Darkness At Noon by Arthur Koestler, Daphne Hardy (Translator)
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(Mass Market Paperback - REISSUE)
- Pub. Date: March 1984
- 216pp
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Product Details
- Pub. Date: March 1984
- Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
- Format: Mass Market Paperback, 216pp
- ISBN-13: 9780553265958
- ISBN: 0553265954
- Edition Description: REISSUE
Synopsis
Darkness At Noon stands as an unequaled fictional portrayal of the nightmare politics of our time. Its hero is an aging revolutionary, imprisoned and psychologically tortured by the Party to which he has dedicated his life. As the pressure to confess preposterous crimes increases, he re-lives a career that embodies the terrible ironies and human betrayals of a totalitarian movement masking itself as an instrument of deliverance. Almost unbearably vivid in its depiction of one man's solitary agony, Darkness At Noon asks questions about ends and means that have relevance not only for the past but for the perilous present. It is—as the Times Literary Supplement has declared—"A remarkable book, a grimly fascinating interpretation of the logic of the Russian Revolution, indeed of all revolutionary dictatorships, and at the same time a tense and subtly intellectualized drama..."
Times Literary Supplement
A remarkable book, a grimly fascinating interpretation of the logic of the Russian Revolution, indeed of all revolutionary dictatorships, and at the same time a tense and subtly intellectualized drama.
More Reviews and RecommendationsCustomer Reviews
Darkness At Noonby Anonymous
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October 07, 2004: A caricature wrapped in a parody wrapped in a novelette. This trashy novel is just a piece of Cold War propaganda. It presents a ludicrous caricature of history, a simple-minded moralism. Koestler claims that all communists are all bad because they believe that 'The ends justify the means'. But doesn't George Bush believe this? Doesn't Blair? Don't you sometimes? It all depends on the circumstances, and no simple dogma will do the job - you actually have to think beneath the idiot slogans. It's no surprise that General Franco at the end of the war freed Koestler from his jails, when he killed without trial so many decent Republicans and their supporters. Franco could see that Koestler was going to be more use to him alive than dead, and this book indeed proves that Koestler was an asset to the forces of reaction. Remember that Koestler composed this anti-communist screed when the communists of the Soviet Union were defeating 70% of Hitler's divisions, and that these same communists were saving us all from Hitler's extermination camps.
Darkness At Noonby Anonymous
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January 23, 2001: Koestler's Philosophy In a tale of a disillusioned communist, Koestler tells his abstract and sometimes outrageous thoughts and answers to questions about human nature. Set primarily in a prison, this novel focuses on the life of Rubashov, a controversial political figure thrown in jail for crimes he didn't commit. While imprisoned, Rubashov reflects on his life and what he has stood for. He begins to question his beliefs. By reflecting many of his beliefs through his characters, we are allowed a glimpse into the mind of Koestler, who himself became disillusioned with the Party. Though simply written, this entertaining novel offers a look at Koestler's life and some historical background on the party. Fueled by Koestler's own philosophical insights, the novel tells an interesting tale about the communist Soviet Union.
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