anuwolf's review against another edition
5.0
Blindness is a journey into the utter darkness of humanity, of what it means to lose everything and to still remain human. The blindness is sort of a metaphor in this book for people who can see but currently disregarding the cruelties that are faced in the world, and then carries on into a world lost without organization. The book shows the human condition in it's raw form, everything that we are capable of, whether it be kindness or evil. This book is incredibly depressing, with a few moments of brightness here and there, but overall, it's a read that will leave you wondering many questions: what would I do in this scenario? how would I survive? would I want to live like this, or would I just kill myself?. The extent of the human's will and soul is deeply explored as well.
It's a great book, but disturbing and depressing.
It's a great book, but disturbing and depressing.
bajammies's review against another edition
I just... don't know how to rate this. "I wanted to throw it across the room in primal frustration" isn't a star option, and neither is "It crawled under my skin, an inoperable cyst of thought". I'm being melodramatic. But the book took me hostage and drove me there.
First, the anger.
Its grammatical style is despicable, mostly because I don't buy it as anything other than gimmick. If Saramago intended to convey blindness to the reader, the last thing he should have done is remove punctuation. It just doesn't work! I was continually dragged out of the story to retrace my way laboriously through the words I'd just read. It was exhausting, and it made me artificially conscious of my sight at all times. Was this your intention, Jose? If so, for the love of mercy, why? P.S. I hate you. P.P.S. Nothing personal, I'm sure you're a nice Portuguese man.
The book is obnoxiously cynical about the inherent morality of human beings. Disaster stories are a great backdrop for good versus evil struggles; the first three-quarters of this story, the main characters succumb to evil (through complacency and senseless "martyrdom") with frustratingly little provocation, and in the last quarter, evil is inexplicably underrepresented. It's as though Saramago's saying human goodness can't stand up to a fight. Which makes me want to punch him in the face a little, allegorically speaking.
Second, the pondering.
This book is undeniably artistic, arguably beautiful. As painful as it was to read most of it, pushing through my angst allowed me to discover a forceful thought in these pages: human existence as we know it is only possible when we are perceived by others. Don't try chewing on that sentence, because it's just my least lame attempt. Read the book yourself and get your mind blown, if you're willing to bleed from your tear ducts a little.
First, the anger.
Its grammatical style is despicable, mostly because I don't buy it as anything other than gimmick. If Saramago intended to convey blindness to the reader, the last thing he should have done is remove punctuation. It just doesn't work! I was continually dragged out of the story to retrace my way laboriously through the words I'd just read. It was exhausting, and it made me artificially conscious of my sight at all times. Was this your intention, Jose? If so, for the love of mercy, why? P.S. I hate you. P.P.S. Nothing personal, I'm sure you're a nice Portuguese man.
The book is obnoxiously cynical about the inherent morality of human beings. Disaster stories are a great backdrop for good versus evil struggles; the first three-quarters of this story, the main characters succumb to evil (through complacency and senseless "martyrdom") with frustratingly little provocation, and in the last quarter, evil is inexplicably underrepresented. It's as though Saramago's saying human goodness can't stand up to a fight. Which makes me want to punch him in the face a little, allegorically speaking.
Second, the pondering.
This book is undeniably artistic, arguably beautiful. As painful as it was to read most of it, pushing through my angst allowed me to discover a forceful thought in these pages: human existence as we know it is only possible when we are perceived by others. Don't try chewing on that sentence, because it's just my least lame attempt. Read the book yourself and get your mind blown, if you're willing to bleed from your tear ducts a little.
bapthon's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
charlie_miller's review against another edition
4.0
I found this a bit tiresome but out of regard for the concept- which ultimately is to expound to us that suddenly becoming blind would be somewhat tiresome- I'll give it a 4. That being said, half of the time I didn't actually find the constant psychological over-analysis that erudite; I often found it quite well, daft and specious. In the all important other half of the time however, there is a really gripping, cerebral read to be had.
One little extra point- I happen to be partially sighted. I think some of the chilling fascination that the concept of losing one's sight brings on in some people may have been lost on me.
One little extra point- I happen to be partially sighted. I think some of the chilling fascination that the concept of losing one's sight brings on in some people may have been lost on me.
christiannasbooktrips's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
4.0
wannieh's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
3.75
deb985's review against another edition
4.0
4.5*
Non pensavo mi sarebbe piaciuto così tanto, soprattutto considerando lo stile di scrittura difficile da leggere, ma dopo un po’ ci si abitua e si legge normalmente.
Molto bello, consigliato
Non pensavo mi sarebbe piaciuto così tanto, soprattutto considerando lo stile di scrittura difficile da leggere, ma dopo un po’ ci si abitua e si legge normalmente.
Molto bello, consigliato
bundy23's review against another edition
3.0
I liked it, it’s just that so much of the setup is completely unbelievable. That would be fine if it were just a trashy novel but it clearly wants (and probably deserves) to be something more. It is enjoyable as long as you switch your brain off and ignore the non-sensical stuff though.
leilatre's review against another edition
3.0
This book was hard to read. I understand that blindness was used as an allegory, but I did find myself fighting the premise a lot that society would fall apart if everyone suddenly went blind. I was unsettled by the negative implications his writing had towards actual blind people, and didn't think that one paragraph over halfway through the book that tried to say the radical fall of society in his scenario was because EVERYONE went blind at once should let him off the hook.
The parts that involved sexual violence were particularly harrowing, and the unending discussion of filth was also not super enjoyable. Now that I've finished the book, I can appreciate the interesting philosophical ideas raised by it, but I'm also thankful that I don't have to get back into the state of mind that I had while reading it.
I really enjoyed Saramego's quieter, more internal writing in All The Names. I prefer to stick to that one when thinking of him as an author.
The parts that involved sexual violence were particularly harrowing, and the unending discussion of filth was also not super enjoyable. Now that I've finished the book, I can appreciate the interesting philosophical ideas raised by it, but I'm also thankful that I don't have to get back into the state of mind that I had while reading it.
I really enjoyed Saramego's quieter, more internal writing in All The Names. I prefer to stick to that one when thinking of him as an author.