Book Description
The collapse of the Soviet Union has opened up a huge consumer market, but how do you sell things to a generation that grew up with just one type of cola? When Tatarsky, a frustrated poet, takes a job as an advertising copywriter, he finds he has a talent for putting distinctively Russian twists on Western-style ads. But his success leads him into a surreal world of spin doctors, gangsters, drug trips, and the spirit of Che Guevera, who, by way of a Ouija board, communicates theories of consumer theology. A bestseller in Russia, Homo Zapiens displays the biting absurdist satire that has gained Victor Pelevin superstar status among today's Russian youth, disapproval from the conservative Moscow literary world, and critical acclaim worldwide.
Customer Reviews:
Homo Zapiens.......2005-06-19
Very funny and entertaining in the beginning but losing sence with each page. Also, I don't think Homo Zapiens is a very good title for this book, Generation "P" (for Pepsi) fitted much better
PS: The chapter about Che Guevara (titled Homo Zapiens) was one of my least favorites.
An abstract style.......2003-10-31
Victor exposes the disorder of his beloved country Russia with biting wit and black humor. In his latest dystopian novel, "Homo Zapiens," Pelevin focuses on the world of Russian advertising, often with hilarious results.
Babylen Tatarsky, a sales assistant at a Moscow newsstand, stumbles onto a job as a copywriter in Yeltsin's Russia, where the shady, wealthy clients often get shot by the mafia before they can pay him for his work. The challenge of his new job is tailoring Western ads for a Russian market unaccustomed to the values they represent. The slogans crafted by Tatarsky ("DIAMONDS ARE NOT FOREVER! THE BROTHERS DEBIRSIAN FUNERAL PARLOUR" ).
Looking for meaning in a country with a drunken president, daily assassinations of prominent social figures, a bloody conflict in Chechnya and a tightly controlled media oligarchy isn't easy, so Tatarsky turns to unconventional sources. In his search for guidance, he uses an Ouija board to channel the ghosts of Che Guevara and Dostoevski. Tatarsky comes to view reality as an illusion -- one as insubstantial as a television transmission.
Homo Zapiens is probably great fun for Russian readers, who know their realities and can appreciate the author's distortions. For American readers, though, the novel may seem a collection of stereotypes culled from American movies about contemporary Russia. On the whole the writing style is at times difficult to follow.
Watch your wow-impulse........2003-04-23
I am writing this mainly in defence of the translator. I totally disagree with a previous review that blamed Andrew Bromfield for spoiling the book with his "dull, dispassionate British English". Being a native Russian speaker, I have read this novel both in Russian and now in English. I attest that Bromfield does a fabulous job of conveying the message in a crisp and lucid way. The translation is not perfect in that it does not render all subtle allusions, of which are many, equally well, but let's be fair and don't ask for the impossible. As for the qualities of the novel itself, it's not as balanced as Buddha's Little Finger (aka Clay Machine-Gun) but it has quite a few masterfully done images of the post-Soviet reality. And the wow-impulse idea is just brilliant. My advice to a Western reader: do not be tricked by the capricious plot and weird characters; yet do not look for a deeper meaning and hidden references in every sentence. The bitter absurdity of today's Russia is a stage from which Pelevin makes some major statements, which are put forth forcefully and bluntly.
PS: this book is sometimes sold as Babylon.
Bizarre and at times unintelligible.......2002-06-24
To call this book bizarre would be a phenomenal understatement. Quirky, surreal, and at times so unintelligible that you wonder whether something got lost in the translation, this is not a book that I would recommend highly unless you know Pelevin's work and have enjoyed his particular brand of humor in the past. He certainly possesses a very unique outlook on Russian modern-day culture, and he is unapologetic in his ruthless assault on mass media, political institutions, and other elements of society. But his humor and his cultural reference points are perhaps too esoteric for the average American reader.
