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The Aloe
Linda Burnell dreams, listless and distant, whilst downstairs her mother sets in order the family's new home in the New Zealand countryside. Her vigorous and exhausting husband, Stanley, is at the office, but will return with eager and admiring eyes. Her children prepare lunch on a concrete step and her sister sings love songs to an imaginary young man. This is The Aloe, which Katherine Mansfield wrote to crystallise the memories of her childhood. It was reworked to become her acclaimed Prelude. But the original is very different in style, detail and texture giving us both a wonderful short novel in its own right. The text has been prepared by Vincent O Sullivan, the renowned Mansfield scholar.
112 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1930
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190 people want to read
About the author
Katherine Mansfield
976 books1,204 followersKathleen Mansfield Murry (née Beauchamp) was a prominent New Zealand modernist writer of short fiction who wrote under the pen name of Katherine Mansfield.
Katherine Mansfield is widely considered one of the best short story writers of her period. A number of her works, including "Miss Brill", "Prelude", "The Garden Party", "The Doll's House", and later works such as "The Fly", are frequently collected in short story anthologies. Mansfield also proved ahead of her time in her adoration of Russian playwright and short story writer Anton Chekhov, and incorporated some of his themes and techniques into her writing.
Katherine Mansfield was part of a "new dawn" in English literature with T.S. Eliot, James Joyce and Virginia Woolf. She was associated with the brilliant group of writers who made the London of the period the centre of the literary world.
Nevertheless, Mansfield was a New Zealand writer - she could not have written as she did had she not gone to live in England and France, but she could not have done her best work if she had not had firm roots in her native land. She used her memories in her writing from the beginning, people, the places, even the colloquial speech of the country form the fabric of much of her best work.
Mansfield's stories were the first of significance in English to be written without a conventional plot. Supplanting the strictly structured plots of her predecessors in the genre (Edgar Allan Poe, Rudyard Kipling, H. G. Wells), Mansfield concentrated on one moment, a crisis or a turning point, rather than on a sequence of events. The plot is secondary to mood and characters. The stories are innovative in many other ways. They feature simple things - a doll's house or a charwoman. Her imagery, frequently from nature, flowers, wind and colours, set the scene with which readers can identify easily.
Themes too are universal: human isolation, the questioning of traditional roles of men and women in society, the conflict between love and disillusionment, idealism and reality, beauty and ugliness, joy and suffering, and the inevitability of these paradoxes. Oblique narration (influenced by Chekhov but certainly developed by Mansfield) includes the use of symbolism - the doll's house lamp, the fly, the pear tree - hinting at the hidden layers of meaning. Suggestion and implication replace direct detail.
Katherine Mansfield is widely considered one of the best short story writers of her period. A number of her works, including "Miss Brill", "Prelude", "The Garden Party", "The Doll's House", and later works such as "The Fly", are frequently collected in short story anthologies. Mansfield also proved ahead of her time in her adoration of Russian playwright and short story writer Anton Chekhov, and incorporated some of his themes and techniques into her writing.
Katherine Mansfield was part of a "new dawn" in English literature with T.S. Eliot, James Joyce and Virginia Woolf. She was associated with the brilliant group of writers who made the London of the period the centre of the literary world.
Nevertheless, Mansfield was a New Zealand writer - she could not have written as she did had she not gone to live in England and France, but she could not have done her best work if she had not had firm roots in her native land. She used her memories in her writing from the beginning, people, the places, even the colloquial speech of the country form the fabric of much of her best work.
Mansfield's stories were the first of significance in English to be written without a conventional plot. Supplanting the strictly structured plots of her predecessors in the genre (Edgar Allan Poe, Rudyard Kipling, H. G. Wells), Mansfield concentrated on one moment, a crisis or a turning point, rather than on a sequence of events. The plot is secondary to mood and characters. The stories are innovative in many other ways. They feature simple things - a doll's house or a charwoman. Her imagery, frequently from nature, flowers, wind and colours, set the scene with which readers can identify easily.
Themes too are universal: human isolation, the questioning of traditional roles of men and women in society, the conflict between love and disillusionment, idealism and reality, beauty and ugliness, joy and suffering, and the inevitability of these paradoxes. Oblique narration (influenced by Chekhov but certainly developed by Mansfield) includes the use of symbolism - the doll's house lamp, the fly, the pear tree - hinting at the hidden layers of meaning. Suggestion and implication replace direct detail.
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December 1, 2019The perfect way for me to consume Katherine Mansfield, just one story at a time, the merest sensation leaves an intense impression. This story was later rewritten as The Prelude, in its present form it is one of her big cinematic New Zealand stories with long tracking sections following first one character than another.
If I was being critical I might venture to suggest that it has a bit too much going on. There's enough with the variety in perspectives between a child and two adult sisters, and the raising of issues of gender and sexuality, the difficulty of presenting yourself as you feel yourself to be rather than as the mask which is one's social personality (brash, outgoing, upbeat, or whatever it may happen to be)relationships - possibly imbalanced, possibly mutually supporting, class and health - but not yet death which in so many of the other stories I have read of her's was a major presence, there's enough to keep a novel going.
Equally you might venture to reply that is the nature of Mansfield's artistic vision, everything happens and much of it all at once. Life tends to be intersectional. It generally doesn't exist in discrete neat single-themed parts.
This could be the perfect introduction to reading Mansfield, a beautiful and thoughtful piece of prose - even if it was not up to her own ideals and left in the unfinished pile.
