Destiny, or The Attraction of Affinities
Encyclopedia
Destiny, or The Attraction of Affinities (1996) is a novel by John David Morley
. Beginning in 1934 and ending in 1990, the book comprises a psychological history of modern Germany
over several generations.
and the division of the country, meanwhile falling in love with the daughter of a woman whom his own father had once hoped to marry. Conceived alongside the unification of Germany
in 1990, the novel confronts haunting questions about the collective guilt of the Holocaust
, the oppressive ideological constraints of life in the GDR and the radical terrorism of the Red Army Faction
. The narrative explicitly evokes Kleist
’s Michael Kohlhaas
and Caspar David Friedrich
’s Chalk Cliffs on Rügen
, while tracing the evolution of a cultural identity inescapably overshadowed by a political history of perennial trauma.
, Robert Hanks declared it “an uncommonly satisfying book, richly thoughtful and informative, balancing ideas and their symbols with bewitching preciseness.” For Valentine Cunningham
, writing in The Times Literary Supplement
: “Morley’s modern Germany is given us as a sequence of impossible — shocking, monstrous, buried — facts, which, like the blood of Abel that in the Bible ‘cries out from the ground’, demand explanation. And no one method will, it seems, suffice by itself as an entrée into these horrors. Destiny refuses to settle for any one thing: story, history, art history, documentary, essay, travel-writing. It will be all of these things in turn. And some of these kinds are done with great power.”
John David Morley
-Early life:The third and youngest child of the artist and sculptor Patricia Morley and John Arthur Elwell Morley, an officer in the British Colonial Service, John David Victor Morley was born “in something of a hurry on a bench in a third-class Chinese ward at the Kandang Kerbau Maternity...
. Beginning in 1934 and ending in 1990, the book comprises a psychological history of modern Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
over several generations.
Summary
Following in his father Magnus's footsteps, Jason Gould travels to Germany in 1961 but, unlike Magnus, Jason never returns to England, remaining to witness the construction of the Berlin WallBerlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
and the division of the country, meanwhile falling in love with the daughter of a woman whom his own father had once hoped to marry. Conceived alongside the unification of Germany
German reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
in 1990, the novel confronts haunting questions about the collective guilt of the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
, the oppressive ideological constraints of life in the GDR and the radical terrorism of the Red Army Faction
Red Army Faction
The radicalized were, like many in the New Left, influenced by:* Sociological developments, pressure within the educational system in and outside Europe and the U.S...
. The narrative explicitly evokes Kleist
Heinrich von Kleist
Bernd Heinrich Wilhelm von Kleist was a poet, dramatist, novelist and short story writer. The Kleist Prize, a prestigious prize for German literature, is named after him.- Life :...
’s Michael Kohlhaas
Michael Kohlhaas
Michael Kohlhaas is an 1811 novella by Heinrich von Kleist, based on a 16th-century story of Hans Kohlhase.Both the theme and the style are surprisingly modern...
and Caspar David Friedrich
Caspar David Friedrich
Caspar David Friedrich was a 19th-century German Romantic landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation. He is best known for his mid-period allegorical landscapes which typically feature contemplative figures silhouetted against night skies, morning...
’s Chalk Cliffs on Rügen
Chalk Cliffs on Rügen
Chalk Cliffs on Rügen is an oil painting of circa 1818 by the German Romantic artist Caspar David Friedrich.-Development:In January 1818, Caspar David Friedrich married Christiane Caroline Bommer, who was about 20 years his junior. On their honeymoon in July and August 1818, they visited relatives...
, while tracing the evolution of a cultural identity inescapably overshadowed by a political history of perennial trauma.
Reception
Reviewing Destiny in The IndependentThe Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, Robert Hanks declared it “an uncommonly satisfying book, richly thoughtful and informative, balancing ideas and their symbols with bewitching preciseness.” For Valentine Cunningham
Valentine Cunningham
Valentine Cunningham is a professor of English language and literature at the University of Oxford. He tutors English at Corpus Christi College, Oxford, where he is a Senior Fellow and Vice President. His specialism is modern English literature and literary theory. He has written a number of books,...
, writing in The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement is a weekly literary review published in London by News International, a subsidiary of News Corporation.-History:...
: “Morley’s modern Germany is given us as a sequence of impossible — shocking, monstrous, buried — facts, which, like the blood of Abel that in the Bible ‘cries out from the ground’, demand explanation. And no one method will, it seems, suffice by itself as an entrée into these horrors. Destiny refuses to settle for any one thing: story, history, art history, documentary, essay, travel-writing. It will be all of these things in turn. And some of these kinds are done with great power.”