In Homo Zapiens, the main character, Tatarsky, stumbles into a career writing ad campaigns for various consumer products, ranging from Sprite to Parliament cigarettes. His new job brings him in contact with a range of zany characters, and ultimately leads him to some disturbing discoveries - such as the revelation that political leaders do not actually exist, but rather are simply digital images created by media companies for public consumption through the air waves. Homo Zapiens is filled with similar social commentaries that add definition to Pelevin's slightly disturbing world view. It is a refreshing, and at times humorous, insight into the Russian mentality, but ultimately not a particularly enjoyable or important piece of writing.
Generation "P".......2002-04-02
this was the original title, i have no idea why they changed it.
this book is a side-splitting, hair-raising, bone-chilling, toe-curling adventure. you don't have to know Soviet/post-Soviet history, but it helps.
Pelevin is one of the most gifted young Russian authors out there. he usually gets compared to Phillip K. Dick and Gogol, but i'd rather compare him to Tom Stoppard. the reason being that Pelevin has an incredible ear for what's funny, thought-provoking, and chilling at the same time. his erudition works in his favor: the book is full of word-play and contains layers upon layers of meaning, but never sounds overly cryptic or academic...
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Homo zapiens
Viktor Pelevine
Manufacturer: Seuil
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 2020327368 |
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Epoca, published by Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA) on April 19, 2002. The length of the article is 329 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Homo zapiens. (Curso Lateral).(programación televisiva sobre cultura)(TT: Homo zapiens. (Alternative courses).)(TA: cultural programming on television)(Artículo Breve)
Author: Fernando R. Lafuente
Publication:
Epoca (Magazine/Journal)
Date: April 19, 2002
Publisher: Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA)
Page: 129(1)
Article Type: Artículo Breve
Distributed by Thomson Gale
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Homo Zapiens
Victor Pelevin
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OJ4OJU |
Customer Reviews:
hidden passion.......2007-02-25
Back Cover:
A BUSINESS PROPOSITION.....
Bronte's had enough of rich, ruthless men-she's just narrowly escaped marrying one! Now she's wary of all men, especially when six feet two inches of pure Australian male arrives on her doorstep with a business proposal.....
A MARRIAGE OFFER.....
The Chemistry between her and tycoon Steven Randolph is explosive- Bronte finds him impossible to resist, and begins to dream of a future with him. Only then does she discover Steven is not all he seems....
Book Description
Bronte's had enough of rich, ruthless men - she just narrowly escaped marrying one! Now she's wary of all men, especially when six feet two inches of pure Australian male arrives on her doorstep with a business proposal . . . The chemistry between her and tycoon Steven Randolph is explosive - Bronte finds him impossible to resist, and begins to dream of a future together . . . Only then does she discover Steven is not all he seems.
Customer Reviews:
Hilarious Viking adventure.......2004-07-03
Hilary Frderickssen is a young American archaeologist with a passion for Vikings. A Viking ship burial is discovered on the site she is excavating in northern Scotland. When Hildy investigates, she gets a shock when she discovers that the Vikings on board the ship are still very much alive. King Hrolf of Caithness and his followers have been awoken from their thousand-year sleep to fight the evil Sorcerer King who rules his evil empire from an office block in London. Hildy has the daunting task of providing the Vikings with food, clothing, and transport, and helping them get to London to find the Sorcerer-King. There are some very funny incidents as she introduces them to the delights of fish and chips and Marks and Spencers suits. While Hildy accompanies the King and some of the Vikings to London, the ones remaining behind in Caithness kidnap Danny Baker, a hapless TV producer, and hold him hostage.This is a very funny book, with a clever plot and lots of amusing incidents and characters. The Vikings are a delightful bunch, especially Starkadd the Berserker ("like honey, thick and sweet")and Hildy is an engaging heroine. There are also two cthonic spirits, Zerxx and Perxx, who live off energy and are involved in playing a mysterious and complex game called Goblin's Teeth, which seems to be a blending of chess, scrabble, monopoly, snakes and ladders and any other game you can think of. I have read lots of Tom Holt's other books, but I don't like any of them nearly as much as this one.
Anglo-Saxon was never like this.......2002-12-28
Tom Holt's humorous fantasies tend to have the same basic framework, involving a feisty present-day female who somehow gets involved with historical or mythical characters come to life and pursuing their quest through the modern world (usually in Britain). Sometimes it works better than others. Here it works very well.
