A severed head
by Iris Murdoch
1988Man-woman relationshipsFictionBritish and irish fiction (fictional works by one author)Classic LiteratureLiterature
4.2
Open LibraryFirst lines
'YOU'RE sure she doesn't know,' said Georgie.
'You're sure she doesn't know,' said Georgie.
Violence, except on the screen, is always pathetic, ludicrous, and beastly.
I am a severed head such as primitive tribes and old alchemists used to use, anointing it with oil and putting a morsel of gold upon its tongue to make it utter prophecies. And who knows but that long acquaintance with a severed head might not lead to strange knowledge.
About this book
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'.
Themes & subjects
Man-woman relationshipsFictionBritish and irish fiction (fictional works by one author)Classic LiteratureLiteraturerelationships
First published 1988Setting
LondonCambridgeJapanUnited StatesNew York
About the author
Iris Murdoch
15 July 1919 – 8 February 1999
Iris Murdoch was an Irish-born British author and philosopher, best known for her novels about sexual relationships, morality, and the power of the unconscious. Her first published novel, Under the Net, was selected in 2001 by the editorial board of the American Modern Library as one of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. In 1987, she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.([Source][1].) [1]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iris_Murdoch
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