Kazantzakis, Volume 2: Politics of the Spirit

Description

Putting Greek writer Nikos Kazantzakis's (1883-1957) vast output into the context of his lifelong spiritual quest and the turbulent politics of twentieth-century Greece, this title argues that Kazantzakis was a deeply flawed genius. It covers his life after 1938, the period in which he wrote "Zorba the Greek" and "The Last Temptation of Christ".

Peter Bien is Professor Emeritus of English and Comparative Literature at Dartmouth College. His "Kazantzakis: Politics of the Spirit, Volume 1" was first published by Princeton in 1989 and was translated into Greek in 2001. It will be published in paperback by Princeton in February 2007. Bien has translated Kazantzakis's books "The Last Temptation of Christ, Saint Francis", and "Report to Greco" into English, and is the author of "Kazantzakis and the Linguistic Revolution in Greek Literature" (Princeton).

"Although others have tried to account for Kanzantzakis's life and literary art, no other book so comprehensively and insightfully captures it like Politics of the Spirit. Readers will marvel at Bien's tirelessly attentive approach to historical detail and acclaim his adroit description of Kazantzakis's ironic soul. A sympathetic though not uncritical account of a flawed genius, this book is a towering achievement. Every reader of modern literature can learn from it."--Darren J. N. Middleton, Modernimsm/modernity "The sequel to Bien's very successful Kazantzakis: Politics of the Spirit consolidates our impressions of the first volume, creates an elaborate, almost complete picture of the Cretan author, and spreads the interest in Kazantzakis to a far greater audience."--Lena Arampatzidou, Hellenic Review "Bien is fair and balanced, and he avoids black-and-white simplifications. In a masterly manner, he sorts out the good from the bad, sensing what Kazantzakis was trying to achieve and seeing where he went wrong and where he got it right. Bien brilliantly shows how Kazantzakis progressed from his concern with politics, sensuality and ethics to a love of art."--Peter Mackridge, Journal of Hellenic Studies