Enjoy, then, this tale of archaeologist Hildy who, excavating a Viking tomb in bleak and windswept Caithness (Scotland's northernmost county which really was, at one point, in military and cultural terms more a southern outpost of Scandinavia than a northern one of Britain) only to revive a team or warriors who were in suspended animation and promptly resume their mission, dragging her along with them. The Anglo-Saxon hero of the title doesn't feature, but an entertaining cast of characters does and Holt is on top form with his deft and humorous handling of plot and situations.
If you're new to Tom Holt this would be a good place to start.
A BOOK WITH A MISLEADING TITLE.......2001-09-13
Who's Afraid of Beowulf? Sure, it's a catchy title, but I'm afraid that it is misleading. Beowulf is not a character in the story, but he's mentioned about 3 times. Despite Beowulf's absence, this book is still pretty good. Tom Holt treats us to an interesting cast of characters that drive or walk around London or Caithness. There's the cameraman, who keeps saying, "This is like that time in (name of place) where such and such happened." There are two electron-like entities called Prexz and Zxerp, who have nothing better to do than play board games. Then there's the Vikings that Hildy Fredericks-daughter discovers. And together they vow to rid the world of a sorcerer that has managed to stay alive for several hundred years. This is a pretty decent parody on Vikings and fantasy. It's not so much that Tom Holt has funny scenes, but he has interesting characters, that make this book enjoyable. Unlike some parodies I've read, the end of this book is very satisfying and won't leave you hanging.
Be Careful What You Wish For.......2001-06-20
Archaeologist Hildy Frederiksen has always wanted to make a major discovery and an intact Viking ship burial certainly fits the bill. She most definitely does *not* expect the dead Vikings to come back to life and is understandably rattled when they do. It seems a thousand years ago King Rolf Earthstar of Caithness, ('God forsaken place but it is my Kingdom') and his band of heroes fought a dreadful battle with the evil Sorceror King, won the battle but lost track of their enemy and so found it necessary to do a 'King Arthur' that is put themselves into an enchanted sleep to wake when they are needed to destroy the Sorceror King once and for all. Thus Hildy finds herself the dazed and bewildered guide to an unflappable King Rolf and his bickering band of heroes as they make their way southward to confront the Enemy in his new stronghold, London. Absolutely hilarious.
Mythological Humor At It's Best!.......1998-10-27
There are many stories and sagas which tell how the Hero or king will return again if needed, but this story is surprisingly good. The returning Norse heros have no trouble with modern technology, they just equate it with old norse magical effects and abilities! With the help of an archeologist (Grave Robber) the old norse king returns to fight the evil sorcerer (Computer Magnate) whom he has vowed to defeat. The fun starts as the boatload of heros has to deal with being an archological find, and continues as they sort out all the technological wonders of the 20th century including television, modern warfare, and computers! After reading "Expecting Someone Taller" I looked for other titles by Tom Holt and was not disappointed by this outrageous romp. Highly reccommended!
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WHO'S AFRAID OF BEOWULF
Manufacturer: St, Martins Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GP6PZS |
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Who's Afraid of Beowulf
Tim Holt
Manufacturer: St Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0333460049 |
Book Description
Schleiermacher's On Religion: Speeches to its Cultured Despisers is a classic of modern Protestant religious thought that powerfully displays the tensions between the Romantic and Enlightenment accounts of religion. This edition presents the original 1799 text in English for the first time. Richard Crouter's introduction places the work in the milieu of early German Romanticism, Kant criticism, the revival of Spinoza and Plato studies, and theories of literary criticism and of the physical sciences. This fully annotated edition also contains a chronology and notes on further reading.
Customer Reviews:
Infinite, feelings and God.......2007-01-02
I read this book because he is referred to both by John Hannah's book entitled Our Legacy and in Charles Hodge's Theology. Dr. Hannah uses the views as an example of Liberal theology. I also have heard Schleiermacher referred to the discussion on Whitehorseinn radio broadcast (Whitehorseinn.org) In their discussions they talk about how some of todays evangelicals do theology based upon feelings of Who God is and what God wants devoid of scriptural reference or concern what God really wants. Charles Hodge also explains what is wrong with Schleiermacher's thoughts on theology in his three book writings on theology.
