My overall impression when I first read this story was that it was very confusing. The story jumps around and it was also really confusing that the characters were referred to in different ways. I think a lot of the works we have looked at have this kind of style. Luckily, with a short story like this, it is possible to have the time to read it more than once. After the first few pages, I stopped trying to pinpoint every character and part, and instead, I read through it to just get a feeling of the story. Then I re-read it to get more understanding of the details. The impression that stood out for me was the overall sense of anxiety. It is even shown in the way the story is written, such as this passage:
“The whiskey, the vodka, the hors d’oeuvres, the fish, the roast, the salads, the white wine, and the red wine and the cheeses and the dessert and the cognac and the coffee, yes, yes, there’s even coffee, real coffee, not ersatz, and excellent imported cigarettes and baroque music, oh yes, when one’s this tired, baroque is the only way to go” (p. 206),
On the surface, this passage is about the things that are being offered at the dinner party, but the way it is presented shows that people are living in a constant state of anxiety. The sentences run on and jump around a lot. There is also the feeling that something is wrong but they cannot pinpoint it. They often write about some aspects of the dinner party but then the thought seems to wander off and they lose their train of thought. At times, there is a feeling of self-awareness in that they seem to know it is strange to have a dinner party under this kind of system; “Another round of drinks, of course, and even Dina has a vermouth, what a surprise, a convivial atmosphere, isn’t it, what a surprise…” (p. 203). I think this is what the trench coat symbolizes. It is called by different names and there is a strange relationship to it as they try to figure it out.
The question I had after reading this and would like to share is how can writers find ways to give readers the experience of living in these kinds of situations and under these kinds of regimes? Was Manea successful in his approach?
Hi Shanshan,
I agree, Manea was definitely trying to express the constant state of anxiety/uncertainty/paranoia of the events happening in real life through his writing. I would say he did this successfully since we were able to pick up on it through his writing style which was often purposefully chaotic with its inner ramblings.
Thank you for the very interesting read!
If you found the text confusing, I recommend watching the lecture if you haven’t already! It goes into an explanation of the context that this book was written in in Manea’s society, so it gives us some insight about some themes and points he tries to make through the story!
Hey, I really liked your blog. Regarding your own question I thimk that how can writers find ways to give readers the experience of living in these kinds of situations and under these kinds of regimes, I think the best way is to tell it as it is. usea lot of descriptions and comparisons to things people already know. I think that perhaphs making it more obvios, despite not being completely artistical or poetical its efficient.