Melville, Michael & Literary Drivel - part 1

The illustration’s better than the article, but I appreciate both. In the book section of today’s Weekendavisen Danish author Ib Michael has written a mildly witty but timely satire on the current state of Danish/Western literature. The illustration shows an appalled Herman Melville watching as an editor at Glydendal, the largest Danish publishing house, hacks bloody chunks from his manuscript for Billy Budd with a scalpel.

“Redundant, Herman,” the editor brays as he hacks away. We can understand he has already reduced Moby Dick to a 70-page nonentity entitled From Roedby to Puttgarden, (the 2 ends of a popular ferry route) but tightened up – that it was.

I’ve never read a whole book by Ib Michael & do not feel the urge now, but an excerpt once printed in Weekendavisen impressed me. It is from his book The Midnight Soldier & describes how a Spanish soldier who is freezing his ass off on guard duty one night in March 1808 keeps building up the fire in the fireplace & ends up burning the castle of Koldinghus to the ground. It is doubtless the best description I have ever read of feeling chilled to the bone, simply unable to get warm. I guess Michael should know. He’s yet another Dane who heads south in the winter, like a gray goose, because he can’t deal with the cold dark months.   (see post from Feb. 2 )

Today’s book section essay is a bit disingenuous because nowadays Melville’s style would likely be tightened up by Random House too & abridged versions have been popular for ages, but I still appreciate the thought. Thank you, Ib. I have a problem generally with modern Danish literature, but it’s my problem. There are really a lot of good books out there, but even the chick lit sounds stylistically like Ernest Hemingway, short, tight & lacking in musicality. Partly the language, partly the national esthetic, wholly uninspiring to a rambler & lover of metaphor like me. Melville’s all over the place, a well of words overflowing its pool. Readers have to make an effort.

“Maybe it’s time for a new voice,” says my absolutely better half, whose generous soul can see beyond his own likes & dislikes. He couldn’t plow through Moby Dick, while I liked it even better on the 4^th reading because by then I had taught a few years of Maritime English at Svendborg’s maritime academy so I understood more of the sailor talk. (At my job interview I pointed out that the closest I had ever come to maritime anything was 3 readings of Moby Dick. They hired me anyway but I could not get one single student to tackle that wonderful book. Maybe I should have tried Billy Budd. I love it almost as much, but the hero is a midshipman who kills an officer with a single punch & hangs for it. How would a class of future junior officers take sides?)

I hadn’t realized the phrase ‘fit for (a) fight’ came from Moby Dick because it hadn’t become a catchphrase until my 4^th time around. I guess a modern editor would have left that scene in, not least because the speaker is a naked stud – Queequeg from the West Indies – posing harpoon in hand on the gunwale. Comments on religion & racial differences – tolerant & on the light side – would probably have made it too. They were ahead of their time. In sooo many words. Hee hee.

Melville, Michael & Litterære Nonsens - del 1

Illustrationen er bedre end artiklen men jeg sætter pris på begge 2. I Weekendavisens bog sektion idag har Ib Michael en mildt underholdende men relevant satire over den aktuelle danske/vestlige litteratur. Illustrationen viser en bestyrtet Herman Melville, der ser til mens redaktøren på Gyldendal hakker blodige lunser fra manuskriptet på Billy Budd med en skalpel.

”Redundans, Herman,” bræger redaktøren, mens han hakker løs. Vi kan forstå, at han allerede har reduceret Moby Dick til en ”70-siders sag med titlen Fra Rødby til Puttgarden, men stramt, det var den.”

Jeg har aldrig læst en helt bog af Ib Michael og føler ingen trang til det nu, men en uddrag i Weekendavisen for mange år siden imponerede mig. Den var fra bogen Den Tolvte Rytter og beskriver hvordan en spansk soldat der fryser på sin vagt en nat i marts 1808 fyrer op i kaminen og ender med at brænde Koldinghus ned. Utvivlsomt den bedste beskrivelse jeg nogensinde har læst af fornemmelsen af at fryse helt ind til benet, umuligt at få varmen. Det ved Michael sikkert alt om. Han er endnu en dansker der flyver sydpå om vinteren som en grågås fordi han ikke kan klare de kolde mørke måneder. (se post fra  2. feb)

Dagens avis essay er noget urigtig fordi idag ville Melvilles stil sandsynligvis blive strammet op hos Random House også og forkortede versioner har været populær længe. Alligevel påskønner jeg tanken. Tak, Ib. Jeg har et problem med moderne dansk litteratur i det hele taget, men det er mit problem. Der er rigtig mange gode bøger derude, men selv chick lit lyder stilmæssigt som Ernest Hemingway, kort, kontant og blottet for musik. Delvis sproget, delvis den nationale æstetik, helt uinspirerende for en som mig. Melville er over det hele, en fontæne af ord der flyder over sit bassin. Læseren skal gøre en indsats. Heldigvis har Melville en ny ildsjæl af en dansk oversætter -

”Måske er det tid til en ny stemme,” siger min absolut bedre halvdel, hvis rummelige sjæl kan se ud over egne præferencer. Han kunne ikke pløje sig igennem Moby Dick, mens jeg kunne endnu bedre lide den ved 4. læsning, fordi jeg da havde undervist et par år i maritimt engelsk på SIMAC så jeg fattede mere sømandssprog. Først da kunne jeg også se at frasen ’fit for fight’ stammer fra Moby Dick. Det ville en moderne redaktør sandsynligvis have bevaret, ikke mindst fordi de siges af en nøgen hug, Queequeg fra Vestindien, der poserer, harpun i hånd, på rælingen. Kommentarer om religion og race forskelle – tolerant og på den lettere side – ville sikkert også klare sig. De var foran for deres tid. På såååå mange ord. Tihi.