If I was being critical I might venture to suggest that it has a bit too much going on. There's enough with the variety in perspectives between a child and two adult sisters, and the raising of issues of gender and sexuality, the difficulty of presenting yourself as you feel yourself to be rather than as the mask which is one's social personality (brash, outgoing, upbeat, or whatever it may happen to be)relationships - possibly imbalanced, possibly mutually supporting, class and health - but not yet death which in so many of the other stories I have read of her's was a major presence, there's enough to keep a novel going.
Equally you might venture to reply that is the nature of Mansfield's artistic vision, everything happens and much of it all at once. Life tends to be intersectional. It generally doesn't exist in discrete neat single-themed parts.
This could be the perfect introduction to reading Mansfield, a beautiful and thoughtful piece of prose - even if it was not up to her own ideals and left in the unfinished pile.
June 16, 2015
In the last few years, I started hearing about Katherine Mansfield and kept meaning to read something from her. I finally did for a Reading Envy podcast. When that posts I will link to it, but this very short novel was later turned into the better known short story "Prelude," found in her book of stories, Bliss & Other Stories. In reading about the story I have discovered that the most interesting thing about Mansfield may be her actual life, so I may go looking for a biography.
In short summary - the story is about a small pastoral life in New Zealand, but has moments of deep and honest introspection about a woman's place in society, expectations for faking it, and the roles women take on. Those bits were surprising but good. There is also some fun dialogue, some child-centric chapters, and some landscape description I don't see often. And accidentally, I get to add it to my Oceania list for 2015.
In short summary - the story is about a small pastoral life in New Zealand, but has moments of deep and honest introspection about a woman's place in society, expectations for faking it, and the roles women take on. Those bits were surprising but good. There is also some fun dialogue, some child-centric chapters, and some landscape description I don't see often. And accidentally, I get to add it to my Oceania list for 2015.
September 5, 2014
Katherine Mansfield (1888-1923) was a restless creature. When I read Kathleen Jones’ superb biography Katherine Mansfield, The Storyteller I was struck by how often Mansfield changed residences. Even as her body was wracked by the TB that was to kill her at 35, she went backwards and forwards between England and the continent, and never anywhere for very long. So it is interesting that The Aloe, written towards the end of her short life, is firmly centred on a home in New Zealand.
It is not, however, a sentimental portrait of home and family life. Far from it. Mansfield’s characteristic sharp observations blend to reveal her ambivalence: on the one hand the characters take comfort in the familiarity of home, the beauty of the garden, the clumsy servant so reminiscent of Mansfield’s long-suffering but loyal helpmeet Ida Baker, and on the other there is frustrated rejection of the house, the family, the dominant father, domesticity and motherhood.
There is an excellent introduction to the modernist form of this novella by Kirsty Gunn: she quotes Mansfield saying that as far as she knew, the form of the novel was her own invention. With minimal plot, it is written in deceptively calm fragments, moving seamlessly from one character’s point of view to another to create a coherent whole.
The story begins as the family moves house, where the reader first meets the small girls, Lottie and Kezia left behind in the care of a kindly neighbour because there is no room for them in the buggy. They potter through the abandoned rooms and discover their neighbour’s scorn for their parents, socially superior but not as well off. When Fred the Storeman finally delivers the girls to their new home much of it has been set to rights, no thanks to their mother Linda Burnell suffering endlessly from ennui, or to their father Stanley whose dignity as a businessman demands his presence elsewhere. It is their indefatigable Aunt Beryl who has slaved all day - as she should, thinks Stanley, because she owes it to them for giving her a home.
To read the rest of my review please visit http://anzlitlovers.com/2013/03/16/th...
It is not, however, a sentimental portrait of home and family life. Far from it. Mansfield’s characteristic sharp observations blend to reveal her ambivalence: on the one hand the characters take comfort in the familiarity of home, the beauty of the garden, the clumsy servant so reminiscent of Mansfield’s long-suffering but loyal helpmeet Ida Baker, and on the other there is frustrated rejection of the house, the family, the dominant father, domesticity and motherhood.
There is an excellent introduction to the modernist form of this novella by Kirsty Gunn: she quotes Mansfield saying that as far as she knew, the form of the novel was her own invention. With minimal plot, it is written in deceptively calm fragments, moving seamlessly from one character’s point of view to another to create a coherent whole.
The story begins as the family moves house, where the reader first meets the small girls, Lottie and Kezia left behind in the care of a kindly neighbour because there is no room for them in the buggy. They potter through the abandoned rooms and discover their neighbour’s scorn for their parents, socially superior but not as well off. When Fred the Storeman finally delivers the girls to their new home much of it has been set to rights, no thanks to their mother Linda Burnell suffering endlessly from ennui, or to their father Stanley whose dignity as a businessman demands his presence elsewhere. It is their indefatigable Aunt Beryl who has slaved all day - as she should, thinks Stanley, because she owes it to them for giving her a home.
To read the rest of my review please visit http://anzlitlovers.com/2013/03/16/th...
December 20, 2018
- Τι κάνεις ρε; Πως είσαι;
- Εσύ; Ρώτησα με τη συνηθισμένη εχθρική μου αμηχανία
- Έλα μη χρονοτριβούμε μ’ αυτά θα τα πούμε στον καφέ.
