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Labyrinths: Selected Stories and Other Writings (New Directions Paperbook, 186)
by Jorge Luis Borges

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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17717.Labyrinths_Selected_Stories_and_Other_Writings?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Labyrinths: Selected Stories and Other Writings (New Directions Paperbook, 186)" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1166852117m/17717.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17717.Labyrinths_Selected_Stories_and_Other_Writings?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Labyrinths: Selected Stories and Other Writings</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/500.Jorge_Luis_Borges">Jorge Luis Borges</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6633965?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 3 of 5 stars<br/>Borges typically gets lumped into the South American "magical realism" genre along with the likes of Gabriel Garcia Marquez (whom I've still yet to read; shame on me).  But his style is very peculiar.  The book is supposed to be a collection of short stories, or as Borges himself called them, ficciones.  But few of them are what one would typically consider stories at all.  They tend to be short fictional essays, book reviews, obituaries, articles, etc.  (There's also a detective story and a couple of first hand narratives.)  Borges reviews books that have never been written, eulogizes people who have never lived, and writes articles refuting scholars that don't exist.  And why?  The best I could tell was that he wanted to explore what the world would be like if modern philosophy were actually true.  He toys with Bishop Berkeley's idea that the physical world need not necessarily exist.  So long as the sense perceptions it supposedly creates affect our consciousness it's material existence is superfluous.  He also plays with Hume's denial of the existence of personal identity.  Need it necessarily be the case that this string of sense perceptions which I call myself has any actual unity?  Need it necessarily constitute a "person" at all?  What if it is nothing more than a random string of impressions?  Also, Borges enjoys meddling with the sequence of time itself.  If two events happened in exactly the same way, why could they not simply be the same event?  Is it necessary to posit the idea of temporal sequence at all?  Could not all moments be entirely unrelated to each other?  If these thoughts sound bizarre, that's because they are.  But the "philosophers" are out there thinking them and Borges fictional rendering of their implications is as interesting a presentation of these ideas as one is likely to run across.
<br/>
<br/>Another major theme of Borges thinking, and perhaps the most representative expression of his view of reality, centers on the notion of Labyrinths.  For him, the mystery of reality can be best summarized by as a grand labyrinth.  It is a puzzle which gives the appearance of reason/order to those trapped within its confines but which in truth is nothing more than an elaborate game.  What does one accomplish upon reaching the center of a labyrinth?  Is there indeed any purpose at all to the journey?  And yet how can a man help but attempt it?  Yet ultimately there is no meaning behind the movement; only the appearance of meaning; truly a torturous state for humans to find themselves in.  But then again, that's where the modern quest has left us all at present.  Final verdict: interesting but not amazing.  Intensely cerebral fiction and so probably not to the taste of everyone; but short enough to make some dabbling in the work worthwhile.
  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/314314?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Mark's review
rating:

Borges typically gets lumped into the South American "magical realism" genre along with the likes of Gabriel Garcia Marquez (whom I've still yet to read; shame on me). But his style is very peculiar. The book is supposed to be a collection of short stories, or as Borges himself called them, ficciones. But few of them are what one would typically consider stories at all. They tend to be short fictional essays, book reviews, obituaries, articles, etc. (There's also a detective story and a couple of first hand narratives.) Borges reviews books that have never been written, eulogizes people who have never lived, and writes articles refuting scholars that don't exist. And why? The best I could tell was that he wanted to explore what the world would be like if modern philosophy were actually true. He toys with Bishop Berkeley's idea that the physical world need not necessarily exist. So long as the sense perceptions it supposedly creates affect our consciousness it's mate...more Borges typically gets lumped into the South American "magical realism" genre along with the likes of Gabriel Garcia Marquez (whom I've still yet to read; shame on me). But his style is very peculiar. The book is supposed to be a collection of short stories, or as Borges himself called them, ficciones. But few of them are what one would typically consider stories at all. They tend to be short fictional essays, book reviews, obituaries, articles, etc. (There's also a detective story and a couple of first hand narratives.) Borges reviews books that have never been written, eulogizes people who have never lived, and writes articles refuting scholars that don't exist. And why? The best I could tell was that he wanted to explore what the world would be like if modern philosophy were actually true. He toys with Bishop Berkeley's idea that the physical world need not necessarily exist. So long as the sense perceptions it supposedly creates affect our consciousness it's material existence is superfluous. He also plays with Hume's denial of the existence of personal identity. Need it necessarily be the case that this string of sense perceptions which I call myself has any actual unity? Need it necessarily constitute a "person" at all? What if it is nothing more than a random string of impressions? Also, Borges enjoys meddling with the sequence of time itself. If two events happened in exactly the same way, why could they not simply be the same event? Is it necessary to posit the idea of temporal sequence at all? Could not all moments be entirely unrelated to each other? If these thoughts sound bizarre, that's because they are. But the "philosophers" are out there thinking them and Borges fictional rendering of their implications is as interesting a presentation of these ideas as one is likely to run across.

Another major theme of Borges thinking, and perhaps the most representative expression of his view of reality, centers on the notion of Labyrinths. For him, the mystery of reality can be best summarized by as a grand labyrinth. It is a puzzle which gives the appearance of reason/order to those trapped within its confines but which in truth is nothing more than an elaborate game. What does one accomplish upon reaching the center of a labyrinth? Is there indeed any purpose at all to the journey? And yet how can a man help but attempt it? Yet ultimately there is no meaning behind the movement; only the appearance of meaning; truly a torturous state for humans to find themselves in. But then again, that's where the modern quest has left us all at present. Final verdict: interesting but not amazing. Intensely cerebral fiction and so probably not to the taste of everyone; but short enough to make some dabbling in the work worthwhile....less

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