Fog: A Novel (Northwestern World Classics)

ISBN: 0810135361

Author: Unamuno, Miguel de

Condition: Used

Fog is a fresh new translation of the Spanish writer Miguel de Unamunos Niebla, first published in 1914. An early example of modernisms challenge to the conventions of nineteenth-century realist fiction, Fog shocked critics but delighted readers with its formal experimentation and existential themes. This revolutionary novel anticipates the work of Sartre, Borges, Pirandello, Nabokov, Calvino, and Vonnegut.The novels central character, Augusto, is a pampered, aimless young man who falls in love with Eugenia, a woman he randomly spots on the street. Augustos absurd infatuation offers an irresistible target for the philosophical ruminations of Unamunos characters, including Eugenias guardian aunt and theoretical anarchist uncle, Augustos comical servants, and his best friend, Victor, an aspiring writer who introduces him to a new, groundbreaking type of fiction. In a desperate moment, Augusto consults his creator about his fate, arguing with Unamuno about what it means to be real. Even Augustos dog, Orfeo, offers his canine point of view, reflecting on the meaning of life and delivering his masters funeral oration.Fog is a comedy, a tragic love story, a work of metafiction, and a novel of ideas. After more than a century, Unamunos classic novel still moves us, makes us laugh, and invites us to question our assumptions about literature, relationships, and mortality.