- Ποιο καφέ; Δε θέλω να βγω έξω
- Ρε συ είναι καθιερωμένο: να ρουφήξουμε προχριστουγεννιάτικη ατμόσφαιρα
- Όχι κρυώνω.
- Μα είναι Χριστούγεννα!
-…
- Ρε μην κολλάς εκεί μέσα…
- Θα με στήσεις;
- Όχι! Όχι! Το υπόσχομαι
Περίμενα ήδη είκοσι λεπτά, όταν αισθάνθηκα λίγο γελοίος όπως πήγαινα από βιτρίνα σε βιτρίνα. Πήγα στο βιβλιοπωλείο, είπα γεια, ανέβηκα πάνω να δω τα βιβλία. Δεν έκατσα πολύ, χαοτική κατάσταση. Οι αγοραστές των γιορτών είχαν ανακατέψει τα πάντα. Είχα όμως συγκρατήσει μια φράση απ’ το προλογικό σημείωμα, στο μικρό μαύρο βιβλιαράκι: το μικρούτσικο έργο της όπως συνήθιζε να το αποκαλεί ο Μάρρυ, δεν ξεχάστηκε και δεν ξεπεράστηκε με το πέρασμα του χρόνου, αντίθετα έμεινε κλασικό, γιατί το αληθινό και ταπεινό περικλείει μεγαλοσύνη και διάρκεια . Κι ακόμη είχα συγκρατήσει κι αυτό: Κι αυτή όπως οι εικονιστές αποτυπώνει μια συγκεκριμένη στιγμή, όταν ένα πράγμα εξωτερικό κι αντικειμενικό μεταβάλλεται ή εισχωρεί σ’ ένα πράγμα εσωτερικό και υποκειμενικό . Δεν ήθελα όμως να το αγοράσω εκείνη τη στιγμή. Είχα στο σπίτι πολλά ανοιχτά μέτωπα, απλώς κράτησα μια σημείωση για κάποτε. Το βιβλίο έμοιαζε παλιό, στραβοχυμένο, δεν περίμενα να πουληθεί.
Ένα δεκαπεντάλεπτο μετά, έχοντας ήδη λάβει το μήνυμα που έλεγε ‘’θα καθυστερήσω’’ και λίγο μετά το απολογητικό τηλεφώνημα πως έπρεπε να κάνει ψώνια της μαμάς του για το γιορτινό τραπέζι και τελικά δε θα προλάβαινε, ξαναμπήκα στο βιβλιοπωλείο. Το αγόρασα. 2 ώρες μετά σηκωνόμουν να φύγω απ’ την καφετέρια. Μου είχε κοστίσει 16,50€, το βιβλίο, ένας καπουτσίνο και μετά από ώρα μια σοκολάτα.
Ο τρόπος που ξεκινά η αξιολόγηση αυτού του βιβλίου είναι αυτό ακριβώς που συναντάτε μέσα στην Αλόη: η αποτύπωση ενός και μόνο στιγμιότυπου όπως θα το βλέπαμε εξωτερικά και τελικά αναλόγως του αν θα το αφήναμε να επιδράσει πάνω μας ώστε να καταλήξει σε μια διάθεση που μας επηρέαζε με ένα τρόπο.
Σε πρώτη φάση, είναι βαρετό. Πάρα πολύ βαρετό. Εικόνες μιας οικογένειας που μετακομίζει στην εξοχή. Τα παιδιά, οι μεγάλοι, η φύση, τα ζώα, η τακτοποίηση. Σε κάθετί έχουμε την ευκαιρία να εισβάλουμε στο μικρογεγονός και να αντλήσουμε κάτι. Η πρώτη λέξη που είχα στο νου μου ήταν η λέξη ‘’ενάργεια’’ κι αυτό για να περιγράψω την καθαρότητα, το καλοπλυμένο κρυστάλλινο παραβάν απ’ το οποίο κυλάει μέσα μας, η χαρούμενη, φωτεινή παιδική αθωότητα, η ζωή τους, η όψη τους, τα παιχνίδια τους, οι φόβοι τους. Θυμίζει έντονα το ταλέντο της Δέλτα να γίνεται παιδί μέσα στον Τρελαντώνη.
Κυλά μέσα σε μια στιλβωμένη πλήξη μέχρι να επιτρέψεις στην εντύπωση να μετρήσει μέσα σου. Για ‘μενα αυτό ξανασυμβαίνει στο γράμμα της Μπέρυλ. Η εικόνα μιας γυναίκας που γράφει ένα τυπικό γράμμα, για να γεμίσει την ίδια με την ανοησία της εξωτερικής ζωής και φαντάζεται τον εσώτερο εαυτό της να τα σπάει όλα στην προσπάθεια του να την κάνει να ζήσει πραγματικά, να αλλάξει κάτι.
