Home | Books By Year | Books from 1958


The Darkroom of Damocles

Buy The Darkroom of Damocles now from Amazon

First, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the book. And once you've experienced the book, tell everyone what you thought about it.

Wikipedia article




'The Darkroom of Damocles' is a war novel by the Dutch writer Willem Frederik Hermans, published in 1958. An immediate success since it was first published, the novel has been printed in numerous editions and is one of the greatest World War II novels. The book has been translated into English twice, in 1962 by Roy Edwards, and again in 2007 by Ina Rilke. It was adapted into the 1963 film 'Like Two Drops of Water', directed by Fons Rademakers.

Le Carr's spy novel The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was in part inspired by 'The Darkroom of Damocles' by Hermans, who suspected plagiarism.

Plot



Osewoudt, a cigar store owner from Voorschoten, near Leiden, living under the Nazi occupation, makes his acquaintance with the mysterious Dorbeck, who claims to be involved in the Resistance movement. Dorbeck enlists Osewoudt for dangerous attacks on the Gestapo and Dutch Nazi collaborators. After the Nazi defeat Dorbeck has disappeared, and Osewoudt is arrested for collaboration. Now, Osewoudt needs Dorbeck to prove his innocence.

Reception



Neel Mukherjee of 'The Daily Telegraph' wrote in 2007: "The novel, written in a spare, even desiccated style, becomes starkly existentialist, bringing to mind Camus and the Sartre of 'Les Chemins de la Libert'. Crackling with tension at the same time as a philosophical cynicism - or perhaps just an uninterested amorality - about motives and actions, this is an edgy, uneasy novel about the human condition, effortlessly disguised as a thriller."

See also



* 1958 in literature

* Dutch literature

References



Sources



Textual Studies

* Frans A. Janssen en Sonja van Stek (in Dutch), [http://www.willemfrederikhermans.nl/tekst/jans037bibl01_01/jans037bibl01_01_0021.htm Bibliographical Description of All Editions of 'The Darkroom of Damocles'.] In Frans A. Janssen en Sonja van Stek, 'Het bibliografische universum van Willem Frederik Hermans' ['The Bibliographical Universe of Willem Frederik Hermans']. Tweede, herziene en uitgebreide versie in samenwerking met Peter Kegel, Willem Frederik Hermans Instituut, 2005, 81-99.

* Editors of the Huygens Institute (in Dutch), [http://www.wfhermansvolledigewerken.nl/?verhalen=de-donkere-kamer-van-damokles Textual History, Adopted Readings and Emendations of 'The Darkroom of Damocles' (1958)]

Criticism

* Frans A. Janssen (in Dutch) [http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/jans037over01_01/ , On 'The Darkroom of Damocles' by Willem Frederik Hermans'.] This book has chapters on Publication history, Plot Summary, Interpretation, Interpretations by Other Critics, The Doppelgnger Motif, Narrative Technique, Style and Structure, Reception. Uitgeverij De Arbeiderspers, Amsterdam 1983

* Ren Marres (in Dutch), [http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/marr003over01_01/index.php , 'The Interpretation of 'The Darkroom of Damocles' by Willem Frederik Hermans'.] Dimensie Boeken, Leiden 1996

Category:1958 novels

Category:20th-century Dutch novels

Category:Literary works by Willem Frederik Hermans

Category:Dutch novels adapted into films


Buy The Darkroom of Damocles now from Amazon

<-- Return to books from 1958



This work is released under CC-BY-SA. Some or all of this content attributed to http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1070242432.