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A review by tsefalofor
An Accidental Man by Iris Murdoch
4.0
'I am an accidental man,' Austin had once said to her. 'What do you mean, Austin?' Aren't we all accidental? Isn't conception accidental? 'With me it's gone on and on.'
alright i've just finished it. it's certainly a brimming cast. when i started reading 'the sea, the sea' (yet in transitu - put it away) right after 'a word child' i thought these ridiculous names... and they bugged me but then i thought hillary burde? thomasina uhlmeister? i just hadn't really been aware but in a new setting they seemed crazy, and too: ludwig leferrier, mitzi ricardo, well she has fun with it and that's alright. it's nice and funny to see the little pleasures she takes, one feels connected. ("it's so easy to have a little fun" says charlie) but here: love, responsibility, normalcy, habitude, tragedy, fullness, comfort, the drama of the little and the large - from party prep to fine bone china to death and death - sitting in silence - nakedness - lots and lots and lots of whisky. i am a huge fan of her: humour and seriousness and 'sophy. my observation: in all 6 books i've read or begun (sea and severed head alack unfinished), there are consistently 2 characters who sit and discuss philosophy, or discuss philosophically, she stuffs it into fiction somehow anyway (great); and there is always a character who comments on another character's poor taste in interior design or decoration. super!
another good bit: "God, how I think one should leave other people's things alone and not crawl all over them. I see our dear Ps as two giant snails with waggling inquisitive eyes leaving long slimy trails behind. Do not let us be like them." patrick is totally amazing - wants more pagetime!
alright i've just finished it. it's certainly a brimming cast. when i started reading 'the sea, the sea' (yet in transitu - put it away) right after 'a word child' i thought these ridiculous names... and they bugged me but then i thought hillary burde? thomasina uhlmeister? i just hadn't really been aware but in a new setting they seemed crazy, and too: ludwig leferrier, mitzi ricardo, well she has fun with it and that's alright. it's nice and funny to see the little pleasures she takes, one feels connected. ("it's so easy to have a little fun" says charlie) but here: love, responsibility, normalcy, habitude, tragedy, fullness, comfort, the drama of the little and the large - from party prep to fine bone china to death and death - sitting in silence - nakedness - lots and lots and lots of whisky. i am a huge fan of her: humour and seriousness and 'sophy. my observation: in all 6 books i've read or begun (sea and severed head alack unfinished), there are consistently 2 characters who sit and discuss philosophy, or discuss philosophically, she stuffs it into fiction somehow anyway (great); and there is always a character who comments on another character's poor taste in interior design or decoration. super!
another good bit: "God, how I think one should leave other people's things alone and not crawl all over them. I see our dear Ps as two giant snails with waggling inquisitive eyes leaving long slimy trails behind. Do not let us be like them." patrick is totally amazing - wants more pagetime!