Η αδερφή της λέγεται Λίντα, είναι η μητέρα των κοριτσιών. Είναι το είδος εκείνο της γυναίκας που ζει με νωχέλεια και όλος ο κόσμος της είναι ο άντρας της. Φορτίζει αδρανής όταν εκείνος απουσιάζει και ζωντανεύει μόνο όταν εκείνος βρίσκεται κοντά, τότε όλα αποχτούν κάποιο νόημα. Κι αναρωτιέται η αφηγήτρια / κόρη, βάζει τα λόγια στο στόμα της Λίντας, ‘’γιατί άραγε αγαπώ τόσο τη ζωή’’. Φράση ικανή να ξεσηκώσει τις εντυπώσεις όλων μας, ειδικά στην εποχή μας που βλέπουμε ανθρώπους να κάνουν διαρκώς τα ίδια πράγματα, με μια βιολογική προσήλωση, πιστεύοντας ολόψυχα πως αυτό είναι μια ζωή με νόημα που δε θα άφηναν με τίποτα να τους φύγει και τελικά δεν τη ζουν, την αφήνουν να τους περνά και δε νοιάζονται ποτέ πραγματικά να ξαναπλησιάσουν τους άλλους, τους αρκεί ένα μικρό παλιό αρχικό πλησίασμα, μια γεννήτρια την οποία τρίβουν συνεχώς με λευκό ξύδι για να φεύγουν οι σκουριές και να ξανατροφοδοτείται διαρκώς με τα ίδια. Συνέχεια.
Όμως κακά τα ψέματα η μεγάλη φόρμα είναι καταδίκη τόσο για τη συγγραφέα, όσο και για τον αναγνώστη. Αισθάνεται αμήχανη να διεισδύσει, όταν όμως το κάνει, μαγεύει.
Κατά κάποιο το ανάλογο της είναι ο Στάϊνμπεκ, ένας ακόμη συγγραφέας που κλωθογυρίζει την εικόνα και προκαλεί ( εκείνος όμως όντως προκαλεί ) τον αναγνώστη να κοιτάξει βαθιά ώσπου η εντύπωση να περάσει μέσα του, διαστέλλοντας. Εδώ δεν υπάρχει αυτή η πρόκληση. Υπάρχει εγκαρτέρηση, υπάρχει πρόσκληση. Κι είναι μαζί μια θεραπεία για την ίδια την ταραγμένη ψυχή της Μάνσφιλντ, να γιατρέψει τον πόνο της απώλειας και τον πόνο χιλιάδων αναμονών. Όλα φωνάζουν ‘’θέλω να ζήσω αλλά πως; Γιατί’’;
- Εσύ; Ρώτησα με τη συνηθισμένη εχθρική μου αμηχανία
- Έλα μη χρονοτριβούμε μ’ αυτά θα τα πούμε στον καφέ.
- Ποιο καφέ; Δε θέλω να βγω έξω
- Ρε συ είναι καθιερωμένο: να ρουφήξουμε προχριστουγεννιάτικη ατμόσφαιρα
- Όχι κρυώνω.
- Μα είναι Χριστούγεννα!
-…
- Ρε μην κολλάς εκεί μέσα…
- Θα με στήσεις;
- Όχι! Όχι! Το υπόσχομαι
Περίμενα ήδη είκοσι λεπτά, όταν αισθάνθηκα λίγο γελοίος όπως πήγαινα από βιτρίνα σε βιτρίνα. Πήγα στο βιβλιοπωλείο, είπα γεια, ανέβηκα πάνω να δω τα βιβλία. Δεν έκατσα πολύ, χαοτική κατάσταση. Οι αγοραστές των γιορτών είχαν ανακατέψει τα πάντα. Είχα όμως συγκρατήσει μια φράση απ’ το προλογικό σημείωμα, στο μικρό μαύρο βιβλιαράκι: το μικρούτσικο έργο της όπως συνήθιζε να το αποκαλεί ο Μάρρυ, δεν ξεχάστηκε και δεν ξεπεράστηκε με το πέρασμα του χρόνου, αντίθετα έμεινε κλασικό, γιατί το αληθινό και ταπεινό περικλείει μεγαλοσύνη και διάρκεια . Κι ακόμη είχα συγκρατήσει κι αυτό: Κι αυτή όπως οι εικονιστές αποτυπώνει μια συγκεκριμένη στιγμή, όταν ένα πράγμα εξωτερικό κι αντικειμενικό μεταβάλλεται ή εισχωρεί σ’ ένα πράγμα εσωτερικό και υποκειμενικό . Δεν ήθελα όμως να το αγοράσω εκείνη τη στιγμή. Είχα στο σπίτι πολλά ανοιχτά μέτωπα, απλώς κράτησα μια σημείωση για κάποτε. Το βιβλίο έμοιαζε παλιό, στραβοχυμένο, δεν περίμενα να πουληθεί.
Ένα δεκαπεντάλεπτο μετά, έχοντας ήδη λάβει το μήνυμα που έλεγε ‘’θα καθυστερήσω’’ και λίγο μετά το απολογητικό τηλεφώνημα πως έπρεπε να κάνει ψώνια της μαμάς του για το γιορτινό τραπέζι και τελικά δε θα προλάβαινε, ξαναμπήκα στο βιβλιοπωλείο. Το αγόρασα. 2 ώρες μετά σηκωνόμουν να φύγω απ’ την καφετέρια. Μου είχε κοστίσει 16,50€, το βιβλίο, ένας καπουτσίνο και μετά από ώρα μια σοκολάτα.
Ο τρόπος που ξεκινά η αξιολόγηση αυτού του βιβλίου είναι αυτό ακριβώς που συναντάτε μέσα στην Αλόη: η αποτύπωση ενός και μόνο στιγμιότυπου όπως θα το βλέπαμε εξωτερικά και τελικά αναλόγως του αν θα το αφήναμε να επιδράσει πάνω μας ώστε να καταλήξει σε μια διάθεση που μας επηρέαζε με ένα τρόπο.
