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The puzzle of the book
18 November 2005
[indent]It is a meandering, quixotic Renaissance romance titled "Hypnerotomachia Poliphili," a mouthful of syllables that took me a week of practice to learn. Its anonymous author is possibly Francesco Colonna, who may have been a nobleman from Rome, or another man of the same name who was a Venetian priest. Or maybe it was written by Leone Battista Alberti. Or maybe it was even written by the printer/publisher, Aldus Manutius. No one knows for sure.
No matter who wrote it, it has been one of the most curious, most fascinating books ever published. That was 1499 and it has generated interest and wild theories ever since.
The title, by the way, means "the strife of love in a dream of Poliphilo" and it is the story of Poliphilo who, tormented by his love for Polia, wanders around in a dreamlike state in which he encounters dragons, ruins, bizarre spectacles and the plague. Eventually he meets and falls in love with a nymph who resembles Polia and pursues her. After more adventures, she reveals herself to really be Polia and she becomes the narrator of the remainder of the book. Poliphili can also mean "one who loves many things."
Unreadable, dense, confusing, a dog's breakfast of styles, metaphors and symbolism, a plot that seems more like a lecture about architecture at times, but lavishly typeset and beautifully illustrated with woodcuts that still stand out as remarkable examples of the art, the HP was one of the most-read books in the Renaissance. But it had almost disappeared from popular view and become the property of rarefied academe until The Rule of Four was published.
Which is precisely how I discovered it. Initially, I didn't think it was a real work, one of those fictional "lost" items that authors so frequently invent as plot devices. But, no, it's an actual book. And no doubt the popularity of The Rule of Four has helped revive its now-musty reputation back to something of interest.
The Rule of Four is a literary-intellectual mystery/thriller about the book, its aficionados, its mysterious author, and its hidden secrets. Authors Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason wrapped a plot around an academic curiosity and made it work. It's been compared favourably to The daVinci Code (which in this writer's opinion was as highly overrated as the Bay City Rollers...), but is more intellectual and less action.
It's not a great book, The Rule of Four, but it has its moments. It is also sometimes overly verbose when brevity would suit best, stilted and unfocused, but it never stumbles enough to lose the reader's attention for long. The mystery of the book drives the reader to keep turning the pages more than the plot and character development. Whether the reader is satisfied by the denouement will be up to the individual. For me, it was somewhat of an anticlimax, but not not quite coitus interruptus.
As is my wont, as soon as I could, I started to search online for information about the book. And I found it - not a lot, but enough to intrigue me more. In fact, I found two recent English translations that I ordered, one from Amazon.ca and one from eBay. I also got Lefaivre's book about the HP and suggesting i was written by Leon Batista. Lacking credentials in any of the arts that would allow me to assess her argument, I can't comment whether it makes sense. But it's an interesting approach.
Now, the HP isn't a book you read like, like Wilbur Smith or Tom Clancy - mind popcorn - it's more like reading Chaucer orBoccaccio. Both of which, along with the HP, I plan to take along with me on my Mexican vacation for my personal edification. I like to take challenging books to Mexico, where I can attack them without daily distractions like work.
So what's this entry all about? Nothing more than a personal note about finding a new fold in the origami of knowledge, a new facet in the crystal through which to peer. I can only hope I can wait until Mexico to start reading it...[/indent]
No matter who wrote it, it has been one of the most curious, most fascinating books ever published. That was 1499 and it has generated interest and wild theories ever since.
The title, by the way, means "the strife of love in a dream of Poliphilo" and it is the story of Poliphilo who, tormented by his love for Polia, wanders around in a dreamlike state in which he encounters dragons, ruins, bizarre spectacles and the plague. Eventually he meets and falls in love with a nymph who resembles Polia and pursues her. After more adventures, she reveals herself to really be Polia and she becomes the narrator of the remainder of the book. Poliphili can also mean "one who loves many things."
Unreadable, dense, confusing, a dog's breakfast of styles, metaphors and symbolism, a plot that seems more like a lecture about architecture at times, but lavishly typeset and beautifully illustrated with woodcuts that still stand out as remarkable examples of the art, the HP was one of the most-read books in the Renaissance. But it had almost disappeared from popular view and become the property of rarefied academe until The Rule of Four was published.
Which is precisely how I discovered it. Initially, I didn't think it was a real work, one of those fictional "lost" items that authors so frequently invent as plot devices. But, no, it's an actual book. And no doubt the popularity of The Rule of Four has helped revive its now-musty reputation back to something of interest.
The Rule of Four is a literary-intellectual mystery/thriller about the book, its aficionados, its mysterious author, and its hidden secrets. Authors Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason wrapped a plot around an academic curiosity and made it work. It's been compared favourably to The daVinci Code (which in this writer's opinion was as highly overrated as the Bay City Rollers...), but is more intellectual and less action.
It's not a great book, The Rule of Four, but it has its moments. It is also sometimes overly verbose when brevity would suit best, stilted and unfocused, but it never stumbles enough to lose the reader's attention for long. The mystery of the book drives the reader to keep turning the pages more than the plot and character development. Whether the reader is satisfied by the denouement will be up to the individual. For me, it was somewhat of an anticlimax, but not not quite coitus interruptus.
As is my wont, as soon as I could, I started to search online for information about the book. And I found it - not a lot, but enough to intrigue me more. In fact, I found two recent English translations that I ordered, one from Amazon.ca and one from eBay. I also got Lefaivre's book about the HP and suggesting i was written by Leon Batista. Lacking credentials in any of the arts that would allow me to assess her argument, I can't comment whether it makes sense. But it's an interesting approach.
Now, the HP isn't a book you read like, like Wilbur Smith or Tom Clancy - mind popcorn - it's more like reading Chaucer orBoccaccio. Both of which, along with the HP, I plan to take along with me on my Mexican vacation for my personal edification. I like to take challenging books to Mexico, where I can attack them without daily distractions like work.
So what's this entry all about? Nothing more than a personal note about finding a new fold in the origami of knowledge, a new facet in the crystal through which to peer. I can only hope I can wait until Mexico to start reading it...[/indent]
