Kazantzakis: Politics of the Spirit, Volume 2

by Peter A. Bien

Putting Greek writer Nikos Kazantzakis's vast output into the context of his lifelong spiritual quest and the turbulent politics of twentieth-century Greece, Peter Bien argues that Kazantzakis was a deeply flawed genius--not always artistically successful, but a remarkable figure by any standard. This is the second and final volume of Bien's definitive and monumental biography of Kazantzakis (1883-1957). It covers his life after 1938, the period in which he wrote Zorba the Greek and The Last Temptation of Christ , the novels that brought him his greatest fame.


A demonically productive novelist, poet, playwright, travel writer, autobiographer, and translator, Kazantzakis was one of the most important Greek writers of the twentieth century and the only one to achieve international recognition as a novelist. But Kazantzakis's writings were just one aspect of an obsessive struggle with religious, political, and intellectual problems. In the 1940s and 1950s, a period that included the Greek civil war and its aftermath, Kazantzakis continued this engagement with undiminished energy, despite every obstacle, producing in his final years novels that have become world classics.

640 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2006

About the author

Peter Bien (often credited as P.A. Bien when translating) is Professor Emeritus of English and Comparative Literature at Dartmouth College, and a former president of the Modern Greek Studies Association.

Reviews

[Jennifer Rockwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just as with Volume 1, this is essential reading for anyone interested in decoding the complicated and controversial works of one of the greatest Greek writers of the 20th century, Nikos Kazantzakis. An incredibly literate, educated, man, Kazantzakis works are This second volume focuses on Kazantzakis career and writings after 1938, and a significant portion of the book focuses on the structure, craft and philosophy behind his most controversial work, The Last Temptation of Christ. Kazantzakis was an incredibly interesting, flawed, and complicated man and artist and Peter Bien's book is a phenomenal resource for anyone interested in his work.

[Anna Coopey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again, a wonderful read for a closer dig into Kazantzakis, this time in his literature itself. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on Prometheus (Fourteen), as well as Chapter Seventeen (on Athens post-Occupation).