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Selected Non-Fictions
This unique volume presents a Borges almost entirely unknown to American readers: his extraordinary non-fiction prose. Borges' unlimited curiosity and almost superhuman erudition become, in his essays, reviews, lectures, and political and cultural notes, a vortex for seemingly the entire universe: Dante and Ellery Queen; Shakespeare and the Kabbalah; the history of angels ...more
Paperback, 576 pages
Published
November 1st 2000
by Penguin Books
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The knowledge Borges brings to his non-fiction writings draws upon sources vast and obscure. His scope makes parallels between the ancient past and dreams of the future. He charts such subjects as the histories of angels, dreams, archetypes, languages, and ideas, among many epistemological topics. He presents coincidence and irony as governed by forces beyond the human sphere, yet Borges rejects transcendent order. He chooses instead to be captivated with the human origin of immortality. He deci...more
Borges is brilliant, though he does tend to repeat himself. So rather than try to review this collection, I'll use this box to give instructions for the game of "BORGES BINGO", usable not only on nonfiction but also his fiction and poetry.
The grid is 5X5. Of course, the center box is "LABYRINTH" (free space). Fill the 24 boxes around it with the following motifs/moves/topics, in random order. Whenever a topic gets mentioned in the book you're reading, check it off...more
The grid is 5X5. Of course, the center box is "LABYRINTH" (free space). Fill the 24 boxes around it with the following motifs/moves/topics, in random order. Whenever a topic gets mentioned in the book you're reading, check it off...more
I learned many things about Borges from this long assortment of his non-fiction writings. For instance, in addition to his interest in the philosophy of time, the nature of human consciousness, and the use of labyrinths as a metaphor in literature, he loved to go the movies, and didn't care much for King Kong. Some more: he was a staunch anti-fascist during the Second World War, he was deeply interested in the nature of the Trinity, and that he didn't like detective fiction written after the ...more
A cornucopia of numerous wonderfully odd but interesting pieces of often very short fiction. I've been unable to read this cover-to-cover, because it takes too much effort and concentration. I also find that, like Updike, Borges sometimes confuses and annoys me by interjecting a little too much of his wide and obscure learning into his stories, so that many allusions are lost to me. While I perhaps know too little to appreciate them as they should be appreciated, I keep going back for more. The ...more
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Borges in his non-fictions is like Virgil in the Divine Comedy that he writes so much about, a guide, though of literature and philosophy instead of Heaven and Hell. In a way, he was for me with literature what Bertrand Russell was with philosophy, a lucid voice that has a knack for seeing the heart of any problem and explaining it in clear terms. His indifference to specialization and length might have made him the world’s first classic blogger if he were born a little later.
Reading ...more
Reading ...more
Well I used t have all the book from Borges in Spanish, that was, until one of my boxes was lost when moving apartments. To my dismay the box that contain his books were lost. Alas the Aleph and other Stories managed to sneak to another box, but Labyrinths was lost forever and I can only hope it’s somewhere where the book can be read and not in a dumpster. The later faith would be a tragedy, the first an act of a comedic destiny.
I’ve read all of his publications in Spanish, and I a...more
I’ve read all of his publications in Spanish, and I a...more
Kalau seseorang itu kata dia membaca, tetapi tak memiliki buku ini dalam bentuk kulit keras, saya akan tendang perut dia. Kemudian saya akan heret dia ke tempat pelupusan sampah dan akan tinggalkan dia di situ. Ptui, saya akan ludah dia. Mampos kau kat situ syaitan pendusta, saya sambung sambil meninggalkan dia di situ bersama urin anjing dan mayat siput babi.
Setting my eye on this book in a London book shelf, I instantly fell in love with it. Having read his more celebrated books - Fictions, The Aleph, Universal History, etc. - I have found here an even greater scope and dimension to Borges' writing.
The great thing about these essays that they're intelligent and erudite, but distance themselves from academic doctrine. The books that are his source of fascination - Greek mythology, fables, linguistic - are given original interpretations a...more
The great thing about these essays that they're intelligent and erudite, but distance themselves from academic doctrine. The books that are his source of fascination - Greek mythology, fables, linguistic - are given original interpretations a...more
same thing to be said as with the ficciones-my reading of Borges is a work in progress. A little here, a little there, and then you need some time for breathing and reflection. You want to snack on Borges, so as to not devour the entire meal and then be disappointed in dessert.
This was sitting on my bookshelf for about a year before I picked it up. Didn't know who the author was. But I decided to give it a go, and was very impressed by the essays and poems that I found in it. He's another author who has a nice cadence to his writing.
Literary theory by a non-academic librarian that is so enjoyable and instigating! This Argentian read everything and discusses all the yummy things about literature in his own scholarly yet non-competitive style that was really refreshing to read.
Is this a collectio of essays? As I read and enjoy it as series of beautiful wondering nattations! I can't find any special "shelve" for it, maybe "mirror" as I went through it forgetting not my shoe but my whole wearings ...
