“Cancel, yes, cancel, and begin again”: John Banville’s Path from ‘Einstein” to Mefisto
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37389/abei.v22i1.3853Keywords:
Mefisto, literary manuscripts, Literary manuscripts, Narrative voice, Albert Einstein, Science and LiteratureAbstract
Focusing on unpublished manuscript materials, this article is the first scholarly attempt to investigate the textual and thematic evolution of John Banville’s Mefisto (1986). As originally conceived, Mefisto would loosely follow Albert Einstein’s life story in order to investigate the moral and political undercurrents of 20th-century European weltanchauung. However, the novel’s five-year-long composition process culminates with the eradication of these historical, moral and scientific concerns. Mefisto is finally born when Banville establishes Gabriel Swan’s narrative voice. As this article argues, this novel constitutes a turning point not only for the science tetralogy but for Banville’s literary career.
References
Acocella, Joan. “Doubling Down.” The New Yorker (8 October 2012).
Banville, John. Prospectus. Secker & Warburg. The Archive of British Publishing and Printing. University of Reading. , ‘Einstein,’ TS Draft, 10252/8/9. John Banville collection. Trinity College Library in Dublin.
---. ‘Einstein,’ TS Draft, 10252/8/10. John Banville collection. Trinity College Library in Dublin.
---. ‘Einstein,’ MS Draft, 10252/8/6. John Banville collection. Trinity College Library in Dublin.
---. ‘Gemini,’ MS Draft, 10252/8/7. John Banville collection. Trinity College Library in Dublin.
---. ‘Version III,’ TS Draft, 10252/8/3. John Banville collection. Trinity College Library in Dublin.
---. Mefisto. 1986. London: Minerva, 1993.
Bernstein, Jeremy. Einstein. Suffolk: Fontana/Collins, 1973.
Best, Nicholas. “When Predatory Children Run in Germany.” The Financial Times. 13 September 1986: xiv.
Carty, Ciaran. “Out of Chaos Comes Order.” The Sunday Tribune. 14 September 1986:18.
Einstein, Albert. “Autobiographical Notes.” Albert Einstein: Philosopher-Scientist. Ed. Paul Arthur Schlipp. Vol.1. New York: Harper & Brother’s Publishers, 1951: 1-95.
Findlay, Allen. “An Irish Devil.” Literary Review. (November) 1986: 11.
Friberg, Hedda. “John Banville and Derek Hand in Conversation.” Irish University Review, vol.36, no.1, (Spring-Summer) 2006: 200-215.
Hand, Derek. John Banville: Exploring Fictions. Dublin: The Liffey Press, 2002.
Hoffmann, Banesh. Albert Einstein: Creator and Rebel. New York: The Viking Press, 1972.
Imhof, Rüdiger. “Mefisto.” Irish University Review. Vol.17, No.1 (Spring, 1987): 137-140.
---. “Q & A with John Banville.” Irish Literary Supplement. (Spring, 1987): 13.
Jackson, Joe. “Hitler, Stalin, Bob Dylan, Roddy Doyle… and Me.” Hot Press. Vol.18, No.19 (5 October 1994): 14-16.
Kelly, William. “John Banville’s Great Expectations.” Irish Literary Supplement. (Spring, 1987): 15.
Leland, Mary. “Gabriel’s Sinister Angel.” Irish Times. 13 September 1986: 5.
Lenzen, Victor F. “Einstein’s Theory of Knowledge.” Albert Einstein: Philosopher-Scientist. Ed. Paul Arthur Schlipp. Vol.2. New York: Harper & Borother’s Publishers, 1951: 355-384.
McKeon, Belinda. “John Banville, The Art of Fiction No.200.” The Paris Review. No. 188. Spring 2009. 132-153.
Meaney, Helen. “Master of Paradox.” Irish Times. 24 March 1993, 12.
O’Mahony, Andy, ‘Interview with John Banville.’ The Book Show. RTÉ 1. 15 April 1976.
Powell, Kersti Tarien. “‘The Answer … Is Yes and No’: John Banville, Henry James, and The Ambassadors.” Irish University Review, vol. 45, no. 2, Nov. 2015: 302–319.
Sheehan, Ronan. “The Devil I Know.” Image. (September) 1986: 164, 166.
---.“John Banville and the Music of the Spheres.” The Irish Times. 13 September 1986: 9.
Tonkin, Boyd. “The Wrong Choice in a List Packed with Delights.” The Independent (11 October 2005)
Walters, Margaret. “Middle Distance Man.” The Observer. 14 September 1986: 27.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2020 Kersti Tarien Powell
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
