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Product Description
The Sunday Express
`The simplicity and humour that we come to expect from the
Portuguese Nobel Prize winner are in abundance here. Surreal and
brilliant.'
Portuguese Nobel Prize winner are in abundance here. Surreal and
brilliant.'
Sunday Telegraph
'Harsh yet gripping satire'
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A sequel of sorts to Blindness, I would recommend you read that book first, as, while not vital to the plot's enjoyment, it certainly embellishes the sparsely illustrated back story and gives a clearer idea of just how bad things got four years previous to (and referenced throughout) this novel's chronology.
Saramago is a challenging writer; his insistence upon endless prose with little to no puntuation, and a refusal to give names to characters, let alone use the conventions of paragraphs and speech marks for dialogues, all add up to a slower, more arduous read - but perhaps a more detailed and careful one for that.
The story is as outlined, but I would say that I disagree with the other reviewer, insomuch that I felt the second half was plot driven as the first, rather it becomes a slightly different plot - an investigation. The story moves from macro-study to micro-study, but throughout, as with Blindness, concerns itself with the paranoia of power and the desperate, despicable methods invoked to maintain power and control.
Personally, I enjoyed Seeing more than Blindness, but that is mainly because Blindess is a far more harrowing read, not that Seeing is the better novel. Seeing shows us the folly and weakness of those in power - something one can examine with a degree of (powerless?) complacency; Blindness holds a bleached mirror up to each and every one of us and terrifies.
Saramago is a challenging writer; his insistence upon endless prose with little to no puntuation, and a refusal to give names to characters, let alone use the conventions of paragraphs and speech marks for dialogues, all add up to a slower, more arduous read - but perhaps a more detailed and careful one for that.
The story is as outlined, but I would say that I disagree with the other reviewer, insomuch that I felt the second half was plot driven as the first, rather it becomes a slightly different plot - an investigation. The story moves from macro-study to micro-study, but throughout, as with Blindness, concerns itself with the paranoia of power and the desperate, despicable methods invoked to maintain power and control.
Personally, I enjoyed Seeing more than Blindness, but that is mainly because Blindess is a far more harrowing read, not that Seeing is the better novel. Seeing shows us the folly and weakness of those in power - something one can examine with a degree of (powerless?) complacency; Blindness holds a bleached mirror up to each and every one of us and terrifies.
13 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Four years ago a City was hit by a plague of blindness. It was contagious and there was no cure. Before long the entire population was blind and the City descended into savagery. But one woman retained her sight, leading her friends to survival. Through it all she had to watch as the savage and horrific events unfolded. But then, as quickly as it started, the blindness began to ease, people regained their sight and everything returned to normal.
This was the plot of the startlingly original and thoroughly terrifying novel from Portuguese Nobel Prize winning author Jose Saramago. `Blindness' was a pleasure to read, as is `Seeing'.
We are now four years later and it is election day. But when the results are announced the government is devastated to discover that over 70% of the votes cast are blank. Not spoiled, not abstained, just blank. They hastily call a new election but the results only get worse, now over 83% have cast blank votes. The Government panics, indignantly struggling to contain what they see as a strike at the very heart of democracy. But there is no sign of where this conspiracy has come from, no sign of what criminal mastermind is behind it all. They declare a state of emergency and blockade the City, to teach the people a lesson about democratic responsibility.
Just as in `Blindness' the premise behind this novel is absolutely fantastic. There are few books which are as timely or whose satire is as incisive and funny. The portrayal of a pseudo-dictatorial democratic government dogmatically using every dirty trick in the book to dissuade the populace from dissent is disturbingly believable. It is impossible not to be inspired by the opportunity for political dissent that such a mass tactic would provide, is impossible not to dream of such unity of hearts and minds. The subtlety of the author allows him to write the entire book from the perspective of the authorities whist, at the same time, lambasting their all too believable policies.
The prose style is dense and Saramago's archetypal style makes for an often difficult read. This is a book to read feverishly in a couple of days because it can be difficult to pick up and put down. Also the narrative distance that Saramago affords his characters means they are difficult to connect with and there is little emotional centre to associate with. Instead this is a fearsomely intelligent tour de force in which Saramago questions how we can live so passively in a world like ours.
And the question remains: what or who has led the populace to act in this divisive way? Or could it be that the City is suffering once more from an infectious plague, this time making people see more than any disparate group ever could. Perhaps I read too much into the ending of this book, but if not then `Seeing' has one of the most brilliantly conceived plots of any book I have ever read.
This was the plot of the startlingly original and thoroughly terrifying novel from Portuguese Nobel Prize winning author Jose Saramago. `Blindness' was a pleasure to read, as is `Seeing'.
We are now four years later and it is election day. But when the results are announced the government is devastated to discover that over 70% of the votes cast are blank. Not spoiled, not abstained, just blank. They hastily call a new election but the results only get worse, now over 83% have cast blank votes. The Government panics, indignantly struggling to contain what they see as a strike at the very heart of democracy. But there is no sign of where this conspiracy has come from, no sign of what criminal mastermind is behind it all. They declare a state of emergency and blockade the City, to teach the people a lesson about democratic responsibility.
