The book of disquiet is the portuguese modernist master fernando pessoas greatest literary achievement. The book of disquiet was found, in fragments, only after pessoas death. Begun in 1912, pessoa made entries for it throughout his life, especially in his later years. Fernando pessoa has 725 books on goodreads with 157438 ratings. Pdf the book of disquiet book by fernando pessoa free. Pessoa was mostly a poet and the book of disquiet can be read, if you wish, as a series of notes for poems as yet unwritten. In this edition, scott esposito and bradley babendir discuss fernando pessoa s the book of disquiet. Pessoa will show you on the very first pages of what it will bring you. When you do not know what to feel or when you feel lost, it will be useful.
Whilst researching his masterpiece, i discovered a few anecdotes about him. Bernando soares, the eponymous author of the book of disquiet, a bookkeeper in lisbon, records his observations of everyday life as if we were walking through an art gallery. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 544 pages and is available in paperback format. This is 19 minutes it contains notes 15 and includes pessoas preface where he claims to meet bernardo soares, the author of this book i. Credited to pessoas alter ego, bernardo soares, who chronicles his contemplations in this socalled factless autobiography, the work is a journey of one mans soul and, by extension, of all human souls. Ive been drawn to existentialism which i understand to be the recognition that life lacks meaning, rendering the human condition a function of mere existence since reading sartre, camus and kierkegaard years ago. Illustration by riccardo vecchio if ever there was a writer in flight from his name, it was fernando pessoa. He takes a simple gesture, a familiar place and transforms it magically into something more. The book of disquiet is a work by the portuguese author fernando pessoa 18881935. The book of disquiet by fernando pessoa, paperback. Ive been drawn to existentialism which i understand to be the recognition that life lacks meaning, rendering the human condition a function of. Pessoa wrote the book mainly for himself under the pseudonym bernardo soares, and it was not published until nearly half a century. Buy the book of disquiet penguin modern classics new ed by pessoa, fernando, zenith, richard isbn.
Buy the book of disquiet serpents tail classics main by pessoa, fernando, boyd, william, jull costa, margaret, jull costa, margaret isbn. In this extraordinary book, the putative factless autobiography of an accountant named bernardo soares, fernando pessoa explores and. Written over the course of fernando pessoa s life, it was first published in 1982, pieced together from the thousands of individual manuscript pages left behind by pessoa after his death in 1935. Fernando pessoa, in the book of disquiet, offers a startling look at the life of one bernardo soares, a heteronym very close to pessoas own personality. This almostautobiographical story tells of the sombre majesty of splendours no one knows in the very private life of its hero and offers. This book includes some fragments of his diary, short reflections, and adages.
Fernando pessoa and the book of disquiet others can write better, and truer, things about fernando pessoa than i can, but the salient facts for these purposes are that pessoa 18881935 was a portuguese writer who published very little during his lifetime. For its entire four hundred plus pages it offers a philosophy of a melancholic life, a philosophy of dreaming, and a philosophy of art. Future editors, as obsessed as they are with completionism. The first edition of the novel was published in 1982, and was written by fernando pessoa.
These quotes from the book of disquiet are true works of art. The book of disquiet the prizewinning, complete and unabridged translationthe best englishlanguage version we are likely to see for a long time, if ever the guardianof a work of unclassifiable genius. In each diary entry that comprises this rare novel, the reader is brought to a keen sense of awareness through soares seemingly. The final edition of this book was published in 2010. The book of disquiet was found, in fragments, only after pessoas.
Fernando pessoa s most popular book is the book of disquiet. The book of disquiet was left in a trunk which might never have been opened. Free download or read online the book of disquiet pdf epub book. The book of disquiet is the portuguese modernist master fernando pessoa s greatest literary achievement. It was to bernardo soares that pessoa ascribed his book of disquiet, first made available in english in a briefer version by richard zenith in 1991. An autobiography or diary containing exquisite melancholy observations, aphorisms, and ruminations, this classic work grapples with all the eternal questions. He left behind a chest full of writing that would be. He also wrote in and translated from english and french. The book of disquiet by fernando pessoa published for the first time some fifty years after his.
Great quotes from the book of disquiet exploring your mind. Under the orthonym fernando pessoa he did write an introduction, but he credited the texts themselves to two different authors. The book of disquiet is a journal by portuguese author fernando pessoa. In the book of disquiet, though, there seems thus far to be no plot to lose. When he died in 1935, pessoa left behind a trunk filled with unfinished and unpublished writings, among which were the remarkable pages that make up his posthumous masterpiece, the book of disquiet, an astonishing work that, in george steiners words, gives to lisbon the haunting spell of joyces dublin.
The book of disquiet is a collection of epiphanic journal or diary prose kept by pessoa and found decades after his death. Other versions had been published before that, but they included other peoples writings. Now, for the first time the texts are presented chronologically, in a complete english edition by master translator. Cristobal and the sea disquiet official video youtube. He left behind a chest full of writing that would be later known to many as the book of disquiet. The book of disquiet is a work by the portuguese author fernando pessoa 1888 1935. Written over the course of fernando pessoas life, it was first published in 1982.
Fernando pessoa 18881935 was born in lisbon and brought up in durban, south africa. The book of disquiet penguin classics fernando pessoa, richard zenith isbn. The book of disquiet by fernando pessoa is perfect to dip into during sleepless nights, says sophia martelli. The prose is truly some of the most gorgeous musings about everyday life and existence that any reader could ever find. I love this strange work of fiction and i love the inventive, harddrinking, modest man who wrote it in obscurity. Assembled from notes and jottings left unpublished at the time of the authors death, the book of disquiet is a collection of aphoristic prosepoetry musings on dreams, solitude, time and memory. The book of disquiet its been hard these days for me to find meaning. The book of disquiet by fernando pessoa published for the first time some fifty years after his death, this unique collection of short, aphoristic paragraphs comprises the. Ive been drawn to existentialism which i understand to be the recognition that life lacks meaning, rendering the human condition a function of mere existence. The book of disquiet is one of the great literary works of the twentieth century. The book of disquiet is the weirdest autobiography ever. The book of disquiet by fernando pessoa, 97802412001, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. In the book of disquiet, bernardo soares, an assistant bookkeeper in a lisbon fabrics firm, records impressions he doesnt expect to see published.
The modernist master fernando pessoa s work remained largely unnoticed during his lifetime. The book of disquiet is the weirdest autobiography ever electric. The book of disquiet is a book that must be present at home. The book of disquiet fernando pessoa elif the reader. The book of disquiet, by the portuguese writer fernando pessoa, is properly speaking perhaps not a book at all, and i imagine pessoa would not necessarily be pleased to have his name so prominently affixed to it.
Fernando pessoa, the book of disquiet my soul is impatient with itself, as with a bothersome child. If ever there was a writer in flight from his name, it was fernando pessoa. The main characters of this poetry, fiction story are bernardo soares. You will either love it or will not be able to get your mind off of it. The book of disquiet, written by fernando pessoa, a portuguese poet, is considered an early classic of existential writing. A prolific writer, ascribing his work to a variety of personas or heteronyms, pessoa published little in his lifetime and supported. The book of disquiet penguin classics fernando pessoa. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The book of disquiet also translated as the book of disquietude has a format somewhat like a journal or diary and is also a collection of vignettes and reflections. The book of disquiet by fernando pessoa is one such modern masterpiece that i read last week. Published posthumously, the book of disquiet is a fragmentary.