Synopsis: The story's central figure, Leamas, whose mission is to trap the top spy of East Berlin, is a creation of astonishing reality and authenticity. The plot he sets in motion, and later becomes the principle victim of, is a thing of magnificent complexity. Also of far-reaching implications. For the tension within Leamas is strikingly contemporary. It is the tension of a committed man unable to come to terms with the utterly ruthless machine he serves.
Because it’s been so long since I first read this, my re-reading was blank enough to be essentially a fresh one. One thing that struck me this time was the terrific rhythm Le Carre’s prose has. I even read some of it aloud to better appreciate it.
Leamas is a tough person to root for because he doesn’t really seem to root for himself. He does his masters’ bidding without question and sometimes even enthusiastically. I disagree with whoever wrote that old synopsis up there that Leamas is trying to come to terms with his Service. To me he seems all too aware of what they'll do and how little he means to them in the grand scheme of things. Only when it comes to Liz does he muster any outrage or rebellion. The overall tone of the novel isn’t uplifting and so while the very end does give us glimmers of hope in our sentimental selves, our rational selves know there is no hope. The audacity and casual cruelty is the real cold in the title, I think. It is pretty galling how seemingly without compunction the Circus can set up and do away with one of their star performers. Considering what happened to Karl though, it isn’t surprising at all.
Another thing I really appreciated is how focused the story is. Unlike a lot of writers today (and even of yesterday, I’m thinking of Eric Ambler here) Le Carre doesn’t fill out his story with a lot of inner monologue, back-story or sub-plots. All the action has purpose and moves the story along at a relentless pace. All the people, their actions and their interactions have meaning and are important to the story. Remove any one of them and the whole operation comes apart. I wish more writers told their stories this way.
Leamas is a tough person to root for because he doesn’t really seem to root for himself. He does his masters’ bidding without question and sometimes even enthusiastically. I disagree with whoever wrote that old synopsis up there that Leamas is trying to come to terms with his Service. To me he seems all too aware of what they'll do and how little he means to them in the grand scheme of things. Only when it comes to Liz does he muster any outrage or rebellion. The overall tone of the novel isn’t uplifting and so while the very end does give us glimmers of hope in our sentimental selves, our rational selves know there is no hope. The audacity and casual cruelty is the real cold in the title, I think. It is pretty galling how seemingly without compunction the Circus can set up and do away with one of their star performers. Considering what happened to Karl though, it isn’t surprising at all.
Another thing I really appreciated is how focused the story is. Unlike a lot of writers today (and even of yesterday, I’m thinking of Eric Ambler here) Le Carre doesn’t fill out his story with a lot of inner monologue, back-story or sub-plots. All the action has purpose and moves the story along at a relentless pace. All the people, their actions and their interactions have meaning and are important to the story. Remove any one of them and the whole operation comes apart. I wish more writers told their stories this way.
0 comments:
Post a Comment