.gif)
Clea (novel)
Encyclopedia
Clea, published in 1960, is the fourth volume in the The Alexandria Quartet
series by British
author Lawrence Durrell
. Set in Alexandria, Egypt around WWII, the first three volumes tell the same story from different points of view, and Clea relates subsequent events.
format of The Avignon Novels - and the discerning and perceptive reader. One never views 20th Century Literature the same way again after reading The Alexandria Quartet
and has to make seismic shifts of perception and appreciation to accommodate this essential book from the mid-point of the Century.
); however the tone is very dark and opposed to the light and airy reminiscence of Prospero's Cell - Durrell's travelogue-memoir of his life on Corfu. The prolonged nature-pieces, which are a highlight of Durrell's prose, still intervene between straight linear narrative - but are uniformly of askesis and alone-ness.
Balthazar arrives on a passing steam-boat with the loose-leafed Inter-Linear - as the narrative is now styled by the Narrator of Justine
. A few secrets are revealed (please read the book for these). They proceed to Alexandria, where Darley continues to reminisce lamentingly, and seeks and sometimes finds, the characters of the earlier books.
He runs into Clea in the street - and they effortlessly pick up an affaire de coeur - this time unencumbered by the interfering physical presences of Justine and Melissa - though there is a lot of pillow-talk about the two women in a self-absorbed manner by Darley. The sex scenes actually read more real than those in the preceding books, where the fervent desperation of "bodies straining against each other while the souls watch the proceedings from some corner of the ceiling" is finally replaced by an apparently real sexual relationship between two mature adults, rather than the teeming adolescent angst of infatuation (Justine) and nurturance (Melissa) that precedes this Golden Mean
of Coupling. However, this romance is tepid compared to the white-hot intensity of Justine
.
The other, and perhaps more enduring, deliciousness of the text
is extended meditations on art, composition, form and intent - with Darley's Inter-Linear, Pursewarden's Novels and Clea's paintings serving as the imaginary scaffold on which Durrell builds his elegant Ivory Tower
theoretical stance.
The Alexandria Quartet
The Alexandria Quartet is a tetralogy of novels by British writer Lawrence Durrell, published between 1957 and 1960. A critical and commercial success, the books present four perspectives on a single set of events and characters in Alexandria, Egypt, before and during World War II.As Durrell...
series by British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author Lawrence Durrell
Lawrence Durrell
Lawrence George Durrell was an expatriate British novelist, poet, dramatist, and travel writer, though he resisted affiliation with Britain and preferred to be considered cosmopolitan...
. Set in Alexandria, Egypt around WWII, the first three volumes tell the same story from different points of view, and Clea relates subsequent events.
Epigraphs and Citations
The Marquis de Sade and Freud again helm the epigraphs - including a nostalgic preface in which Durrell, reluctantly and defiantly, claims the story is now "complete" - failing to convince either himself, or the Reader. The story will haunt the Author in the QuincunxQuincunx
A quincunx is a geometric pattern consisting of five points arranged in a cross, that is five coplanar points, four of them forming a square or rectangle and a fifth at its center...
format of The Avignon Novels - and the discerning and perceptive reader. One never views 20th Century Literature the same way again after reading The Alexandria Quartet
The Alexandria Quartet
The Alexandria Quartet is a tetralogy of novels by British writer Lawrence Durrell, published between 1957 and 1960. A critical and commercial success, the books present four perspectives on a single set of events and characters in Alexandria, Egypt, before and during World War II.As Durrell...
and has to make seismic shifts of perception and appreciation to accommodate this essential book from the mid-point of the Century.
Plot and Characterization
The book begins with the Narrator living on a remote Greek island with Nessim's illegitimate daughter from Melissa (now six years old - marking the time that has elapsed since the events of JustineJustine
-People:* Saint Justine of Padua , a Christian martyr* Justine Frischmann, Britpop musician, lead singer of Elastica* Justine Henin , a Belgian tennis player* Justine Ezarik , an American lifecaster and graphic/web designer...
); however the tone is very dark and opposed to the light and airy reminiscence of Prospero's Cell - Durrell's travelogue-memoir of his life on Corfu. The prolonged nature-pieces, which are a highlight of Durrell's prose, still intervene between straight linear narrative - but are uniformly of askesis and alone-ness.
Balthazar arrives on a passing steam-boat with the loose-leafed Inter-Linear - as the narrative is now styled by the Narrator of Justine
Justine
-People:* Saint Justine of Padua , a Christian martyr* Justine Frischmann, Britpop musician, lead singer of Elastica* Justine Henin , a Belgian tennis player* Justine Ezarik , an American lifecaster and graphic/web designer...
. A few secrets are revealed (please read the book for these). They proceed to Alexandria, where Darley continues to reminisce lamentingly, and seeks and sometimes finds, the characters of the earlier books.
He runs into Clea in the street - and they effortlessly pick up an affaire de coeur - this time unencumbered by the interfering physical presences of Justine and Melissa - though there is a lot of pillow-talk about the two women in a self-absorbed manner by Darley. The sex scenes actually read more real than those in the preceding books, where the fervent desperation of "bodies straining against each other while the souls watch the proceedings from some corner of the ceiling" is finally replaced by an apparently real sexual relationship between two mature adults, rather than the teeming adolescent angst of infatuation (Justine) and nurturance (Melissa) that precedes this Golden Mean
Golden mean
Golden mean may refer to:*Doctrine of the Golden Mean , a chapter in Li Ji, one of the Four Books of Confucianism*Golden mean , the felicitous middle between the extremes of excess and deficiency...
of Coupling. However, this romance is tepid compared to the white-hot intensity of Justine
Justine
-People:* Saint Justine of Padua , a Christian martyr* Justine Frischmann, Britpop musician, lead singer of Elastica* Justine Henin , a Belgian tennis player* Justine Ezarik , an American lifecaster and graphic/web designer...
.
The other, and perhaps more enduring, deliciousness of the text
Text (literary theory)
A text, within literary theory, is a coherent set of symbols that transmits some kind of informative message. This set of symbols is considered in terms of the informative message's content, rather than in terms of its physical form or the medium in which it is represented...
is extended meditations on art, composition, form and intent - with Darley's Inter-Linear, Pursewarden's Novels and Clea's paintings serving as the imaginary scaffold on which Durrell builds his elegant Ivory Tower
Ivory Tower
The term Ivory Tower originates in the Biblical Song of Solomon , and was later used as an epithet for Mary.From the 19th century it has been used to designate a world or atmosphere where intellectuals engage in pursuits that are disconnected from the practical concerns of everyday life...
theoretical stance.
External links
- The International Lawrence Durrell Society Official website of ILDS
- Durrell 2012: The Lawrence Durrell Centenary Centenary event website and Durrell Journal
- The Durrell School of Corfu School dedicated to the works and lives Lawrence and Gerald Durrell