Schleiermacher in this work asks the reader to examine the relationship of ones own physical existence and the soul. To compare the metaphysical with the spiritual. To explore the finite in relationship to the infinite. The author's thoughts seem pantheistic yet he argues the Supreme Being has a personal relationship with individuals. There are things on earth and things in heaven. Man should not be totally task oriented. The author purposely avoids to use the word God in the context of the first Chapter and for the most part in the book. The author tries to dissuade the reader from old associations of thought.
"The sum total of religion, then, is to feel all that moves us in our feelings, in the supreme unity of it all, as one and the same, and to feel all that is individual and particular is meditated only through that unity- that is to feel our being and life as a being and life and through God".
Religion is a person's impression of god, man's existence, the creation, man's relationship with god and the creation. The author's insistence on equality or openness of contrary thoughts. What type of God does the author want the reader to come away with. To accept all writings on spiritual matters as somewhat of the same value.
In the introduction by Richard Crouter gives an excellent sketch of the intellectual climate of Germany and the time Schleiermacher walked on this earth. John Locke and David Hume writings were within sixty years of the author. Immanuel Kant wrote in the authors youth, the French Revolution happen in the author's early adulthood. Hume totally discounted the supernatural, miracles, and God. John Locke on Religion, Government and Religious institutions. Immanuel Kant Kant tried to incorporate a response to Hume about the perception of supernatural and morals. Schleiermacher's argument are more based on human experience- the utility of belief, experience and feeling brought forth by the practice of religious ceremony. The rest of the argument seems to about the author's religious relativeness. To be cognitive think through, but based on convenience or usefulness. The editor describes more academically.
The editor does describe the social perspective of religion. The need for insight of the relationship of the finite to the finite to be shared, to worship as to be experienced. The worship, the sacraments, the meditations, maybe some yelling as part to experience. The Author argues openess of new ideas, expression of contrary thoughts about God.
Rationality could not explain the essence of religion.......2005-06-20
In this book, Schleiermacher wanted to revitalize the idea that human feeling is absolutely dependent on God. One who reads history in his era will find that something had disappeared from religious life because of subjective rationalism. I assume this is exactly the reason for Romantic movement. In the view of Friedrich Schleiermacher, romanticism was a movement of the rediscovery of feeling as the essence of religion. Feeling is the key idea of how someone internalizes the values, morality, and even the idea of God within himself.
For Schleiermacher, science and knowledge which is based on rationality could not explain the essence of religion. Religion has nothing to do with the knowledge of nature. The knowledge of God, on the contrary, could not be understood in the frame of `cause and effect.' Religion always related to the infinite thing, and in order to understand it, one must use immediate feeling. Schleiermacher said, "to seek and to find this infinite and eternal factor in all that lives and moves...and to know life itself only in immediate feeling-that is religion." Schleiermacher denied science because it could not bring out the contemplation of the infinite. Science or knowledge of religion is not religion itself, and it obviously, cannot be, possibly on the same level with feeling or the contemplation of religion.
It is very clear in his book that Schleiermacher wanted to put science and morality underneath religion. One could not understand any thing without religion. As a result, morality and all ethical systems have no meaning without religion. Briefly, it is impossible for a person to be moral or scientific without religion.
After subjugating science, morality and even art, Schleiermacher redefined religion and its relation to the universe. He defined religion based on human feeling, even though it doesn't mean subjectivism. We feel all particular action, our being and life, only through the consciousness of God. The consciousness of God is a kind of "external circumstance" that makes all people have the same feeling. Thousands of people could feel the same religiosity aroused in the same manner because of that external circumstance.
