Amnesty…

Unfinished Symphony , the beautiful cathedral has a nave and choir , it all seems beautiful. Echoes resound as the murmuring voices sad human condition , so fragile in its vanities , its meanness, its cowardice , so harsh in its selfishness and violence. In contrast,through the whole exodus, we also encounter some compassion , as beautiful as the wild field flowers , this un forgettable summer at the zenith of its glory, spellbinding scents , love sometimes …

This fresco of every man for himself and of the violence lurking within each of us covers every member of society: the banker,the selling author ,the lonely collector, the gentry and the poor , the ‘despicable’ workers ,the hypocritical farmers and traders . Greed , envy , the deadly sins are rampant. The symbolic murder is this: orchestrated by a band of orphans, the scapegoat is a priest, young, handsome , idealistic and in love with both Reason and God’s grace . Musical introduction: the assassination of two beautiful blue and gray lizards killed for nothing and the blazing speed of stones. Unspeakable violence.

A beautiful cat chapter is devoted to Albert, and its perverse pleasures …. . Neither complacent nor really aggressive, this classical writing is beautiful , above the fray , aristocratic. In her brilliant squetches , the author has the precision of an entomologist , the delight of botanical drawings , and the musical beauty of a flowery language. Some sentences are pure Alexandrines. Through the author’s linguistic wealth … there might be an attempt to confuse the absolute evil and reveal the humanity that lies within each of us.
Alas the book is left unfinished , as the symphony, and the third part remains unspoken. Thus Fate has willed .

However , the second part carries a funny title, Dolce, Dolce Vita, Dolce … ? It is true that France ‘ free zone’ climate was very mild … and some still ate desserts. But appalling living conditions , hunger , the perpetual threat of death, carnage , the raids, all this ignored ? For fear of Bolshevism ? Too much for me. What is this rage to present the invader under such an idealised light? And I dare ask the question : does the author not hide behind a very mild and subdued approach of the German invaders to avoid the worst ? The question is open. How can she pretend to ignore what had been happening since 1933? Had I not read the introduction of the book, never had I guessed the writer was a Jew… Never!

“Les loups sont entrés dans Paris, soit par Issy, soit par Ivry … ” as sung by Serge Reggiani years later because ‘He’ remembered. The city of Issy , precisely where Irene had been staying . Manichaeism in reverse, looking around and saying that all French were Petainists … and anyway the only ‘ good boys ‘ seems to me a profound insult to all those in the shade or in their sometimes mad heroic Patriotism have given their lives for freedom. This is absolutely not consistent with the stories of my family. I shudder every time someone said to me: they have occupied the house, but if they were so polite and correct! War is not correct. The attack and invasion are appalling, and the specter of fascism provided by the German Nazis and French collaborators is evil personified, the negation of life that we must keep uncovering …till the end of times, probably.

Irene Némirowsky has not escaped the crematory ovens … and it’s a terrible shame and tragedy , but the tone of the second part of her book project still amazes me and leaves me perplexed … Especially when we know that she was Jewish quickly conveniently converted to Catholicism as the war became unavoidable and for years a dedicated contributor to literary journals of the extreme right to ensure her ascent !

This book would have been rejected, had it been published, just after the war, but 60 years later… things seem to have changed or people do forget!

i’m curious to see how the museum presents Nemirovsky’s work and life.

I wrote about this exhibit, myself, after Ms. Seinnrich responded to a post of mine. http://jewwishes.wordpress.com/2008/07/12/jew-wishes-on-woman-of-letters-irene-nemirovsky-exhibition/

I don’t live in NY, as you know, but will definitely travel to see this upcoming exhibit.

Thanks for sharing this info with your readers. Let me know if you need any more.

-Liz Sinnreich (executiveintern@mjhnyc.org)