True to Cărtărescu’s metafictional roots, the world of Theodoros is a giant text written by God. Historical events—such as Queen Victoria’s letters, the construction of giant Ethiopian cannons, or the Crimean War—are not merely political occurrences. They are spiritual symbols. The boundaries between reality, dream, and religious myth are entirely porous. 3. The Clashing of Civilizations
At its core, Theodoros is a novel about the corrupting force of absolute power. The epigraphs chosen by the Spanish translator’s edition set the stage: ’s famous maxim that “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely” appears alongside lines from Herodotus about the dangers of monarchy and a passage from the German constitutional theorist Karl Loewenstein about the entanglement of love, faith, and power. The Greek poet Constantine P. Cavafy also makes an appearance, with lines from his poem “Ithaca” about the journey being more important than the destination—a theme that resonates deeply with the novel’s focus on Theodoros’s long, bloody rise rather than his attainment of the throne.
—a novel that is part historical epic, part mythic fever dream. mircea cartarescu theodoros
Wait, I should make sure I'm accurate about the plot elements. Theodoros in "Blinding" is a character who receives a mysterious manuscript from Madame Schiaparelli, which propels him through a journey involving the monk Ciprian and the monastery, leading to a confrontation with historical and existential truths. The manuscript's content and the narrative's structure itself are intertwined, reflecting the themes of seeking truth and the nature of reality.
The book's most striking feature is its second-person narration. True to Cărtărescu’s metafictional roots, the world of
It is seen as a significant evolution of Cărtărescu's ability to create immersive, complex worlds, moving beyond his previous, more introspective works to a truly global (or, at least, trans-regional) perspective. Conclusion: A Masterpiece of Contemporary Fiction
"I burned this," Mircea whispered. "In 1986. I threw it into the stove because I was afraid the Securitate would find it. It was too... honest." The boundaries between reality, dream, and religious myth
“I am amazed by how easily the story flows and the use of Romanian archaic words... It is so densely packed with real world facts which are so well woven into the story he's telling.” Reddit · r/TrueLit · 3 years ago
The novel is a fictionalized, or rather transfigured , biography of Theodoros, a real historical figure: a Portuguese sailor of obscure origin who, in the 1500s, became the infamous pirate "John the Blind" (João El-Barranco), eventually ruling the island of Socotra as a mad, one-eyed king. Cărtărescu uses this skeleton of historical adventure to stage his usual metaphysical drama—but now in a tropical, sun-scorched palette rather than the grimy, snowy Bucharest of his previous work.
If you would like to explore this novel further, let me know if you want to focus on its , a deep dive into the archangel narrator system , or a comparison between Theodoros and Solenoid . Share public link