In de mist van het schimmenrijk
Fragmenten uit het oorlogsdagboek van de student Karel R.
1993
First Published
3.36
Average Rating
96
Number of Pages
Brokstukken van dit dagboek zijn na het einde van de Duitse bezetting op verscheidene adressen in Amsterdam te voorschijn gekomen. Ter gelegenheid van deze uitgave is de spelling gemoderniseerd en zijn alle eigennamen veranderd. De beschreven personages zijn trouwens, voor zover bekend, niet meer in leven. Hoe het met de dagboekschrijver zelf is afgelopen, die van stonde af aan een schuilnaam heeft gebezigd, is nooit opgehelderd.
Avg Rating
3.36
Number of Ratings
364
5 STARS
6%
4 STARS
37%
3 STARS
45%
2 STARS
10%
1 STARS
2%
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Author
Willem Frederik Hermans
Author · 26 books
Willem Frederik Hermans is one of the greatest post-war Dutch authors. Before devoting his entire life to writing, Hermans had been teaching Physical Geography at the University of Groningen for many years. He had already started writing and publishing in magazines at a young age. His polemic and provocative style led to a court case as early as 1952. His caustic pieces were compiled in Mandarijnen op zwavelzuur (Mandarines in Sulphuric Acid, 1963), which was reprinted with additions a number of times. It is Hermans’s belief that in order to survive people have to create their own reality. It is inevitable that all these experiences of reality will collide. Language is essential to create order out of chaos and plays an important role in this process. In his essays on Wittgenstein, Hermans studied this problem in depth. In his novels and stories Hermans places his characters in a world of certainty for themselves but equivocal for the reader. It is in this field of tension that the intrigue in De tranen der acacia’s (Acacia’s Tears, 1949) and in De donkere kamer van Damocles (The Darkroom of Damocles, 1958) develops. Although stories such as Moedwil en misverstand (Malice and Misunderstanding) and Paranoia have a surrealistic tendency, Hermans’ novels The Darkroom Of Damocles, Nooit meer slapen (Beyond Sleep), Uit talloos veel miljoenen (From Countless Millions) are more realistic or satirical and everything in his rich oeuvre is subordinate to the author’s pessimistic philosophy.
