Things to do to get a grip on Dutch Literature

Reading is good for you if you are a language student. The more you read, the more you will understand. But reading literature is something else. You read novels to get a feel of the author's culture. And you can do that without necessarily knowing the language, because literature can be read in translation. For instance, I thoroughly enjoy reading Haruki Murakami's books, although I do not understand the Japanese language at all.

There are two books by two important Dutch authors that you can easily get hold of in translation, in case your Dutch is not good enough, yet, to read the entire novel in its original language. They are: De donkere kamer van Damokles (1958) and De aanslag (1982), translated as The Darkroom of Damocles and The Assault.
They are written by two of our greatest postwar authors: W.F.Hermans (1921-1995) and Harry Mulisch (1927). You can YouTube the authors names, if you like, there are fragments of interviews with them on the net.

I have often discussed the novels with my students. De donkere kamer van Damokles is a very interesting story to read, but once they've read it, the discussion is about who was right. Who understood the story correctly? Is it the one group of students, who argue fervently that Osewoudt, the main character, spoke the truth, or is it the other group, who think differently? Both camps are convinced they are the ones who know best. And I agree with them.

De aanslag students also enjoy reading. I like the way the story is built up: it starts in Haarlem in 1945, during the war, then moves on to postwar events: a demonstration against the Russian invasion in Hungary, Amsterdam, 1956, the anti nuclear demonstration in 1981. It is about the boy Anton, who loses his entire family because of an assault in 1945. But he grows up, life goes on, he lives his own life, and, from time to time, he accidentally meets people who have also had to live with the consequences of that same assault.
A movie was made of this book in 1986, by Fons Rademakers - it was awarded an Oscar for best foreign film.

I hope you will enjoy reading these novels, and so get a little extra insight into Dutch culture. Ik wens u er veel plezier mee!

Nette Menke
http://www.nederlandselesinscheveningen.blogspot.com/

The Darkroom of Damocles is a very interesting story to read, but once they've read it, the discussion is about who was right. Who understood the story correctly? Is it the one group of students, who argue fervently that Osewoudt, the main character, spoke the truth, or is it the other group, who think differently? Both camps are convinced they are the ones who know best.