The Possibility of an Island [Hardcover]

First things first, Michel Houellebecq is one of the most compelling writers about. He may be sexist, misogynistic , racist, Islamaphobic and probably tortures teddy-bears in his spare time but the power of the ideas flowing through his previous book sweep such labellings aside. Who cares about his politics his force of mind projects itself from the page so masterfully? Few other writers today can match him for ability or willingness to engage with the problems of 21st century life. You don't have to agree, just entertain the suggestions and it will lead you into dark places in your mind and questions you've tried to avoid answering.

Thus I was gutted when after the first 100-or-so pages of The Possibility Of An Island it became clear that he hadn't 'done it again' he'd actually produced something of a damp squib. In fact the book picks up in the second half as Daniel becomes increasingly central to the fate of the Elohim and humanity, yet, it still missed something.

This is a great puzzle for me. Everything's there that's made Houellebecq great in the past and is looked at from interesting new perspectives: men are still sexual deviants always looking for the younger woman but now the younger woman is shown to be just as cruel as the older husband, the ridiculous nature of religion in a scientific world is held up for all to see in the form of new-age-cultism, the degeneration of the body in a world that loves youth is examined in detail and reprising the theme of 'Atomised' humanity is to be replaced by a superior new breed. So why does it feel so lifeless?

The Possibility of an Island lacks the sparkle of Houllebecq's previous books, the ideas are there, you can almost always see the points he's trying to make yet somehow they don't quite feel 'made' with the killer lines that summed up complex sociological ideas strangely absent. The savage treatment of his characters, holding their every mistake up, illuminating the tragically self-destructive nature of the human condition, still pervades yet you feel neither poignancy for the victims nor anger at the perpetrators. More disturbingly, whereas occasional chapters revived the vicious, visionary Houellebecq of 'Platform', other passages simply didn't make sense, they read like the arid texts my Phd submits me to where you sense academics are using thesauri to appear clever yet losing any comprehension in the process.

Two possible answers present themselves as to why a book brimming over with ideas, written by an author with a track record for compelling writing if nothing else, seems so lumpen and devoid of passion (beyond the usual gratuitous sex which itself seems at times more clumsily inserted into the narrative than previously). The first possibility is that Houellebecq, renowned alcoholic that he is, failed to stay the right side of comatose long enough to produce a coherent vision of the ideas in his head. The second and more likely possibility is that the translation is poor. For me the likelihood of this is increased by the fact it is a different translator to the one who worked on his previous books and as previously stated, it's the prose that's the problem, not the project itself.

Having read the book a second time, more easily skimming over the words I already knew where were heading I found it a much better read and the ideas and concepts grabbed my emotions and mind more powerfully. So, with the naive faith of someone who really has no idea about the mental state of Houllebecq or his translator, here's hoping for a new translation!

Houllebecque's most recent work is no Atomised, and nor will it win over those who did not enjoy his previous works. That said, the novel's unusual and chronologically displaced story and aging male protagonist allow Houllebecque to tear through the subcutaneous fat of society and rip into the male psyche. Houllebecque is frank and honest, where others dare not tread, and skillfully incorporates science and biology as a means of explaining human behaviour to much greater affect than any other current author (he has a medical background). Those
who argue that the book is a poor work of science fiction, or lacking a well developed story, completely miss Houllebecque's aim; the novel is not a story - it is an exploration and analysis of human behaviour and society. Houllebecques insights are often hilarious, similarly confronting, but always thought provoking, original and insightful. His equal treatment and command of biology, psychology and philosophy is rare, and to be enjoyed in this fascinating title.

This is undoubtedly Houellebecq's most ambitous work to date. The themes of his previous novels, such as the fragmentation of modern society, the masochistic cult of youthful sexuality in an aging society, and the possibility of happiness in a world in which values have been stripped to those of hedonistic individualism at the same time that the satisfaction of those desires has never been harder to obtain, are again explored, but here in a quite novel setting, and to a more thorough conclusion.

The novel is composed of two parallel narratives, both concerning the character of Daniel, a politically incorrect comedian who has made a carreer out of exploiting the cruelty and prejudices of the masses. The first narrative is of the life of the original human Daniel, the second concerns that of his cloned successors. The two narratives have a kind of symmetry. Whereas the human Daniel gradually loses his faith in humanity, the power of love, and his ability to obtain any kind of love, sexual or otherwise, the cloned versions of Daniel gradually emerge from a completely isolated, pain free environment, to awaken to the desire and possibility of human social and sexual contact.

The isolated world of Daniel's cloned existance seems to portray Houellebecq's vision of the logical conclusion to developments in contemporary society. Each clone lives in a secluded bubble of existance, designed to shield him from the pain and suffering that has been declared to be an inherent component of human biological life. Contact with others is made purely by e-mail, whilst outside in the real world, human society has degenerated into the level of animal savagery. The world of the cloned neo-humans is run by the 'Supreme Sister', in other words feminists have fully succeeded in their present agenda of castrating men and divorcing reproduction entirely from sex. In fact, the whole story of the cult from which the neo-humans and Daniel's immortal successors emerge could be read as an allegory of the development of human civilisation out of a primitive society dependent on basic biological needs (something which Houellebecq seems to see as being a state our present society has regressed to), to its transition to a patriarchal society based on moral aspirations, and then to one were the seemingly innate simian sexual rivalry of men is ultimately exploited by women to castrate them and take control of sexual reproduction.

For Houellebecq, human life is a sexual battle. Darwinisiam should be better described as 'survival of the sexiest', rather than 'survival of the fittest'. He has the honesty and the politically incorrect aptitude to recognise that all our social mores, all our moral codes, ultimately spring from the eternal Darwinian sexual battle to leave as many descendents as possible behind us.

'Contrary to recieved ideas,
Words don't create a world;
Man speaks like a dog barks
To express his anger, or his fear'

Feminism, the latest moral religion to sweep the western world, is no more than another attempt to control sexual reproduction in the interests of one particular social group. The only interesting thing about this particular morality is that this time, it has been invented for the benefit of the reproductive organs of women, or at least certain kinds of women.

Through the possibility of cloning, Houellebecq explores the hope of a human existance that has escaped from this brutal Darwinian war. Can there exist the possibility of an island, where men and women can live in happiness untouched by the brutal biological realities that turn every facet of human life into a savage battle for reproductive survival, fought by nature's cruel weapons of desire and frustration? The grim answer from Houelebecq is a resounding Schopenhaurian negative. We can never escape from our biological, animal existance and find either unconditional love or satisfaction without boredom.

Although obviously stylistically more ambitious than previous works, the writing doesn't seem quite as fluent as before, something which can presumably be accredited to the translation of Gavin Bowd (Frank Wynn haing translated 'Atomised' and 'Platform'). Also, despite having the main character as a comedian, it does seem to lack in humour compared to previous novels. Nevertheless, a briliant book. It might be that Houellebecq sticks to familar themes, but when those themes are the degradation and collapse of modern society, the hypocricy and lies that we base our contemporary society upon, and the very essence of human existance and its possibility of change, then lets hope Houellebecq continues his one man wrecking spree on the politically correct delusions of our age.