"A perfect singleness of intention, a homicidal austerity of mood" Se ben ricordo, nella sua biografia (Il mondo di ieri) Stefan Zweig scrive che Napoleone Bonaparte, dimostrando nei fatti le possibilità offerte dai tempi nuovi a un giovane coraggioso e ambizioso, per quanto di modeste origini, aveva causato una rivoluzione persino maggiore di quella di Robespierre, scatenando l’entusiasmo di una o più generazioni, fino ad allora represse dalle costrizioni di una rigida struttura sociale.Due ragazzi ambiziosi di quei tempi sono i protagonisti del racconto, due giovani tenenti della Grande Armée, Gabriel Feraud, collerico guascone figlio di un fabbro del sud, e Armand d’Hubert, riflessivo borghese del nord, un po’ incline alla malinconia.Iniziata da Feraud per un pretesto, la loro rivalità diventa leggendaria in tutto l’esercito e terminerà solo molto tempo dopo, dopo i Cento Giorni, la restaurazione e l’esilio del Piccolo Caporale a S. Elena. Di mezzo, le tante campagne napoleoniche, dal trionfo di Austerlitz alla disastrosa ritirata dalla Russia. Un grande massacro che interrompe di tanto in tanto il massacro privato dei due Ussari.La fine della guerra non è la fine della loro guerra, l’irriducibile Feraud non accetta il confino impostogli come bonapartista e D’Hubert, che ha accettato il nuovo-vecchio regime, si troverà chiamato a un’ultima, sorprendente resa dei conti.Ho pensato per un po’ a cosa scrivere del racconto, che certo potrebbe essere letto come un’allegoria della guerra in senso stretto, o della guerra tra istinto (Feraud) e ragione (D’Hubert). Ripensando alla prefazione di Conrad al libro “A set of six” in cui è raccolto, filosofeggiando mi sembrerebbe di fare torto all’ironia e al “self-restraint” dell’autore, quindi mi limito a riportare due frasi che non potrei comunque eguagliare per efficacia.Per Conrad, il racconto infatti sarebbe “nulla più che un serio, e persino (sic!) onesto, tentativo di realizzare un esempio di racconto storico” (“The truth is that in my mind the story is nothing but a serious and even earnest attempt at a bit of historical fiction”).In realtà è molto di più, un raffinatissimo, elegante, avvincente, spiazzante viaggio nel tempo, alla ricerca dello “Spirito dell’Epoca, mai semplicemente militarista pur nel lungo scontro armato, piena di gioventù, quasi infantile nella sua esaltazione del sentimento, genuinamente eroica nella sua fede” (“the Spirit of the Epoch--never purely militarist in the long clash of arms, youthful, almost childlike in its exaltation of sentiment--naively heroic in its faith”).Angolo multimediale: queste sono le illustrazioni originali della prima edizione del racconto, pubblicato come opera a sé stante con il titolo "The point of honor".http://www.pinterest.com/rosenkavalie...Angolo cineforum: non penso sia necessario ricordare la splendida riduzione cinematografica di Ridley Scott, il duello a cavallo, Harvey Keitel per un attimo trasfigurato dal tramonto nell’esiliato di S. Elena.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3ksvH...
Years ago, watching TV, flipping through the channels, one lame program after another, I came across a Napoleonic film midway through and stopped for a moment because I recognized Keith Carradine. Then I saw Harvey Keitel. Intrigued, I continued to watch and was quickly enthralled. The film was, I would later learn, The Duelists, Ridley Scott’s brilliant 1978 film. At the time, I did not even know the title of the show that I enjoyed so much, but later learned and saw the film again. Recently I learned that the film was based upon a short story by Joseph Conrad and I knew I had to read the novella. As I read, I could not help visualizing the scenes (renewed applause for the casting director) with Carradine as D’Hubert and Keitel as Feraud.Conrad’s work, titled The Point of Honor and published in 1908, equally good as Scott’s film, is unusual for the Polish writer as it is neither a nautical tale nor one told from the perspective of the late 1800s. As much of a fan of Conrad’s as I am, I must concede that many of his works are brooding and introspective, and move slowly, especially while he lays the foundations for his setting and characterizations. This one, also somewhat unusual for Conrad, moves fast and is filled with action. Set in Napoleon’s army, it chronicles an ongoing vendetta between two Hussar officers and over a period of several years. Begun as an indolent, misunderstood duel, the two war against each other amidst the backdrop of Napoleon’s truculent reign. One point that Conrad makes, and it stands clear throughout the narrative, is that the duel actually benefitted the two. The martial contest made each work and strive a little harder, made the will to survive and prevail in their personal contest as earnest as the will to live through the bloody Napoleonic war years. Both officers in Napoleon’s army, and both “military to the bottom of the soul” the duel invigorated both and revived them when their fortunes were down. Similarly, the two experienced an odd intimacy. They were not friends, but Conrad showed how, between two warriors, the adversary may be as close, or even closer, than family.
What do You think about El Duelo (1983)?
Letto per un lavoro scolastico sulla rivoluzione francese anni e anni fa. Dumas ♥
—Sara Palmer
A while back, I was castigated by a friend for my low opinion of Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men". He thought the work represented the perfect novella, but now that I have read this work, I have the candidate for that honor. Conrad's The Duel is pure pleasure. Although hard to take in larger doses, Conrad's dense, rich prose never gets in the way of this rapid-paced novella. In Napoleonic France, two officers engage in a series of duels over a period of years, and Conrad cleverly steers the reader to a very surprising conclusion. The highly detailed and descriptive prose easily supports the story as it slowly builds from episode to episode. The characters are swiftly but fully developed, and not a word is wasted. I would not ordinarily describe of work of Conrad as "fun and gripping", but there you go--this story is a winner. Kudos also to the publisher, Melville House, for their marvelous enhanced ebook edition, crammed with a wide range of supplementary materials, called "Illuminations". Selections from Napoleon's writings, a dueling manual, critical essays, art, and other writings shed light on the writer, the work, and the times. This is exactly the kind of value-add that will make ebooks attractive and successful--hats off to Melville House for their intelligent and forward-looking approach.
—Mark
Most of the time I read books that interest me and then other times I read to be challenged. This was one of those books that challenged me. I had no idea what the books was about but it was freebe for my Kindle. After reading a brief synopsis of the book I found myself having to find some information on the main theme and a little history of the time the book was written. The author Joseph Conrad, writes a tale of two officers in the French Army who fought a series of of duels in the midst of Napoleonic wars on some futile pretext. This pretext was never disclosed and I think Conrad invented one. The book starts in 1800 and last until 1815. There is a lull in the Napoleonic wars and the French soldiers are enjoying a moment of peace. Napoleon Bonaparte prohibits combat with civilians by his soliders. One of his commanders, Lieutenant Feraud seriously wounds a nephew of a Mayor of a French town. A general has sent one of his officers Lieutenant Armand d'Hubert to make inquiries about this charge. He is ordered to find him and bring him back to the barracks where he will be put under house arrest. From then on for the next 15 years, Feraud will be obsessed with the idea of settling his dispute with d'Hubert by dueling with him. Conrad is a good story teller. The reader might need to do a little homework on the art of dueling which was very popular in France during this time to settle a dispute. I enjoyed the book and I also found out a little about French History during the Napoleon era.
—Michael
