The death of a beekeeper
The death of a beekeeper (original title: En biodlares död ) is a novel by the Swedish philosopher and writer Lars Gustafsson , published in Stockholm in 1978 . The novel is the last of five parts of his cycle Cracks in the Wall .
action
The former elementary school teacher Lars Westin, who lives in isolation and as a beekeeper in the country, falls ill in his mid-40s. Gradually, the suspicion of cancer grows and a tissue sample is taken from him. But Westin burns the letter with the laboratory result unread: "... because if I don't open it, there will still be some kind of hope." In the following months between February and May (?) He wrote down his thoughts in three notebooks, the As can be seen in the foreplay , a first-person narrator who remains anonymous is published as Westin 's notes .
In his notes, Westin reflects on his childhood and career choices, the failure of his marriage, the subtle culture of allegations in the Swedish middle class, his experiences with the Swedish healthcare system, his closeness to nature and self-chosen isolation. In dealing with the pain that floods through him in waves, he becomes aware of his body and his being in the world in a new way. He stands out as a hitherto superficial, selfish and self-pitying person who ignored problems for as long as possible and was not really interested in his education or his wife.
But during this crisis he also remembers other moments in his life in addition to his weaknesses: Westin reconstructs a texture of action and resistance from the astonishing successes of his uncle Sune on the black market in the 1940s, for example, or from the memory of his fearless childhood friend Nicke in which he finds consolation and at least an abstract possibility of a new beginning.
This inspection of his life changes Westin: As a primary school teacher and as a voluntary, early retired beekeeper, he wasted his life, he was not curious enough about their secrets in all things and relationships, he wanted too little: “We'll start all over again. We're not giving up. ”But the pain comes back and gains the upper hand - an ambulance takes him to the hospital.
Narrative
The foreword, the following overview of sources and the composition of the seven sections from the undated notes of the yellow, blue and damaged notebooks give the impression of a posthumous publication. But even the anonymous publisher does not explicitly rule out Westin's survival: The content of the laboratory report is never known, the Westin's motto (We'll start over ...) is also that of the editor. He introduces his foreword with what would be a logical consequence of Westin's new curiosity (I've missed traveling in my life ...) about life: The experience one morning on a trip to the American-Mexican borderland. The story is presented in a mostly laconic style that gradually complements the initial symbolism metaphorically. The passage about the enormous ability of Westin's Uncle Sune to run his shop in times of war is told with a lot of humor, so that a different approach to life seems possible not only for Westin.
filming
In 1986 the book was made into a film by the director Theo Angelopoulos under the title The Beekeeper . The screenplay was written by Tonino Guerra.
literature
- Lars Gustafsson: The Death of a Beekeeper. Fischer-Taschenbuch-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 2001, ISBN 978-3-596-14983-4 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ 5x loneliness article by Helmut Heißenbüttel from November 21, 2012 for zeit-online.de. Retrieved April 4, 2018
- ↑ The beekeeper film description on the director's page. Retrieved April 4, 2018.