Σε πρώτη φάση, είναι βαρετό. Πάρα πολύ βαρετό. Εικόνες μιας οικογένειας που μετακομίζει στην εξοχή. Τα παιδιά, οι μεγάλοι, η φύση, τα ζώα, η τακτοποίηση. Σε κάθετί έχουμε την ευκαιρία να εισβάλουμε στο μικρογεγονός και να αντλήσουμε κάτι. Η πρώτη λέξη που είχα στο νου μου ήταν η λέξη ‘’ενάργεια’’ κι αυτό για να περιγράψω την καθαρότητα, το καλοπλυμένο κρυστάλλινο παραβάν απ’ το οποίο κυλάει μέσα μας, η χαρούμενη, φωτεινή παιδική αθωότητα, η ζωή τους, η όψη τους, τα παιχνίδια τους, οι φόβοι τους. Θυμίζει έντονα το ταλέντο της Δέλτα να γίνεται παιδί μέσα στον Τρελαντώνη.
Κυλά μέσα σε μια στιλβωμένη πλήξη μέχρι να επιτρέψεις στην εντύπωση να μετρήσει μέσα σου. Για ‘μενα αυτό ξανασυμβαίνει στο γράμμα της Μπέρυλ. Η εικόνα μιας γυναίκας που γράφει ένα τυπικό γράμμα, για να γεμίσει την ίδια με την ανοησία της εξωτερικής ζωής και φαντάζεται τον εσώτερο εαυτό της να τα σπάει όλα στην προσπάθεια του να την κάνει να ζήσει πραγματικά, να αλλάξει κάτι.
Η αδερφή της λέγεται Λίντα, είναι η μητέρα των κοριτσιών. Είναι το είδος εκείνο της γυναίκας που ζει με νωχέλεια και όλος ο κόσμος της είναι ο άντρας της. Φορτίζει αδρανής όταν εκείνος απουσιάζει και ζωντανεύει μόνο όταν εκείνος βρίσκεται κοντά, τότε όλα αποχτούν κάποιο νόημα. Κι αναρωτιέται η αφηγήτρια / κόρη, βάζει τα λόγια στο στόμα της Λίντας, ‘’γιατί άραγε αγαπώ τόσο τη ζωή’’. Φράση ικανή να ξεσηκώσει τις εντυπώσεις όλων μας, ειδικά στην εποχή μας που βλέπουμε ανθρώπους να κάνουν διαρκώς τα ίδια πράγματα, με μια βιολογική προσήλωση, πιστεύοντας ολόψυχα πως αυτό είναι μια ζωή με νόημα που δε θα άφηναν με τίποτα να τους φύγει και τελικά δεν τη ζουν, την αφήνουν να τους περνά και δε νοιάζονται ποτέ πραγματικά να ξαναπλησιάσουν τους άλλους, τους αρκεί ένα μικρό παλιό αρχικό πλησίασμα, μια γεννήτρια την οποία τρίβουν συνεχώς με λευκό ξύδι για να φεύγουν οι σκουριές και να ξανατροφοδοτείται διαρκώς με τα ίδια. Συνέχεια.
Όμως κακά τα ψέματα η μεγάλη φόρμα είναι καταδίκη τόσο για τη συγγραφέα, όσο και για τον αναγνώστη. Αισθάνεται αμήχανη να διεισδύσει, όταν όμως το κάνει, μαγεύει.
Κατά κάποιο το ανάλογο της είναι ο Στάϊνμπεκ, ένας ακόμη συγγραφέας που κλωθογυρίζει την εικόνα και προκαλεί ( εκείνος όμως όντως προκαλεί ) τον αναγνώστη να κοιτάξει βαθιά ώσπου η εντύπωση να περάσει μέσα του, διαστέλλοντας. Εδώ δεν υπάρχει αυτή η πρόκληση. Υπάρχει εγκαρτέρηση, υπάρχει πρόσκληση. Κι είναι μαζί μια θεραπεία για την ίδια την ταραγμένη ψυχή της Μάνσφιλντ, να γιατρέψει τον πόνο της απώλειας και τον πόνο χιλιάδων αναμονών. Όλα φωνάζουν ‘’θέλω να ζήσω αλλά πως; Γιατί’’;
May 17, 2025
Крихітна книжечка. Таке приємне ніжне вікторіанство з чаюванням і увагою до рослин.
September 20, 2018
1.5 stars
November 7, 2014
Opening lines:
HERE WAS not an inch of room for Lottie and Kezia in the buggy. When Pat swung them on top of the luggage they wobbled; the Grandmother's lap was full and Linda Burnell could not possibly have held a lump of a child on hers for such a distance. Isabel, very superior, perched beside Pat on the driver's seat. Hold-alls, bags and bandboxes were piled upon the floor.
You may read online at Victoria University of Wellington.
Some other texts may be found in the above website, such as:
THE LETTERS OF KATHERINE MANSFIELD: VOLUME I
The Letters of Katherine Mansfield: Volume II
JOURNAL OF KATHERINE MANSFIELD
THE GARDEN PARTY AND OTHER STORIES
SOMETHING CHILDISH AND OTHER STORIES
THE DOVES' NEST AND OTHER STORIES
NOVELS AND NOVELISTS
IN A GERMAN PENSION
Bliss and Other Stories
HERE WAS not an inch of room for Lottie and Kezia in the buggy. When Pat swung them on top of the luggage they wobbled; the Grandmother's lap was full and Linda Burnell could not possibly have held a lump of a child on hers for such a distance. Isabel, very superior, perched beside Pat on the driver's seat. Hold-alls, bags and bandboxes were piled upon the floor.
