Indifference helps me across all the mountains of rubbish.

March 5, 2015 11:15 AM

Thomas Bernhard's correspondence with his publisher.

Four continguous paragraphs:

Hyperconcentration compels us to do our utmost in our passion and fear for what we are capable of. Because we must do everything in our power to thwart society!


If the book hasn’t already been printed and bound, I would like two complete paginated rough copies of it right away.


The tension between Correction, which has completely cut me off from the rest of the world, and the work in Salzburg, is extremely advantageous.


When will you come? For how many days? Here we have an invigorating ice-cold lake, as you know.

posted by kenko (5 comments total)

Wow. What an amazing undertaking.

This appears to provide some context for the blog's translation work as a whole.
posted by twirlip at 12:29 PM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]

Neat! Exhaustive!
posted by clockzero at 12:50 PM on March 5, 2015

My word, that essay is worth an FPP by itself.
posted by kenko at 12:51 PM on March 5, 2015

This is wonderful: thank you. Of what I’ve read so far, I especially liked this: We are all standing on an ice sheet of misunderstanding. And so we would do best not to make any sudden moves, lest we tumble into the water.
posted by misteraitch at 1:54 PM on March 5, 2015 [1 favorite]

I went on a huge Thomas Bernhard kick when I was in law school. I found his books transfixing. Correction was probably my favorite; Extinction is very good; but in some ways they all seemed the same (which is not a bad thing). I knew next to nothing about him, but his books gave the impression of being written by someone extraordinarily intense. These letters are pretty much exactly what I expected. I liked this:

I find it preposterous and, even more than that, myopic in you to have let several months pass without getting in touch with me.

On the other hand I am best off alone.
posted by jayder at 8:33 PM on March 5, 2015