Creation is Mystery
Some people regard discipline as a chore. For me, it is a kind of order that sets me free to fly.
— Julie Andrews
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BOOK REVIEW: ‘THE ILLITERATE’ BY AGOTA KRISTOF
“I write. It is like a disease.”
— Agota Kristof.
Finally taking refuge in Switzerland, Kristof is a haunted woman. She has been separated from her beloved brothers. She has to work in a dreary factory. But most of all, she doesn’t know the language. At twenty, she is an illiterate. If she is to continue being an artist, she must learn and express herself in French, a language she finds opaque and uninviting.
However, writing is in her blood. And so, Kristof painstakingly learns French and starts writing plays and stories. This is a story of loss, survival, and hope. Most of all, it is the story of the birth of a unique writing voice in Europe.
— From ‘Labyrinths’
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Consider the issue from another angle. Dentists love tooth decay. Treating cavities provides them with a steady income. Likewise, exterminators are dependent on termites, lawyers need crime, and priests crave sinners. Lots of people have symbiotic connections with nasty stuff. In fact, isn’t it true that most of us nurture our feelings for the things we love…
