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| Plot Summary of Confessions of Zeno |
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"Zeno, an unsuccessful businessman with very high self-regard living in Trieste (eastern edge of Italy) in the first couple decades of the Twentieth century, is in therapy and decides to write down his memories. He talks about dithering between chemistry and law in school, his unending attempts to have "one last cigarette," his affairs, his marriage to the third of the sisters he asked to wed him, and the disastrous business he went into with a brother-in-law. His tale is obsessive, whiny, self-deluding, and often amusing, though with a decidedly depressing bent. Published in Italian in 1923 and first translated into English in 1930, this book occasionally reminds one mildly of Catch-22: "I was ready to accept insults readily, so long as they were accompanied by an affection that I knew I did not deserve"; and, of the hero and his wife: "Was not our mutual indifference demonstrated by the existence of the children we both produced so regularly?""
David Loftus, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Confessions of Zeno |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- 1900-1920's
Romance/Romance Problems
Yes
Kind of romance:
- seduction (yum!)
- playing footsy while inconveniently married
Inside culture (main char)
- Italian
Internal struggle/realization?
Yes
Struggle over
- midlife crisis
- eccentric nature
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Outside culture (society)
- Italian
Battle with a psychiatrist
Yes
Ethnic/regional/gender life
Yes
Lover is
- of a different social class
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- small businessman
Age:
- 40's-50's
Eccentric/Mental
Yes
Eccentric:
- eccentric
- deluded
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Italian
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- society
Setting
How much descriptions of surroundings?
- 2 (a little)
Europe
Yes
European country:
- Italy
City?
Yes
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Sex in book?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- vague references
- descript of kissing
Unusual Style:
- written like a journal/diary/letters
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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