The Dwarf [Paperback]

The dwarf lives as a servant and confidante to a Prince during the time when the Black Death was effectively wiping out the population of Europe. There occur many instances in this book when the dwarf must commit the most vile and heinous crimes at the behest of the Prince, and the dwarf does so with a relish that is unconscionable. Ultimately, his crimes force him into eternal imprisonment in a fortress dungeon where he spends his days writing daily recordings of the wickedness of his life and hopes to be called again to duty by the Prince.

From the very beginning, the dwarf condemns human beings as "a pack of ingratiating cows" who value such useless things as nobility and beauty and who babble about virtue, honor and chivalry. Believing human beings to be "shrouded in mystery," the dwarf exclaims, "...nothing ever comes up from my inner depths." Nothing but hate, that is.

Despite his vile and repulsive nature, the dwarf is loyal to and respectful of the Prince. His most prevalent views of disgust are engendered by those of his own race and by himself. "It is my fate that I hate my own people," he declares. Thinking of himself as an inferior being, less than human, the dwarf revels in the fact that humans hate him. "It fills me with satisfaction that I am hated...But I hate myself, too. I eat my own splenetic flesh. I drink my own poisoned blood. Every day I perform my solitary communion as the grim high priest of my people."

It does not help matters that people fail to see this miserable dwarf as a separate being, with thoughts and feelings of his own, but instead see him as only an extension of the Prince. "If you kick him," they cry out, "you kick his master." Hating himself as he does, the dwarf relishes this treatment; at times he even comes to believe that he represents the nobility of the Prince, for it is common knowledge that "A dwarf always knows more about everything than his master."

The dwarf goes on to depict several experiences with the Prince and with the unsightly, lascivious Princess, whom he also loathes. When the Princess's lover dies, the dwarf, unable to comprehend love of any kind, himself, becomes involved in an intrigue that finally sends him to the dungeon. There he records his own vile remembrances and reflects "on the day when they will come and loosen my chains, because he has sent for me again."

While the purity of the hatred in Dwarf can be unnerving at times, the book is an extremely well-written and fascinating psychological portrait that has been somewhat sadly overlooked.

The book is permeated with the notion of evil at a distance, and the idea that evil has a mind of its own, never to be controlled by a master, and to be unleashed only at peril. The dwarf is supposedly the king's agent, and may conduct an assassination or two at the king's bidding, but is remote from the king, as if the king were sending a rocket-launched missile to a distant land, and would not feel the consequences of the explosion himself. Unfortunately, the dwarf always manages to cause enough trouble that the king might wish he had not launched his agent in the first place. The rocket always manages to blow back shrapnel, one way or another. Despite orders, the dwarf has his own agenda, arrogant and sadistic, and will interpret his tasks to suit his fashion.

Another attribute of the relationship between king and dwarf is that the dwarf is taken almost as an extension of the king himself. While this is to the benefit of carrying out the king's tasks, it reflects badly on the king when the tasks are carried out with collateral damage. The theme of "evil at a distance" is reinforced through a DaVinci-like character who builds machines of war, but does not wish to stay long enough to see his machines actually being used. He invents them, but their usage is not his concern.

It is instructive to reveal at this point that "The Dwarf" was written in 1945. It is clearly an allegorical condemnation of war and its intruments. The dwarf, i.e., the instrument of war, may be asked to perform a certain destructive task, but may cause more destruction than necessary. He may perform tasks of his own choosing, in order to satiate his own lust for power, control, or damage. He may be unleashed by people who believe they are clever for their schemes, or wise in their rule, but will reflect badly on them after the deed is done. This is a highly effective and thought-provoking novel. The reader will remark on the dwarf's amazingly cavalier attitudes toward the other members of the court, at his shocking sadism, and his chaotic mentality. Lagerkvist shows us that we unleash such demons at our own risk.

The thoughts and emotions of the dwarf are both shocking and thought provoking. His hatred for himself, his own kind and humanity provide insights into the true motivations of society and many of its flaws.

This book is highly unique and I recommend it to anyone seeking a deep and meaningful book.