I found a unique idea in this book when he said: "Every particular religious organization has limited horizons. None, therefore, is able to embrace all; nor, accordingly, is any able to believe that nothing is to be seen beyond its own horizons." From this argument, Schleiermacher wanted to convince readers that difference of feeling is inevitable. Everyone, then, must be ready to see that there may be different views and experiences. Again, this can happen because "the quality of feeling" may be different. Schleiermacher stated: "Religion, however, doesn't for a moment desire to encapsulate all who have faith and feeling within a single faith or feeling. Its task is to develop sensitivity for the eternal unity of life's originating source among people whose capacity for religious experience is still immature." Therefore, within the condition of `immature,' one must be ready to have openness. Each person must be open to the fact that perceptions and feelings belong to other forms of religion for which he may well lack any sensitivity at all. From this point, Schleiermacher imagined a clear conception of inter-subjectivity in religion. He said, "this is precisely the real source of the art and love we are looking for."
In relation to morality, Schleiermacher made a distinct separation between religion and conduct. He used an example: one who acts badly may have no morality at all, but one who has morality may not be pious as well. So, the relation between religion and morality is not implicative. Religion, in itself, doesn't urge people to action at all. One can act well or badly depending on one's feelings. Therefore, conduct as a whole should be regarded as a reaction of feeling. If someone puts a good character into his feeling, his conduct will be good as well. The more we can attribute the character of piety to a feeling, the more strongly it tends to retreat within it.
It changed the landscape of Christianity.......2002-04-30
This book, written by Schleiermacher in 1799 at the height of his involvement with the early German Romantics, was considered one of the most provocative and intriguing reads of its day. It continues to be read today because it retains that provocative and intriguing character. In an attempt to respond to Enlightenment critiques of religion, Schleiermacher creates an entirely novel manner of thinking and speaking about religion. In this book it is possible to see the beginnings of his creative and controversial move to ground religion, not in metaphysics or morals, but rather in feeling (or what he later will call immediate self-consciousness). The ripples of this move are still apparent in Protestant theology today. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in tracing the development of modern theology back to its roots. The Crouter translation is particularly good, and it expertly renders the 18th-century language into fluid, clear prose.
The birth of liberal protestantism ..........2000-08-25
... This book is a must read in order to understand the birth of liberal Protestant theology. Schleiermacher is a brilliant reaction to Kant's rational religion, with his theology of experience. One should read this in order to make sure your theology has heart.
However, Schleiermacher's solutions are wanting. In the 4th speech, he proposes that true religion can be found in small groups that are led by folks who have a closer connection to the divine than the members. In other words, let's go gather ourselves around some guru. Schleiermacher does not intend this, but in principle this idea does not exclude cases like the Branch Davidians, Hitler, etc. The later Schleiermacher of the Glaubenslehre is more self-conscious about theology's need to be continuous with tradition, while moving forward.
Read this book, then go read Barth's Word of God and the Word of Man.
The birth of liberal protestantism ..........2000-08-23
Everyone who is serious about theology should read this work. Schleiermacher's desire to reconnect religion with the spiritual is an attempt to get past Kant's rational religion. For people studying theology, he gives a helpful reminder that you should not lose your soul.
However, it's in the 4th Speech that Schleiermacher lost me. I along with Karl Barth could not believe him anymore. In the 4th Speech, Schleiermacher tips his hand. Religious folks ought to form societies where they are led by someone who is more connected to the divine than they are. This seems to be a harmless premise, but this can lead to some serious misunderstandings. What excludes the Branch Davidians from this category? Or Hitler and the Nazis? To be sure, I doubt that Schleiermacher intends for these horrible things to be part an outworking of his premise. As an evangelical, I also find this view of the church as wanting in terms of its view of justification by faith and the priesthood of all believers. If we are all to be led by religious gurus, doesn't this lead to an elitist view of church leadership. It seems that Luther's great insight that all Christians are beginners in the faith has been lost.
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- i never knew what time it was
- Illustrated Incumbered Estates
- In the Fold: A Novel
- Intertextualidad Generativa En: El Beso De LA Mujer Arana, De Manuel Puig (Coleccion Polymita) (Coleccion Polymita)
- Ira Foxglove
- JACK O'CONNOR THE LAST BOOK, CONFESSIONS OF A GUN EDITOR
- Jailbird
- Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams: Short Stories, Prose, and Diary Excerpts
- La guerra del fin del mundo
- LA Plaza Del Diamante/the Diamond Plaza
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