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László Krasznahorkai: Mindig Homérosznak (Chasing Homer)
Our unnamed narrator is on the run. Neither he nor we know who he is running from and why he is running from them. All he seems to know is they are going to get him and they are going to do very unpleasant things to him. As a result he has to keep permanently on the move, mixing in with large crowds and generally not trying to stand out in any way. I’m perfectly aware that they’re out to kill me, that’s the long and the short of it, it’s a game of patience, a deadly hunt.
We know roughly where he is – the Croatian coast,as he has he mentioned various place names in that region. As he is on the coast he makes a lot of use of boats and travels to different parts by boat, mixing with the crowds and ever on the watch, even though he does not know who or what he is looking for.
It’s been only months, or just a few weeks, in fact I can even imagine that it’s only moments ago that they handed down my sentence, its purport is perfectly. clear to me, I haven’t the slightest doubt that there’s reason enough for the judgement, the only thing that’s not yet clear is what that reason is.
Of course he is always trying to guess if somebody in the crowd is one of his adversaries and at times imagines that perhaps the entire crowd is out to get him. However, he feels safer in a crowd than in a small group where there is hardly anyone because then he is more exposed to the enemies.
We do know a little about his background. He seems to be well-versed in ancient languages and cultures and has read various key ancient texts. Is there some connection with this? We do not know.
People occasionally speak to him as happens with travellers and he is a bit suspicious of anyone who does. I never feel that my life is something that is mine, something that belongs to me,.
He claims not to know what country he is in, though it is very clear to us , as mentioned, as he names various places which are all in Croatia.
He picks up bits of the language, just enough for him to get by. As for religionI now believe with my entire being that Zeus in the Sky will succour me, so I will be humble, and I’ll never indulge now in a single debate about faith.
And what is the motive of these people who are pursuing him?It’s impossible to decide whether they’re hired assassins pure and simple, or else aficionados of the hunt, killers driven by a passion for the game.
Eventually, he arrives at a small island where very few people get off. Most of them are clearly locals who head straight for their. homes. Apart from him, there are only a very few Japanese tourists. He tells us that this is.Calypso’s island, according to the Odyssey. We know it as Ogyia. Yes, at last we get the Homer connection.
A local somewhat frightened the Japanese tourists telling them that this is the island of the dead and generally, frightening them with his strange accounts.
However, for our narrator things are more positive. It is the off-season, and therefore there is very little ferry traffic. This means that it could be a safe haven for him. Who knows, perhaps this means that I can be master of my own fate. Indeed, he feels that the island has been placed there just to provide him with the protection that he needs.
This is a very short no,vel in particular when compared to some of his other novels. Moreover, as you will have noticed, not a great deal happens, with most of the story being his presumably paranoid concern that he is being hunted down and will be brutally killed. The tone completely changes. When we get to Ogyia and enter Homer’s realm. While this may not be one of his best works, it is still an interesting addition to his oeuvre
Publishing history
First published in 2016 by Magvető Kiadó
First English translation in 2006 by New Directions
Translated byJohn Batki