Just as in `Blindness' the premise behind this novel is absolutely fantastic. There are few books which are as timely or whose satire is as incisive and funny. The portrayal of a pseudo-dictatorial democratic government dogmatically using every dirty trick in the book to dissuade the populace from dissent is disturbingly believable. It is impossible not to be inspired by the opportunity for political dissent that such a mass tactic would provide, is impossible not to dream of such unity of hearts and minds. The subtlety of the author allows him to write the entire book from the perspective of the authorities whist, at the same time, lambasting their all too believable policies.
The prose style is dense and Saramago's archetypal style makes for an often difficult read. This is a book to read feverishly in a couple of days because it can be difficult to pick up and put down. Also the narrative distance that Saramago affords his characters means they are difficult to connect with and there is little emotional centre to associate with. Instead this is a fearsomely intelligent tour de force in which Saramago questions how we can live so passively in a world like ours.
And the question remains: what or who has led the populace to act in this divisive way? Or could it be that the City is suffering once more from an infectious plague, this time making people see more than any disparate group ever could. Perhaps I read too much into the ending of this book, but if not then `Seeing' has one of the most brilliantly conceived plots of any book I have ever read.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
"Seeing" is the ostensible follow up to Saramago's "Blindness" and is once again focused on an unnamed city (Lisbon) and an unnamed populace. Whereas Blindness focused on the fragility of human nature, and how an epidemic of blindness brought about the reduction of humanity to animals, Seeing focuses its gaze on the fragility of democracy. For Saramago democracy is as inherently fragile as human nature - when a spate of blank votes forces politicians and leaders to reject just what they are trying to defend.
This book started off very well and if you enjoy Saramago's writing style then you will enjoy the first 50 pages or so as he develops his thesis. However, here is where the flaw exists - he just does not know when to stop. At one point the narrator even explains that he does not know where this story is going and that is what I, as the reader, also felt. The book then moves onto a more functional narrative following a detective as he investigates those suspected of leading the so called "blankers". Luckily it comes in time and manages to save the book from itself and finally finishes with some crisp writing leading the political assassination of a number of characters.
To conclude I think it is important to note that Seeing is not nearly as good as Blindness (and probably does not work as a single piece of work). The idea underpinning the book is intellectually engaging but it is not enough to carry the story. Only when we are given a functional narrative does the book actually begin to work properly. All in all this is a flawed piece of work but commendable nonetheless - there are not many writers grappling with such important themes and to do them with his individual sense of style is even more important. One for the Saramago purists.
This book started off very well and if you enjoy Saramago's writing style then you will enjoy the first 50 pages or so as he develops his thesis. However, here is where the flaw exists - he just does not know when to stop. At one point the narrator even explains that he does not know where this story is going and that is what I, as the reader, also felt. The book then moves onto a more functional narrative following a detective as he investigates those suspected of leading the so called "blankers". Luckily it comes in time and manages to save the book from itself and finally finishes with some crisp writing leading the political assassination of a number of characters.
To conclude I think it is important to note that Seeing is not nearly as good as Blindness (and probably does not work as a single piece of work). The idea underpinning the book is intellectually engaging but it is not enough to carry the story. Only when we are given a functional narrative does the book actually begin to work properly. All in all this is a flawed piece of work but commendable nonetheless - there are not many writers grappling with such important themes and to do them with his individual sense of style is even more important. One for the Saramago purists.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Seeing Blindly
Translated from the Portuguese, "Seeing" by the Nobel prize winner Saramago was published in 2004 as a sequel to "Blindness" which came out nine years previously. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Antenna
The games of struggling politicians
This book is as most Saramago's books are. Highly critical, in this case to politics.
It all happens in the capital of an unspecified country four years after the events... Read more
It all happens in the capital of an unspecified country four years after the events... Read more
Published 12 months ago by ManInsideTheHelm
I didn't catch it.
I like Blindness a lot, impressive book, a remarkable essay. But this one (which is the sequel) was unfathomable to me. Read more
Published on 17 Mar 2010 by Rodion
Let's howl, said the dog
Seeing is the fourth Jose Saramago book I've read this year - his style of prose, once you're used to it, is addictive. Read more
Published on 14 July 2009 by Steven Buckley
Seeing: a sinister sequel to Blindness?
Once you have got used to Saramgo's gentle , meandering , witty sentences this becomes a page turner. Read more
Published on 9 Jun 2009 by Virge JAMES
Entertaining and thought provoking
Another book of lunacy (I say that affectionately)from Saramago. I love the stream of consciousness and the jets of non-sequiturs and thought provoking asides as follows:... Read more
Published on 19 Mar 2008 by Aquinas
Another classic with a sharp satirical edge
Saramago created one of the classics of the 20th century in Blindness, and with Seeing he's done it again - almost. Read more
Published on 27 Nov 2007 by Mr. Paul J. Bradshaw
Seeing for yourself
A follow up of sorts to Blindness, Seeing sees (NPI) Saramago return to the same unnamed country where a new bunch of nameless cyphers attempt to fix a minimal-participation... Read more
Published on 18 Oct 2007 by Mr. M. J. Bowen
Such a tedious read I just couldn't get into the story, and eventually...
I feel that one star is possibly a little harsh, but the score is based on the (lack of) enjoyment I got from the book, and the sheer pain reading it caused me. Read more
Published on 5 Oct 2007 by Lukens
Let's howl, said the dog
This is a terrifyingly subtle book. It is a direct follow on from Blindness and contains a lot less action and a lot less farcical comedy (at one point Raymond Chandler and... Read more
Published on 20 Jun 2006 by scribblednonsense.com
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