Iris Murdoch könyvei a rukkolán

Iris Murdoch - The ​Sacred and Profane Love Machine
Montague ​Small, an obsessive writer of detective thrillers, mourns his lately dead wife, who may or may not have been unfaithful to him. His attempts at meditation are a failure. He detests his fictional detective. His interest in his neighbour's difficulties and his neighbour's wife appear to be his only consolations after all. The neighbour, Blaise Gavender, is an amateur psychotherapist who has seen through himself. Has Blaise the courage to change his life and become an honest man? What is honesty in any case? Blaise's wife Harriet lives for love, love of her husband, love of her son. She if fond of Monty too. Emily McHugh is quite another matter. She too lives for love: for love and justice and revenge, aided and incited by her ambiguous friend Constance Pinn. Emily's son Luca, a very disturbed child, becomes the subject of a tug of war between two possessive women. Edgar Demornay, a distinguished scholar, also blunders into the fray; he adores Monty and falls in love with Monty's women. A deed of violence finally solves many problems. This is a story of different loves; and of how a man may need two women in such a way that he can be happy with neither. Sacred and profane love are related opposites; the one enjoyed renders the other necessary, so that the ever unsatisfied heart swings constantly to and fro.

Iris Murdoch - A ​háló alatt
A ​főhős, Jake Donaghue, a "szabadúszó" irodalmár helyet keres magának a világban. Afféle "dühös fiatal" ő is, de rossz közérzetét, elégedetlenségét nem szenvedélyes dühkitörésekkel fejezi ki, hanem szkeptikus gúnyolódással. A legelképesztőbb kalandok során sem veszti el ironikus nyugalmát: a híres filmsztár konyhaajtaja előtt hallgatózik, s alig tud megmenekülni a felindult lakók haragjától: súlyos kockázatot vállalva, elrabolja a hollywoodi állatfilmek sztárját, egy idomított kutyát, barátja lakásán felrobbant egy széfet, hogy néhány levelet megszerezzen, és így tovább. Krimiparódia? Több annál! Abszurd szituációkba került Jake egyetlenegy kérdésre keres választ: feloldható-e a magány, létrehozhatók-e igaz emberi kapcsolatok? Leginkább bölcseleti kalandregénynek nevezhetjük Iris Murdoch könyvét, nemcsak azért, mert a humoros, sőt fantasztikus eseményeket sokszor hosszú oldalakra megszakítják a filozófiai elmélkedések, hanem, mert a sohói éjszakát, a varázslatos Párizst szuggesztíven felidéző kalandok maguk is egy sajátos életszemléletet fejeznek ki.

Iris Murdoch - Jackson's ​Dilemma
Edward ​Lannion, the young master of Hatting Hall, is about to marry Marian Fox. At Penndean, a nearby house, preparations are under way for the wedding, overseen by the anxious Benet. Family and friends gather together for a celebratory dinner on the eve of the ceremony. The night is warm and clear, and after dinner the guests walk in the grounds and under the stars, full of happy anticipation. But then there is a sudden and extraordinary event, which changes everything. Iris Murdoch's new novel is a marvellous and compelling human comedy. Edward and Marian, the couple at the centre of the story, are led by events to learn the truth about themselves; in the process, their friends, and lovers, are forced to make new choices, and see things as they are. And watching over all of them is Jackson, Benet's servant, a dark, mysterious and dangerous presence. It is Jackson who must intervene in the story to set the two young lovers onto the right path. Funny, moving and utterly gripping, JACKSON'S DILEMMA is a triumphant achievement by our greatest writers.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Book and the Brotherhood
Many ​years ago Gerard Hernshaw and his friends 'commissioned' one of their number to write a political book. Time passes and opinions change. 'Why should we go on supporting a book which we detest?' Rose Curtland asks. 'The brotherhood of Western intellectuals versus the book of history,' Jenkin Riderhood suggests. The theft of a wife further embroils the situation. Moral indignation must be separated from political disagreement. Tamar Hernshaw has a different trouble and a terrible secret. Can one die of shame? In another quarter a suicide pact seems the solution. Duncan Cambus thinks that, since it is a tragedy, someone must die. Someone dies. Rose, who has gone on loving without hope, at least deserves a reward.

