Wandering with Robert Walser

Scott Esposito told us yesterday that The Assistant was on the NBCC longlist this year, according to Chad Post. It didn’t make the final cut, but nice to see it made it so far.

But the real benefit of Scott’s post was the reminder to pick up Enrique Vila-Matas’s Montano’s Malady, which I did today, and was delighted to find (p 183) this mention of Walser:

It is the evening of September 25th. In a break from writing this diary, I flicked through a book I bought yesterday by Robert Walser, The Walk and Other Stories, and was surprised to find some lines that inform me that the Swiss writer also wandered in the mist, along some byroad: “Often I wandered of course perplexed in a the mist and in a thousand vacillations and dilemmas, and often I felt myself woefully forsaken. [...] Proud and gay in the roots of his soul a man becomes only through trial bravely undergone, and through suffering patiently endured.” I told my self that now was a good time to identify with Walser. After all, my grandfather, my mother’s father, was very like Walser, and also his sons, the Girondos, my mother’s three brothers, bore a certain spiritual resemblance to Walser.

Earlier in the book (p 127), another reference to RW:

I closed the book and went to bed, thinking about all these things, admiring Pavese, but without being in tune with him, and I soon fell asleep. On a foggy road, I saw Robert Walser in conversation with Musil: “Out of here, that is my goal,” Walser was saying. “However much you cry, you won’t manage to be as real as I am,” replied Musil. “If I weren’t real, I couldn’t cry,” replied Walser. “I hope you don’t think those tears are real,” replied Musil.

And then they left, or rather–making me feel incredibly jealous–they disappeared.

Lovely stuff. But I shouldn’t be rifling the book for Walser mentions–I should be reading it. I love Vila-Matas as you know, and the author has mentioned Walser here and there before. And this book looks absolutely wonderful.

Scott also has an essay on Vila-Matas in the latest issue of The Quarterly Conversation. Check it out.

Also, see Steve’s comments on Montano and Walser.

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Sam :: Dec.05.2007 :: Uncategorized :: 4 Comments »

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