Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Monday, March 11, 2019
A.L.Loyd – Translator
Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis - arguably the greatest, most famous and most unnerving short work of literary fiction ever written - is a hundred years old in 2015. This centenary edition offers the first complete English translation of Kafka's text (by A. L. Lloyd from 1937) plus a richly detailed new introduction to the story by novelist Richard T. Kelly, describing its genesis and the life of its creator.
In The Metamorphosis' unforgettable opening sentence we meet travelling salesman Gregor Samsa - on a rare overnight stay in the apartment he shares with his family, paid for by his ceaseless labour - who awakes one morning 'from a troubled dream' to find himself 'changed in his bed to some kind of monstrous vermin'.
'There is nothing which The Metamorphosis could be surpassed by - one of the few great, perfect poetic works of this century.' Elias Canetti
'My greatest masterpieces of twentieth-century prose are, in this order, Joyce's Ulysses, Kafka's [Metamorphosis], Bely's Petersburg and the first half of Proust's fairy tale In Search of Lost Time.' Vladimir Nabokov.
In The Metamorphosis' unforgettable opening sentence we meet travelling salesman Gregor Samsa - on a rare overnight stay in the apartment he shares with his family, paid for by his ceaseless labour - who awakes one morning 'from a troubled dream' to find himself 'changed in his bed to some kind of monstrous vermin'.
'There is nothing which The Metamorphosis could be surpassed by - one of the few great, perfect poetic works of this century.' Elias Canetti
'My greatest masterpieces of twentieth-century prose are, in this order, Joyce's Ulysses, Kafka's [Metamorphosis], Bely's Petersburg and the first half of Proust's fairy tale In Search of Lost Time.' Vladimir Nabokov.
Sunday, March 10, 2019
Paul Klugman – America can’t be trusted
The lesson for the world is that America can’t be trusted. Why bother making deals with a country that’s willing to slap sanctions on the best of allies, and clearly lie about the reasons, whenever it feels like it?
Meanwhile, the sudden retreat in the confrontation with China shows that we talk loud but carry a small stick. It would be one thing if the U.S. had changed course on the merits.
But backing down so easily, after all the posturing, tells the world that the way to deal with America is not to bargain in good faith, but simply to threaten the president’s political base, and maybe offer some payoffs, political and otherwise. (I’m still wondering about those floors China’s largest bank rents at Trump Tower.)
And when it comes to payoffs, autocracies have an advantage over nations that observe the rule of law. China appears to be getting most Trump tariffs removed; Canada still faces those steel tariffs.
Finally, by undermining the international system, America is making the world worse for itself as well as for everyone else. In fact, payback is coming right away.
The World Trade Organization just gave America a big win in a dispute over Chinese agricultural subsidies — but its verdict is probably moot, because the Trump administration has spent the past two years denigrating the organization, and has crippled the appellate body that is supposed to enforce W.T.O. rulings, blocking the appointments that would have given this trade court the quorum it needs to act.
Let’s be clear: Not having a trade war is better than the alternative. But the path the Trump administration has taken to its trade deals has made us less trusted, less respected and weaker than we were before. So much winning!
Meanwhile, the sudden retreat in the confrontation with China shows that we talk loud but carry a small stick. It would be one thing if the U.S. had changed course on the merits.
But backing down so easily, after all the posturing, tells the world that the way to deal with America is not to bargain in good faith, but simply to threaten the president’s political base, and maybe offer some payoffs, political and otherwise. (I’m still wondering about those floors China’s largest bank rents at Trump Tower.)
And when it comes to payoffs, autocracies have an advantage over nations that observe the rule of law. China appears to be getting most Trump tariffs removed; Canada still faces those steel tariffs.
Finally, by undermining the international system, America is making the world worse for itself as well as for everyone else. In fact, payback is coming right away.
The World Trade Organization just gave America a big win in a dispute over Chinese agricultural subsidies — but its verdict is probably moot, because the Trump administration has spent the past two years denigrating the organization, and has crippled the appellate body that is supposed to enforce W.T.O. rulings, blocking the appointments that would have given this trade court the quorum it needs to act.
Let’s be clear: Not having a trade war is better than the alternative. But the path the Trump administration has taken to its trade deals has made us less trusted, less respected and weaker than we were before. So much winning!
Saturday, March 09, 2019
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