Iris Murdoch - Sartre
Iris ​Murdoch assesses the different strands of Jean-Paul Sartre’s rich and complex work. Sartre’s political passions combined with his memorable literary gift place him foremost among the novelists as well as the philosophers of our time. Iris Murdoch discusses the tradition of philosophical, political and aesthetic thought that gives historical authenticity to Sartre’s achievement, while showing the ambiguities and dangers inherent in his position.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Sandcastle
The ​quiet life of schoolmaster Bill Mor and his wife Nan is disturbed when a young woman, Rain Carter, arrives at the school to paint the portrait of the headmaster. Mor, hoping to enter politics, becomes aware of new desires. A complex battle develops, involving love, guilt, magic, art and political ambition. Mor's teenage children and their mother fight discreetly and ruthlessly against the invader. The Head, himself enchanted, advises Mor to seize the girl and run. The final decision rests with Rain. Can a 'great love' be purchased at too high a price?

Iris Murdoch - Bruno's ​Dream
Bruno ​is nearly ninety. Obsessed with his past and a passion for spiders, he is the centre of a complex web of relationships involving his estranged son Miles; Danby, his hapless son-in-law; Danby's mistress, Adelaide; and her twin cousins, the vengeful Will and the mischievous, sinister Nigel.

Iris Murdoch - Henry ​and Cato
This ​is the story of two prodigal sons. Henry returns from a self-imposed exile in America to an unforeseen inheritance of wealth and land in England and to his mother. His friend Cato is struggling with two passions, one for a God who may or may not exist, the other for a petty criminal who may or may not be capable of salvation. Cato's father and sister Colette wait anxiously to welcome Cato back to sanity.

Iris Murdoch - A ​jó uralma
„[A] ​z emberi viselkedést igen jelentős részben egocentrikus mechanikus energia mozgatja. Az erkölcsi életben az ellenség a kövér, kérlelhetetlen egó. A helyes morálfilozófia - amint némelykor a múltban ez volt a helyzet - ennek az egónak és a legyőzéséhez vezető technikáknak (ha vannak egyáltalán) a tárgyalása. Ebben a tekintetben a morálfilozófiának vannak a vallással közös céljai. Ezt kimondva persze azt is tagadjuk egyszersmind, hogy a morálfilozófiának semlegességre kellene törekednie. ” Iris Murdoch Iris Murdoch brit filozófus és regényíró. Fő munkáiban morális témákat feszeget. Első regényét, _ A háló alatt_ címűt 2001-ben az American Modern Library a 20. század 100 legkiválóbb angol nyelvű regénye közé választotta. Legismertebb bölcseleti műve első ízben jelenik meg magyarul az MMA Kiadó gondozásában.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Flight from the Enchanter
A ​group of people have elected ambiguous and fascinating Mischa Fox to be their God. While Mischa is charming his devotees, his alter egoCalvin Blick, is inspiring fear, and Rosa Keepe, a high-minded bluestocking under Mischa's spell (who also loves two Polish brothers)is swept into the battle between sturdy common sense and dangerous enchantment.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Unicorn
When ​Marian Taylor takes a post as governess at Gaze Castle, a remote house upon a beautiful but desolate coast, she finds herself confronted with a number of weird mysteries and involved in a drama she only partly understands. Some crime or catastrophe in the past still keeps the house, like the castle of the Sleeping Beauty, under a spell, whose magic also touches the neighbouring house of Riders, inhabited by a scholarly recluse. Marian's employer, Hannah, and her retainers, seem to be acting out some tragic pattern: but it is not clear whether Hannah herself, the central figure, the Unicorn, is innocent victim or violent author, saint or witch... In a novel that has all the beauty of a fairy story and the melodrama of a Gothic tale, Murdoch explores the fantasies and ambiguities which beset those who are condemned to be passionately abandoned and yet hopelessly imperfect in their search for God.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Bell
A ​lay community of thoroughly mixed-up people is encamped outside Imber Abbey, home of an enclosed order of nuns. A new bell,legendary symbol of religion and magic, is rediscovered. Dora Greenfield, erring wife, returns to her husband. Michael Mead, leader of the community, is confronted by Nick Fawley, with whom he had disasterous homosexual relations, while the wise old Abbess watches and prays and exercies discreet authority. And everyone, or almost everyone, hopes to be saved whatever that may mean...Iris Murdoch's funny and sad novel is about religion, the fight between good and evil and the terrible accidents of human frailty.

