a good place to
start.
Finn and Hengest (Old
English and English Edition) Paperback – January 1, 1998, (192
Pages, Harper Collins)
“Tolkien's famous
translations and lectures on the story of two fifth-century heroes in northern
Europe. Professor J.R.R.Tolkien is most widely known as the author of The
Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, but he was also a distinguished scholar in
the field of Mediaeval English language and literature. His most significant
contribution to Anglo-Saxon studies is to be found in his lectures on Finn and
Hengest (pronounced Hen-jist), two fifth-century heroes in northern Europe. The
story is told in two Old English poems, Beowulf and The Fights at Finnesburg,
but told so obscurely and allusively that its interpretation had been a matter
of controversy for over 100 years. Bringing his unique combination of
philological erudition and poetic imagination to the task, however, Tolkien
revealed a classic tragedy of divided loyalties, of vengeance, blood and death.
Tolkien's original and persuasive solution of the many problems raised by the
story ranged widely through the early history and legend of the Germanic peoples.
The story has the added attraction that it describes the events immediately
preceding the first Germanic invasion of Britain which was led by Hengest
himself. This book will be of interest not only to students of Old English and
all those interested in the history of northern Europe and Anglo-Saxon England,
but also admirers of The Lord of the Rings who will be fascinated to see how
Tolkien handled a story which he did not invent.” – Amazon
I have had the hardback
original for years, but now feel somehow that this softcover would be a handy
copy to browse in. The cover art by John Howe and handy modern binding
certainly make it appealing. A bit of a shock, I suppose, to the Tolkien fan
who comes to it just off of watching the Peter Jackson films.
Beowulf and the North before
the Vikings (Past Imperfect) Paperback – August 31, 2022 (136 Pages, Arc
Humanities Press)
by Tom Shippey
“Ever since Tolkien’s famous
lecture in 1936, it has been generally accepted that the poem Beowulf is
a fantasy, and of no use as a witness to real history. This book challenges
that view, and argues that the poem provides a plausible, detailed, and
consistent vision of pre-Viking history which is most unlikely to have been the
poet’s invention, and which has moreover received strong corroboration from
archaeology in recent years. Using the poem as a starting point, historical,
archaeological, and legendary sources are combined to form a picture of events
in the North in the fifth and sixth centuries: at once a Dark and a Heroic Age,
and the time of the formation of nations. Among other things, this helps answer
two long-unasked questions: why did the Vikings come as such a shock? And what
caused the previous 250 years of security from raiders from the sea?” – Amazon
The purchase prompted, of
course, by my late enjoyment of Shippey’s book, Laughing Shall I Die. I’m on an
Anglo-Saxon, Viking kick.
Mickelsson’s Ghosts by John
Gardner (612 Pages; 1982)
And not here yet: “Gardner’s
final novel: a delicate tapestry of literary genres that create a wonderfully
mysterious and ambitious narrative. As Peter Mickelsson’s
brilliant career as a professor at Brown University winds down, he suffers from
alcoholism and is on the brink of divorce. Seeking a new start, Mickelsson
moves to an old farmhouse in the Pennsylvania countryside to take a position at
Bingham University. But when mysterious supernatural events begin to occur, it
becomes clear that these new surroundings will not provide a refuge for this
troubled man, but rather prompt an introspective look into the ultimate value
of his life’s work. With distinctive style and linguistic
mastery, author John Gardner weaves together a string of extraordinary plots
that culminate in an unforgettable conclusion.” – Amazon
Well, I don’t know, maybe it’s
cursed or something. Gardner’s final book before his tragic death. Instead of
seeing him at South West Texas State University as a visiting professor, we had
to settle for this depressing last offering. For years I had a hardback copy
(sans jacket); it did not conform to the rest of my paperback Gardners and I
found reading it heavy going. I eventually sold it. Recently I felt as if I
should give it another go, and as a copy was only about $20 (Condition Used;
Very Good), I ordered it with all the other items here, and from the same
company as Dragon Slayer, with which it was paired.
Well, I saw on Amazon this
morning that everything would be arriving today. I waited on the porch as I
imagined it all would be too much to fit in the mailbox. I saw the mail truck
come and pass, and a few moments later I went in, got the box key, and went out
to see what had come. There were four of the items, but not, as it happened,
Mickelsson’s Ghosts. I went in and checked Amazon. It declared that it had been
duly delivered.
Well, it was a pretty big
book, too big to fit in the mail slot. When such things happen, the more
conscientious postal worker will bring it up to the porch; the lazier will
sometimes leave it sticking half-way out of the box. In that circumstance, the
best outcome would be that Susan noticed it when she was going out to work. The
worst would be that some dishonest passing pedestrian (and there were several walkers
as I watched) plucked it out and made off with it.
Other possibilities: it was
accidentally delivered to a neighbor’s house and they have not had an
opportunity to bring it over (or they have no intention to do so), or the
postal worker may have somehow accidentally left it in their load and will
deliver it on finding their mistake. Whatever happened, IT IS NOT HERE.
I don’t know, cursed or something.
“Stars, spattered out through lifeless night from end to end,
like jewels scattered in a dead king's grave, tease, torment my wits toward
meaningful patterns that do not exist.”
― John Gardner,
Grendel
Many was the night when my brother John and I would be out, either coming home from work or traveling between Seguin and San Marcos, when one or the other of us would gesture dramatically at a particularly impressive display of stars and declaim, "Like so many jewels!"
Dragon, Dragon and Other Tales (Illustrated by Charles
Shields), The King of the Hummingbirds and Other Tales (Illustrated by Michael
Sporn), and Gudgekin the Thistle Girl and Other Tales (Illustrated by Michael
Sporn), by John Gardner.
All three are Bantam Skylark books. Gardner’s metaphysical
fairy tales for children, each cleverly disguising an interesting moral or
philosophical lesson in settings that are a weaving of both the fantastic and
the modern, with close attention to character development and a strong dash of
humor to help it all go down. Not the best illustrations I’ve ever seen, but
typical examples of their era.
Ranking: Essential.
File Code: Literary Fairy Tales. Collections. Softcover.
In the Suicide Mountains, by John Gardner. Illustrations by
Joe Servello.
“When I was in high
school in the 70's I read Grendel and In The Suicide
Mountains by John Gardner, and both books really spoke to me: Grendel because
as a teenager I felt pretty monstrous and alone, and In The Suicide
Mountains because I felt for the misfit trio of Chudu the Goat's Son,
a dwarf afraid of his own power, Armida, an enormously strong blacksmith's
daughter who has to pretend to be delicate to fit into society's expectations,
and Prince Christopher the Sullen, a sensitive youth who would rather write
poetry and play the violin than battle villains and dragons. The three had
separately decided to end their dilemmas with suicide, and travel to the
Suicide Mountains, where, in a monastery at the edge of the cliffs, the Abbot
(who may be the notorious six-fingered man, the man no jail in the world can
hold) offers them cogent reasons why suicide is no answer.” – Power of Babel.
Contains within itself fine retellings of Russian fairy tales, in the guise of
the Abbot’s stories.
Ranking: Essential.
File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Hardback.
