2024~11. Creation

Gore Vidal. 1981.

This pretentious, intellectually condescending tome was a painful slog of misogyny and racism. The domestic and sexual violence and general disrespect for women and girls was painful.  As historical fiction, I don't doubt that was the reality of how learned men thought about and treated women, but I nevertheless just found the entire experience to be one of misery.  This story about an amateur philosopher and religious scholar turned spy to India and China in about the 4th century BC has hours of haughty, if interesting, discussions about the meaning of life, the problem of evil, and reflections on how, why, and by whom the world was created.  The narrator just happens to make the acquaintance of Socrates, the Buddha, Confucius, Lao Tsu, and others who schools him on these topics.  Perhaps the most interesting of these conversations were about other lesser known religious groups, like Jaimism and Pythagoreanism.  I have little doubt that the historical part of this historical fiction novel must have been extensively researched, but until the very end, the last section when we see some woman characters return and voice opinions, the women in the books are by and large relegated to their roles as concubines, sisters, and wives.  Wives, such as the narrator's 12 year old Indian wife, given to him by her father while he is traveling and spying there, and sisters, such as one of the sister of the prince of Persia (I think I am remembering this correctly, it might have been a daughter), but when he asks which sister, the prince doesn't know which one since he hasn't really met any of them and they are interchangeable since the purpose of marrying is to be married into the family.  The men pontificate and reflect on philosophy, while wars rage, people die, and the women are raped, beaten, sold, and traded.  Definitely not enough here to warrant all of that and make it worth getting through.

Do not recommend.

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