You may read online at Victoria University of Wellington.
Some other texts may be found in the above website, such as:
THE LETTERS OF KATHERINE MANSFIELD: VOLUME I
The Letters of Katherine Mansfield: Volume II
JOURNAL OF KATHERINE MANSFIELD
THE GARDEN PARTY AND OTHER STORIES
SOMETHING CHILDISH AND OTHER STORIES
THE DOVES' NEST AND OTHER STORIES
NOVELS AND NOVELISTS
IN A GERMAN PENSION
Bliss and Other Stories
March 16, 2018
Avevo letto alcuni racconti di Katherine Mansfield alcuni anni fa e mi avevano lasciato addosso una sensazione di perplessità. Ora che ritorno "sul luogo del delitto" capisco perché. La Mansfield non ha nessuna volontà di raccontare una storia. L'aloe non è altro che la descrizione di una famiglia della Nuova Zelanda che cambia casa. E' una fotografia. Dettagliata, precisa, sia rispetto all'ambiente, sia rispetto alla psicologia dei personaggi, ma nient'altro. Il romanzo è scritto con grande maestria, ma se, come me, da una storia vi aspettate di sapere i "perché" e i "come" rimarrete delusi.
Perché Beryl ad un certo punto ammette di vivere recitando una parte e la vera se stessa è relegata in un angolo? La Mansfield non lo dice, così come non dice i perché di molte altre situazioni che riguardano i personaggi e non dà neanche molti indizi da questo punto di vista è spiazzante. Ma se vi piace una lettura rilassante e "d'atmosfera" questo è il libro giusto per voi.
Perché Beryl ad un certo punto ammette di vivere recitando una parte e la vera se stessa è relegata in un angolo? La Mansfield non lo dice, così come non dice i perché di molte altre situazioni che riguardano i personaggi e non dà neanche molti indizi da questo punto di vista è spiazzante. Ma se vi piace una lettura rilassante e "d'atmosfera" questo è il libro giusto per voi.
October 29, 2023
I write this review knowing that it may fuel some flames. Simply put, I do not like the Aloe.
I'm aware of Katherine Mansfield's importance as a New Zealand writer, poet and a prominent author in the Modernist movement.
This is a very short story, yet I found this agonizing and dreadful to read. And I'll tell you why! The blurb at the back states the following: "...is a unique testimony to the distinctive and innovative writing for which Katherine Mansfield is so famous". Yet, I found this book confusingly written, and nothing but a random rambling of thoughts.
For example (maybe I am not just a fan of the writing style, but nothing is broken down and there is a significant lack of spacing): "" Yes, my dear, there's no denying it, you really are a lovely little thing" - At the words...smiling with delight, half closing her eyes as if she held a sweet sweet bouquet up to her face - a fragrance that made her faint. But even as she looked the smile faded from her lips and eyes - and oh God! There she was, back again, playing the same old game - False, false as ever! .. " (it is actually written like this).
The concepts are interesting, we see the author yearning for her childhood through the character of Kezia, and the Aloe plant itself symbolizing a desire for sexual desire, freedom, and escape (for several of the female characters). However this is the problem. This novel (or novella? Less than 100 pages) is entirely about their mundane life.
In fact, although the Aloe or the Preclude is centred around her childhood in New Zealand, I would much read on Katherine Mansfield's actual biography (her life is very interesting, full of constant change, and hey, I even used to live near Tinakori Road).
(Please spare me)
I'm aware of Katherine Mansfield's importance as a New Zealand writer, poet and a prominent author in the Modernist movement.
This is a very short story, yet I found this agonizing and dreadful to read. And I'll tell you why! The blurb at the back states the following: "...is a unique testimony to the distinctive and innovative writing for which Katherine Mansfield is so famous". Yet, I found this book confusingly written, and nothing but a random rambling of thoughts.
For example (maybe I am not just a fan of the writing style, but nothing is broken down and there is a significant lack of spacing): "" Yes, my dear, there's no denying it, you really are a lovely little thing" - At the words...smiling with delight, half closing her eyes as if she held a sweet sweet bouquet up to her face - a fragrance that made her faint. But even as she looked the smile faded from her lips and eyes - and oh God! There she was, back again, playing the same old game - False, false as ever! .. " (it is actually written like this).
The concepts are interesting, we see the author yearning for her childhood through the character of Kezia, and the Aloe plant itself symbolizing a desire for sexual desire, freedom, and escape (for several of the female characters). However this is the problem. This novel (or novella? Less than 100 pages) is entirely about their mundane life.
In fact, although the Aloe or the Preclude is centred around her childhood in New Zealand, I would much read on Katherine Mansfield's actual biography (her life is very interesting, full of constant change, and hey, I even used to live near Tinakori Road).
(Please spare me)
October 19, 2019
Mansfield's impressionistic, perfectly crafted writing makes it hard to pin down a quote which exactly encapsulates her artistry.
This novella is entirely character driven, but Mansfield inhabits her characters with such precision and empathy that their inner life becomes clear to us and to them. Beryl, for example, is on the surface a pretty and carefree young flirt, but underneath she is all too aware that she is a shallow actress and despises her own pretence and faux-sophistication. Linda is an enigmatic, almost ethereal character whose motivation in marrying a hearty and virile man like Stanley is mystifying, yet we are told that it happened the year her much beloved father died and are left wondering at the causal link.