Iris Murdoch - A ​Fairly Honourable Defeat
In ​this dark comedy of errors, Julius, a cynical intellectual, decides to demonstrate through a Machiavellian experiment how easily loving couples, caring friends, and devoted siblings can betray their loyalties.

Iris Murdoch - An ​Unofficial Rose
From ​the elderly widower, Hugh, to his granddaughter, Miranda, the nine characters in this novel are all looking for love; and so closely is the web woven that the actions and passions of each are constantly affecting the others.

Iris Murdoch - Living ​on Paper
‘Love ​is the extremely difficult realisation that something other than oneself is real’ This selection of Iris Murdoch’s most interesting and important letters gives us a living portrait of one of the twentieth century’s greatest writers and thinkers. Here for the first time is Murdoch in her own words, from her schoolgirl days to her last years. The letters show a great mind at work – we watch the young Murdoch struggling with philosophical issues, often unsure of herself; witness her anguish when a novel won’t come together; observe her involved in world events and exploring sensuality. They are full of sharp humour and irreverence. They also reveal her personal life, the subject of much speculation, in all its intriguing complexity: her emotional hunger and her tendency to live on the edge of what was socially acceptable. Gradually, we see how this fed into her novels’ plots and characters, despite her claims that her fiction was not drawn from reality. Quite apart from giving these valuable insights, her letters bring us closer than ever before to Iris Murdoch as a person. They make for an extraordinary and intimate reading experience: she is wonderful company.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Sea, The Sea
Charles ​Arrowby, leading light of England's theatrical set, retires from glittering London to an isolated home by the sea. He plans to write a memoir about his great love affair with Clement Makin, his mentor, both professionally and personally, and amuse himself with Lizzie, an actress he has strung along for many years. None of his plans work out, and his memoir evolves into a riveting chronicle of the strange events and unexpected visitors-some real, some spectral-that disrupt his world and shake his oversized ego to its very core.

Iris Murdoch - An ​Accidental Man
This ​is the story of the comic and yet relentless struggle for survival of Austin Gibson Grey, the accidental man. Austin is one of those people who needs to survive through the destruction of others. The others, in Austin's case, include his successful elder brother, Matthew, and the women who, one after the other, are so touchingly convinced that they can 'save' him. In this latter role we meet Austin's estranged wife, Dorina, a crazed angel, and Austin's far from angelic alcoholic landlady, Mitzi. Other women interest themselves too in Austin's fate, with hilarious and appalling results. An Accidental Man is a novel of extraordinary scope and variety in which Iris Murdoch's astonishing fertility of mind and unerring narrative skill are most felicitously combined.

Iris Murdoch - Under ​the Net
Iris ​Murdoch’s first novel is a gem – set in a part of London where struggling writers rub shoulders with successful bookies, and film starlets with frantic philosophers. Its hero, Jake Donaghue, is a likable young man who makes a living out of translation work and sponging off his friends. A meeting with Anna, an old flame, leads him into a series of fantastic adventures.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Fire and the Sun
An ​introduction to the philosophy of Plato and his attitude to art and his theory of beauty in particular and an account of Murdoch's views on Plato and art. She broadens the discussion to include the opinions of other writers and philosophers, from Aristotle through to Kant, Tolstoy, Freud, Derrida and Jane Austen. Topics touched on are Plato's view of homosexuality, music as therapy, and the Greek view of fine art. Apart from this book, Iris Murdoch's books of philosophy include "The Sovereignity of Good", "Sartre Romantic Rationalist" and "Acastos: Two Platonic Dialogues".

Iris Murdoch - The ​Nice and the Good
A ​novel originally published in 1968, revolving around a happily married couple and telling of a violent death, blackmail, suspected espionage, Black Arts, stress and terror, over which love conquers all.

