Forsyte Saga [Paperback]

 

 

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Family secrets, dirty little problems, gambling, divorce, illegitimate babies and a dash of adultery, scandal and forbidden love. Soap opera?

Not exactly. It's Nobel Prize Winner John Galsworthy's sprawling family epic "The Forsyte Saga," a three-volume saga that spans the nouveau riche Forsyte clan, and the devastating events that threaten their ever-respectable facade. Galsworthy's lush writing and intricate, insightful stories are excellent on their own, but the dignified handling of 19th-century laws and mores -- and how they changed -- add an extra dimension to his writing.

While it has a distinctly soapy flavor, "Saga" retains its dignity and look at turn-of-the-century mores and society.

The Forsyte family is determinedly regal and hard-nosed, almost to the point of a fault. And as the story begins, the Forsyte family has come together to celebrate June Forsyte's engagement to a young bohemian architect, Philip Bosinney -- except for June's father, who eloped with the governess and is now shunned by his family.

Among the guests are the stuffy, domineering Soames Forsyte and his quiet, unhappy wife Irene -- though she conditionally agreed to marry him, she doesn't love him. But Soames regards Irene as his most valuable piece of property, even as she begins an ill-fated affair with Bosinney. At the same time, the patriarch Jolyon starts to kick off family disapproval, and goes to see his estranged son.

Soames' determination to "own" Irene leads to tragedy for all three of them, and Irene and Soames separate for the next decade. But when Soames demands a divorce so he can marry a French girl, he finds himself obsessed and stalking Irene once again. And as before, Soames' harassment drives his estranged wife into the arms of another man -- his disgraced cousin Young Jolyon. And even as Soames gains a new woman, he finds that you don't get everything you want...

A new complication enters the works almost two decades later -- Soames' daughter Fleur is immediately attracted to Irene's son Jon. The two start an innocent romance, unaware of their parents' past together, but still overshadowed by the loathing and shame Soames and Irene have for each other. An aristocratic suitor for Fleur, mysterious letters and a secret love affair all come to the surface, as Fleur and Jon discover that love isn't always enough to overcome the bitterness of the past...

The Forsyte Saga is indeed a saga -- it stretches from the stuffy Victorian era into the first bloom of the roaring twenties. Despite the early claim that Forsytes would never die, various characters age, die and weave new lives for themselves, and grapple with a rapidly changing world -- including the new rights for women as individuals, rather than "property."

The first part was written in a time before the world of England's upper crust changed forever -- sort of an English "Age of Innocence." And while Galsworthy's first trilogy can be seen as the story of an obsession, it can also be seen as the portrait of the Forsytes overall -- stuffy, gilded, and eager to forget the working class roots a few generations back.

Galsworthy paints this time in a flurry of lush, dignified prose , filled with slightly mocking notes about the Forsyte family, and tiny gestures and expressions that convey more than actual dialogue could ("Huddled in her grey fur against the sofa cushions, she had a strange resemblance to a captive owl") and lushly written descriptives ("... over the lush grass fell the thick shade from those fruit trees planted by her father five-and-twenty years ago").

Yet there are touching moments too, like Old Jolyon paying a visit to his estranged son and his lower-class second wife, and the grandchildren he has never met. The awkwardness, love and pain in these scenes is truly astounding.

As for the main characters of this drama, Galsworthy handles their passions and involvements delicately and with dignity. No soap opera dramatics -- just a married woman in love with her best pal's fiance, and who is raped by her angry husband. And then a realist's version of "Romeo and Juliet," if Romeo and Juliet's parents were exes and no suicides came into it.

Soames and Irene are really at the center of this book -- she remote, quiet and something of a mystery even to the readers, and he a selfish, close-minded man who wants to "own" people. Their children are far more endearing -- Fleur is passionate and vivacious, and Jon is sensitive and sweet. But there's a vast cast of interesting characters in the Forsyte family, especially melancholy Young Jolyon and his artistic daughter June.

Bitterness, obsession and love fill the pages of the "Forsye Saga," and provide the start of a truly classic trilogy of great novels.

Family secrets, dirty little problems, and a dash of adultery, scandal and forbidden love. Soap opera? Well, sort of -- it's Nobel Prize Winner John Galsworthy's sprawling family epic "The Forsyte Saga." While it has a distinctly soapy flavor, "Saga" retains its dignity and look at turn-of-the-century mores and society.