The central metaphor of the aloe, a plant which flowers extremely rarely, seems to me to be an indication of the yearning of all the characters for something wonderful to make their lives complete, or at least meaningful. They are all longing for something which might never happen, and yet they continue to hope for it.
This novella is entirely character driven, but Mansfield inhabits her characters with such precision and empathy that their inner life becomes clear to us and to them. Beryl, for example, is on the surface a pretty and carefree young flirt, but underneath she is all too aware that she is a shallow actress and despises her own pretence and faux-sophistication. Linda is an enigmatic, almost ethereal character whose motivation in marrying a hearty and virile man like Stanley is mystifying, yet we are told that it happened the year her much beloved father died and are left wondering at the causal link.
The central metaphor of the aloe, a plant which flowers extremely rarely, seems to me to be an indication of the yearning of all the characters for something wonderful to make their lives complete, or at least meaningful. They are all longing for something which might never happen, and yet they continue to hope for it.
April 1, 2025
Bliss mesmo é ler Katherine Mansfield.
Eu adoro as histórias dela, em especial as da Nova Zelândia, e adoro a família Burnell (em especial a Kezia!) então é claro que eu adorei. Muita coisa é igual a Prelúdio, mas acho que ler uma versão levemente alterada é o jeito ideal de reler algo se você não é muito de releituras. Queria dar 5 estrelas mas vou deixar 4 por causa da sensação de incompletude 💔
Eu adoro as histórias dela, em especial as da Nova Zelândia, e adoro a família Burnell (em especial a Kezia!) então é claro que eu adorei. Muita coisa é igual a Prelúdio, mas acho que ler uma versão levemente alterada é o jeito ideal de reler algo se você não é muito de releituras. Queria dar 5 estrelas mas vou deixar 4 por causa da sensação de incompletude 💔
September 29, 2025
Queria ter gostado mais. Achei uma obra muito a frente de seu tempo, achei interessantissima a forma como a autora aborda o lugar da mulher na sociedade (especialmente em papeis de maternidade) e gostei muito das formas diferentes pra descrever certos momentos (tipo a festa de chá com flores).
Mas sinto que faltou alguma coisa no texto, algum elemento que nao deixou eu me prender. 3 estrelas é a melhor forma pra descrever essa leitura.
Mas sinto que faltou alguma coisa no texto, algum elemento que nao deixou eu me prender. 3 estrelas é a melhor forma pra descrever essa leitura.
October 5, 2012
I will certainly be reading more of Katherine Mansfield's work. The Aloe was a joy to read...beautiful, poetic writing. I enjoyed the vivid descriptions both of the New Zealand landscape and of the characters. I would highly recommend this to anyone.
October 2, 2022
Non conoscevo questa autrice, ma andando su wikipedia ho trovato questa citazione:
«Il piacere di leggere è doppio quando si vive con qualcuno che divide con te gli stessi libri»
e mi ha conquistato.
È dal desiderio di dar voce alla terra natale, la Nuova Zelanda, "una terra sconosciuta da far guizzare per un istante davanti agli occhi del Vecchio Mondo", che tra il 1915 e il 1916 nasce "L'aloe", che Katherine Mansfield chiamava "il mio romanzo" e dal quale avrebbe poi tratto uno dei suoi racconti più intensi, Preludio. Se l'autrice non fosse morta a 34 anni di tisi, quest'opera avrebbe dovuto svilupparsi in una narrazione composita, in cui far rivivere tutte le persone care, le case e i giardini luminosi dell'infanzia, ma anche le loro parti in ombra e le correnti segrete del desiderio. Attraverso una forma e una scrittura tersa, sobria e musicale, "L'aloe" si colloca tra gli esiti più alti dell'opera di Mansfield, quelli in cui il male di vivere è più dolorosamente tangibile.
Questo male di vivere l'ho accomunato a Virginia Woolf, mi ha ricordato molto Mrs Dalloway: molte descrizioni intervallate dai pensieri delle protagoniste del romanzo.
Anche se tutta la vicenda, tutte le vite raccontate, girano attorno a questo grande albero dell'aloe, un albero che fiorisce una volta sola ogni cento anni.
«Ma andiamo in giardino mamma; ho una passione per l'aloe: è la più bella cosa che ci sia qui. Sono certa che me la ricorderò ancora quando avrò dimenticato tutto il resto da un pezzo»
«Il piacere di leggere è doppio quando si vive con qualcuno che divide con te gli stessi libri»
e mi ha conquistato.
È dal desiderio di dar voce alla terra natale, la Nuova Zelanda, "una terra sconosciuta da far guizzare per un istante davanti agli occhi del Vecchio Mondo", che tra il 1915 e il 1916 nasce "L'aloe", che Katherine Mansfield chiamava "il mio romanzo" e dal quale avrebbe poi tratto uno dei suoi racconti più intensi, Preludio. Se l'autrice non fosse morta a 34 anni di tisi, quest'opera avrebbe dovuto svilupparsi in una narrazione composita, in cui far rivivere tutte le persone care, le case e i giardini luminosi dell'infanzia, ma anche le loro parti in ombra e le correnti segrete del desiderio. Attraverso una forma e una scrittura tersa, sobria e musicale, "L'aloe" si colloca tra gli esiti più alti dell'opera di Mansfield, quelli in cui il male di vivere è più dolorosamente tangibile.
