Week 11 - Javier Cercas "Soldiers of Salamis"
This week, I read the Soldiers of Salamis by Javier Cercas.
The story is about a journalist interviewing Rafael Sanchez Ferlosio, who is telling his father, Rafael Sanchez Mazas’s story during the Spanish Civil War.
In the story, Mazas was hiding in the woods when there were soldiers near him. He was able to hear dogs barking and shots being fired. He then noticed a Militiaman looking at him. However, the soldier did not expose his whereabouts and told the other soldiers that there is nobody over there. This part is the most vivid to me because when it comes to ‘war’, it is always negative. War is equal to ‘darkness’. It is violent, dangerous, traumatizing, scary, people killing each other, etc. However, there are some actions and moments that can be seen as a ray of light in the darkness. Mazas’s life was spared by a soldier that he is fighting against. Also the people from a nearby village helped him survive during his days of hiding in the woods.
When I came across the line ”im lying” (p13), I did not think that there would be any deeper meaning behind the text. However, from what the professor had mentioned in the lecture video, the narrator seems to be inviting the readers to “play a guessing game to separate out the fact from fiction”. This made me think about the story again and view it in a different perspective. What is true? what is not?...
I really like the line “Reality always ends up betraying us, it's best not to give it a chance and betray it first.” (p197) I believe this line from the story reflects a line used by many people today, which is ‘reality hurts’. There are many things, items, skills, dreams, goals, etc people want to get or accomplish. However, most of the time it is reality that is preventing people from getting or achieving what they want. People always back down as reality is something we are not able to avoid. This is how life works, it is the truth. When the narrator mentioned about “..its best not to give it a chance and betray it first” (197) It's as if they are fighting against their fate, their destiny, their life.
A question I have for the class is: Will you be loyal to the ‘reality’ (facing the reality) or will you betray it by fighting against it?
'When the narrator mentioned about “..its best not to give it a chance and betray it first” '
ReplyDeleteIt's not the narrator who says this, is it? It's the character, Bolaño. What did you make of the interactions between the narrator and Bolaño?
Im sorry if I have interpreted the story wrong. Bolano was the narrator's first interviewees. I personally think the conversation between the two was little into philosophy? talking about the definition of hero, reality, betraying etc.
Delete"The story is about a journalist interviewing Rafael Sanchez Ferlosio."
ReplyDeleteHi, Celine. Here, too, this is not really what the story is about, is it? It feels as though you've read the first few pages and then perhaps the very end? (See my previous question about Bolaño, which you haven't answered yet.)
More like it 'started off' with a journalist interviewing. The main story is broken into three sections and it begins with Cercas interviewing Rafael to know about Sanchez Manzas and the second section was on Sanchez Manzas perspective at the war. The last section kind of went back to Cercas being in contact with Miraelles.
Delete