The Forsyte family is determinedly regal and hard-nosed, almost to the point of a fault. One staid family member, Soames Forsyte, becomes obsessed with the beautiful but poor Irene, and finally gets her to marry him. Well, their marriage doesn't work. Soames is frustrated that Irene shuts him out of her life and her bed -- even more so when he learns that she is in love with sexy, arty architect Bosinney, who is building them a new house.

Soames rapes Irene and ruins Bosinney. His marriage falls into ruins, and Bosinney is killed in a car accident. So Irene leaves permanently, living in an apartment by herself. Then Soames announces that he wants to marry a pretty French girl, Annette, and Irene weds Soames' cousin. But the problems of the older generation get inherited by the younger one -- Soames's daughter falls madly in love with Irene's son, but their parents' secret pasts doom their love.

Three novels ("A Man of Property," "In Chancery," and "To Let"), connected with two short stories ("Indian Summer of a Forsyte" and "Awakening") -- it's a pretty big story, sprawling over three generations and four decades. It's a bit soapy, with all the scandal and family weirdness, but the dignified writing keeps it from seeming sordid.

It's a credit to Galsworthy that he can communicate so much without ever getting into his characters' heads. He displays emotion in undemonstrative people like Irene through little mannerisms and twitches. At the same time, he can give us heartrending looks into aging patriarch Old Jolyon's lonely mind. His writing is very nineteenth century, dignified and with plenty of furniture/clothing details. It's pretty dense, but all right once you get used to it.

Galsworthy was a solid supporter of women's rights, and you can see in Irene and Soames' relationship -- Soames, who sees his wife as another piece of property, and the determined Irene who only wants her own happiness, but can't afford to live on her own. Their respective kids Jon and Fleur are nice but kind of boring beside their darker, more intense parents.

For a look at the social shifts that helped define the twentieth century, take a look at the "Forsyte Saga." Or if you just want to soak in a tale of family woe, love, hate and dark secrets, "Saga" still works.

I have read most of the great novels and i find this to be far superior to many considered part of the essential western canon. The psychology, subtlety of narrative and memorable characters (Old Jolyon being my favorite in a book chock full of interesting characters) are all above and beyond most novels i have read. There is something wonderful about the scale of the novel and I would often find myself weeping while reading this- people often create their own tragedies and those moments are worth reading about. Simply perfect.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Read It And Weep...
This body of works has moved me unlike any other. I have re-read the Forsyte Saga over and over again. Each time, I am brought to tears. Read more

Published on Aug 19 2003 by missfinn

5.0 out of 5 stars The denizens of a 19th century superpower -the
I read the Forsyte saga while I was in college - and was instantly hooked. John Galsworthy wormholes you into a different
world and time, but as the essence and humanity of... Read more

Published on Jun 19 2003 by R. D. Malladi

5.0 out of 5 stars No wonder Galsworthy won!
What an infinite study of character, the Forsyte character, men of ownership, of possession, of material things! Read more

Published on Dec 31 2002 by dikybabe

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant novel
I finished three-quarters of this entire book in less than a week; the first novel of the three in less than two days. That's how good "The Forsyte Saga" is. Read more

Published on Nov 9 2002 by Lady Blakeney

5.0 out of 5 stars A Nobel saga
The writing evident in this epic is masterful and engaging: it is even and substantive and elegant. The rich irony about the lengths that men strive to acquire property in all its... Read more

Published on Dec 13 2001 by Wordsworth

3.0 out of 5 stars Simply soap opera - but a good one
I got hooked on John Galsworthy's Forsyte novels when I saw the BBC TV series in 1969. At that time I sympathized with Irene and Bossinney and hated Soames for what he did to... Read more

Published on Sep 12 2001 by Jesse Monteagudo

5.0 out of 5 stars everybody just reads the first novel (and that's a shame)
The 1933 Scribner's edition of this classic trilogy is worthwhile because of the preface by Ada Galsworthy, the author's wife. Read more

Published on April 30 2000 by Philip Greenspun

5.0 out of 5 stars ONE OF THE FORGOTTEN GREATS
Upon the release of ML's 100 greatest English-lanuage novels of this century, it was to my great sadness to find "The Forsyte Saga" missing from the list. Read more

Published on Sep 13 1998

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I've ever read
This is a must-read! Galsworthy's writing is outstanding. Also read the sequel to the Saga -- "A Modern Comedy."

Published on July 19 1998

5.0 out of 5 stars The only thing better than the story is the writing.

Galsworthy gives his readers a view into the transition between the Victorian culture and the Modern through characters who seem to come alive under his masterful writing... Read more

Published on April 1 1998

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