Ronald Millar - Iris Murdoch - J. B. Priestley - John Chapman - David Campton - Plays ​Of The Sixties 2
Plays ​include "The Affair" (Ronald Millar), "A Severed Head" (Iris Murdoch and J. B. Priestley), "Simple Spymen" (John Chapman), "Soldier From The Wars Returning" (David Campton).

Iris Murdoch - The ​Italian Girl
Edmund ​has escaped from his family into a lonely life. Returning for his mother's funeral he rediscovers the eternal family servant, the ever-changing Italian girl, who was always "a second mother."

Iris Murdoch - A ​Severed Head
Martin ​Lynch-Gibbon believes he can possess both a beautiful wife and a delightful lover. But when his wife, Antonia, suddenly leaves him for her psychoanalyst, Martin is plunged into an intensive emotional re-education. He attempts to behave beautifully and sensibly. Then he meets a woman whose demonic splendour at first repels him and later arouses a consuming and monstrous passion. As his Medusa informs him, 'this is nothing to do with happiness'.

Iris Murdoch - The ​Black Prince
"The ​Black Prince" is both a remarkable thriller and a story about being in love. Bradley Pearson, narrator and hero, is an elderly writer with a 'block'. Finding himself surrounded by predatory friends and relations - his ex-wife, her delinquent brother, a younger, deplorably successful writer, Arnold Baffin, Baffin's restless wife and engaging daughter - Bradley attempts to escape. His failure to do so and its aftermath lead to a violent climax and a most unexpected conclusion.

Iris Murdoch - Acastos
Esteemed ​novelist, playwright, poet, and philosopher Murdoch blends all her talents in these stimulating explorations of the value of art and religion. Although "Art and Eros" and "Above the Gods" follow Plato's classic formula of discussion between Socrates and a circle of young pupils, Murdoch's dialogues are intended for theatrical performance and maintain a dramatic tension absent in Plato's work. Each pupil is defined by a fundamental character trait: the sincere, searching Acastos, defined by Murdoch as "a serious youth," spearheads the interactions with Socrates, while Plato manifests as a moody, troubled dreamer whose passionate insights penetrate to the heart of the matter. Other modern touches include much humorous banter (at times too much, lending some exchanges the air of a philosophical sitcom), nods to 20th-century realities in the symbolism of the characters and the tone of their responses (Mantias, for instance, defined as "a political man," is a proponent of what clearly is social realism), a continual emphasis on the outspoken homosexuality of the participants, and a jazzy, often fragmented way of speaking. Socrates, who appears as the very embodiment of wisdom, is Murdoch's voice box as she tackles such weighty questions as "Can there be religion without gods or a personal god?" and "How would you define art?" Using the Socratic dialectic in a nearly seamless manner, Murdoch step-by-step develops profound and satisfying answers to these questions. Although cloaked in basically ancient garb, this is contemporary philosophy of a high order, challenging and a feast for the intellect. (Kirkus Reviews)

Iris Murdoch - The ​Time of the Angels
Carel ​is rector of a non-existent City church (it was destroyed in the war). In the rectory live his daughter, Muriel, his beautiful invalid ward, Elizabeth, and their West Indian servant, Patti. Here too are Eugene, a Russian emigre, and his delinquent son, Leo. Carel's brother, Marcus, co-guardian with him of Elizabeth, tires to make contact with Carel but is constantly rebuffed. These seven characters go through a dance of attraction and repulsion, misunderstanding and revelation, the centre of which is the enigmatic Carel himself - a priest who believes that, God being dead, His angels are released. At the end, Muriel finds herself with the power of life and death over her father.

Iris Murdoch - Metaphysics ​as a Guide to Morals
This ​book is about the interplay of metaphysical images in art, religon, and especially morals. Morality is fundamental to human nature and is to be understood, according to distinguished novelist and philosophy professor Murdoch, not merely in piecemeal analysis but in the broad synthesis of metaphysical categories that set the order and pattern of our moral experience and our concepts thereof. Moral discernment comes from concentrated attention and appears ex nihilo , as by a kind of grace that leads us from contingent detail toward a perfection that we (allegedly) know intuitively. The work draws significant influence from Plato and Kant and also discusses aspects of Schopenhauer, Wittgenstein, and Buber in detail. Far-ranging and rich with well-chosen examples, this insightful book challenges us to think more clearly about its subject.