Questo male di vivere l'ho accomunato a Virginia Woolf, mi ha ricordato molto Mrs Dalloway: molte descrizioni intervallate dai pensieri delle protagoniste del romanzo.
Anche se tutta la vicenda, tutte le vite raccontate, girano attorno a questo grande albero dell'aloe, un albero che fiorisce una volta sola ogni cento anni.
«Ma andiamo in giardino mamma; ho una passione per l'aloe: è la più bella cosa che ci sia qui. Sono certa che me la ricorderò ancora quando avrò dimenticato tutto il resto da un pezzo»
August 27, 2023
Prosa rápida, poética y envolvente: al menos en esta traducción de la editorial Barataria a cargo de Adrià Edo. Sorprendido por cómo lo sutil y lo periférico, casi que lo accesorio de la historia, puede dotar de significado la vida presente y futura de esta familia. Un desplazamiento de la ciudad, rodeada de mar, hacia el centro, y la vida rural, nos muestra cómo una familia acomodada y con prácticas propias de una sociedad colonial perpetúa sus tradiciones bajo el discurso inocente de la vida campesina.
El áloe necesitará cien años para florecer, tal como necesitaremos de cien años más para restablecer la belleza del mundo. La sensación de ahogo solo la sienten quienes cargan en sus espaldas el régimen del mundo de los vencedores.
El áloe necesitará cien años para florecer, tal como necesitaremos de cien años más para restablecer la belleza del mundo. La sensación de ahogo solo la sienten quienes cargan en sus espaldas el régimen del mundo de los vencedores.
December 16, 2022
Not a lot happens in The Aloe but it is packed with meaningful moments. Set over a few days around the end of the 19th century, it follows the Burnell family as they move from central Wellington to a rural area a few miles out of the city. Mansfield draws out the feelings and memories of each of her characters, from the grandmother through to the youngest, Kezia. The beauty is in the detail and the highly visual descriptions plus touches of metaphor such as the titular aloe. It is not much more than a short story, made of fragments, reflecting how Mansfield’s skill is the perfectly written short story.
June 25, 2024
Ambientata su un’isola ventosa (la Nuova Zelanda), questa novella inizia con il trasferimento dalla città alla campagna di una famiglia benestante e ci parla della sua quotidianità.
Katherine Mansfield descrive la vita di ogni personaggio con uno stile poetico e minuzioso. che fa pensare agli scritti di Virginia Woolf, tuttavia
si sente l’assenza di una vera trama, e il finale lascia un senso di incompiutezza.
«È un aloe, Kezia» rispose Linda. «Non fa mai fiori?» «Sì, bambina mia» disse la madre. Chinò la testa verso Kezia e, socchiudendo gli occhi, le sorrise: «Una volta ogni cento anni».
Katherine Mansfield, “L’aloe”, [1929], 1999
Katherine Mansfield descrive la vita di ogni personaggio con uno stile poetico e minuzioso. che fa pensare agli scritti di Virginia Woolf, tuttavia
si sente l’assenza di una vera trama, e il finale lascia un senso di incompiutezza.
«È un aloe, Kezia» rispose Linda. «Non fa mai fiori?» «Sì, bambina mia» disse la madre. Chinò la testa verso Kezia e, socchiudendo gli occhi, le sorrise: «Una volta ogni cento anni».
Katherine Mansfield, “L’aloe”, [1929], 1999
December 28, 2022
mi ostino ad ascoltare katherine mansfield perché trovo sempre challenge che vogliono autori provenienti dall’oceania, ma continuo a non riuscirla ad apprezzare. non mi oriento, non seguo, non saprei dire la trama di questo racconto lungo.
forse si deve avere sintonia con il genere. 😓
scusatemi.
forse si deve avere sintonia con il genere. 😓
scusatemi.
February 5, 2023
Mostly lame pastoral NZ life. Trivial quite pleasant dramas. And dreams of the pleasures of absolute quietude.
Not as lame as Andre Rieu in cinemas and the old people there. The music sucks and the sound is poor. An awkward and unbelievable concert movie.
Not as lame as Andre Rieu in cinemas and the old people there. The music sucks and the sound is poor. An awkward and unbelievable concert movie.
April 28, 2024
Zo začiatku som si nebola istá, ako sa mi bude knižka páčiť, ale postupom času som si ju zaľúbila. Niektoré poviedky boli slabšie, no pri ďalších mi aj vyšla slza. Celkovo, autorkin trošku atypický štýl si ma dosť získal.
June 16, 2025
Una historia preciosa, cómo todo lo que escribe esta autora. Ha sido como un abrazo al corazón. En las letras de Katherine Mansfield siempre encuentro un lugar seguro, un refugio agradable. pienso leer todo lo que escribió esta autora, es maravillosa.
September 18, 2018
No sé muy bien que acabo de leer.
January 13, 2025
Aloe had no business being this creepy
October 21, 2016
La historia de una alegre familia que se muda de la ciudad a una gran casa en el campo, donde no faltan las las flores, el follaje, la apacibilidad campestre. Las descripciones de paisajes neozelandeces, la psicología de los personajes, las cálidas escenas narradas en una prosa bellísima.
Me quedo con sabor a Quiero más Mansfield. :)
Me quedo con sabor a Quiero más Mansfield. :)
bøgernes-verden
October 12, 2018New Zealand
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