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Great fun thats not just for completists. I love Borges, but he made his name as a critic writing for a magazine whose numerous articles are somewhat reprinted here. The book is broken down by type and form, but even some of his throwaway thoughts are brilliant. Also it's pretty fun to find out what novels Borges read over and over again (he was someone who really loved to read), and snarky fun to read whom he hated or thought was overrated.
Erudite, mind expanding and incredibly literary...in the space of two to four pages he can change your view forever
Alright, so I am a bit biased as Borges is my very favorite author. I definitely prefer his fiction, but am happy to say that his non-fiction kept me just as much on my toes, and searching for a way through the maze to the end. As is typical of Borges, if you can follow it, it's poignant... but you can't always follow it. I recommend this book to buy and enjoy in small morsels.
It is venturesome to think that a coordination of words (philosophies are nothing more than that) can resemble the universe very much. It is also venturesome to think that of all these illustrious coordinations, one of them -- at least in an infinitesimal way -- does not resemble the universe a bit more than the others.” -- Essay: "The Avatars of the Tortoise.
I first fell in love with Borges for his fiction, but have also been impacted by the creativity and novelty of his nonfiction. ...more
I first fell in love with Borges for his fiction, but have also been impacted by the creativity and novelty of his nonfiction. ...more
Borges, nothing else need be said.
I particularly enjoyed: "The Analytical Language of John Wilkins."
I finally finished this one, which I've been nursing for several years. I read it slowly not because it's not great -- Borges is one of my favorite authors -- but it's so persistently erudite and tricky that it's hard to go through a lot of pages at once.
I like his short stories more, but his essays about Dante are fascinating and he has some other really intriguing stuff -- I remain dazzled by the breadth and depth of Borges' reading and knowledge about the world.
I like his short stories more, but his essays about Dante are fascinating and he has some other really intriguing stuff -- I remain dazzled by the breadth and depth of Borges' reading and knowledge about the world.
Borges understood literary translation like almost no one has (even if his own translations can be problematic and less than thrilling). As much as his ficciones make me sing, I love this compilation of essays for allowing me such direct access to his incisive, sparkling mind.
Eternal thanks to Andrew Hurley for his brilliant translations of nearly everything this wonderful man wrote. What a gift you have given English.
Eternal thanks to Andrew Hurley for his brilliant translations of nearly everything this wonderful man wrote. What a gift you have given English.
Essays on translation and time refuted? Check.
Imaginative fragments on Coleridge, Joyce and Khayyam? Check.
Citizen Kane and King Kong reviewed? Check.
Essential Borges brain candy? Check
Imaginative fragments on Coleridge, Joyce and Khayyam? Check.
Citizen Kane and King Kong reviewed? Check.
Essential Borges brain candy? Check
In my mind Borges represents the pinnacle of erudition. His short stories are generally filled with wide ranging references. The selected nonfictions gives you a sense of what he reads and draws upon when he composes his fictions. Histories, metaphysical exercises, philosophy, book reviews, biographies, film criticisms, and political writings are all found in this large but rewarding volume.
When I fist scanned the table of contents of this book and realized that I didn't recognize the names of most of the writers that Borges is writing about, I was afraid I wouldn't find this collection interesting. It turns out that Borges reads people that nobody reads, so you don't have to. He summarizes the most interesting and complex ideas in short essays. It's great.
It's funny how Borges writes essays in the same amused, pedantic voice he uses in his fiction. I read that one of his essays (Approach to Al-Mutaism) was actually later included in his Ficciones. I guess he proves that the line between fiction and nonfiction is as thin as the distance between Achilles and the tortoise a few days into the race.
I don't know if he is the greatest living writer of the 20th century, I think a lot of that is bullshit, I think there were writers that dabbled in his same cerebral vortices but it only got noticed this century. A hundred years in the future, Borges would be writing the Onion with Pablo Neruda - only they'd call it the Artichoke.
This is an enriching collection of essays written by Borges. Some are boring, some are interesting; revolving mainly around literature, philosophy, and mathematics. I figure it a great selection to have in your living room for spur-of-the-moment enlightening and educating.....definitely not meant to be read straight through.
I'm actually not a huge fan of the translations but they are far better than the ones in the Selected Fictions. And, Borges translates well into English. AND-- there's cool stuff that is not often anthologized, like movie reviews and magazine articles, that are fun for the archivist.
Good stuff. He natters on about time an awful lot, but well worth the time I spent reading it.
My mind hurts a little.
I am currently reading Borges just because I found him in an old box dry in the nicely heated den. He is interesting. The passion of an introvert and the way that his themes, writings, and opinions reflect off of me is enriching.
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Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo (Spanish pronunciation: [xoɾxe lwis boɾxes]) was an Argentine writer and poet born in Buenos Aires. In 1914, his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school and traveled to Spain. On his return to Argentina in 1921, Borges began publishing his poems and essays in Surrealist literary journals. He also worked as a librarian and public lecturer. Bo...more
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“The thought came over me that never would one full and absolute moment, containing all the others, justify my life, that all of my instants would be provisional phases, annihilators of the past turned to face the future, and that beyond the episodic, the present, the circumstantial, we were nobody.”
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