The Bell: Amazon.ca: Iris Murdoch: Books

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Product Description

From AudioFile

It is late 1940s England. Dora Greenfield is an artistic free spirit married at too young an age to a controlling professorial type. On a whim, she leaves him, again, on a whim, she returns to him--and to his temporary home as a researcher in a lay religious community of thoroughly mixed-up people. Miriam Margolyes keeps all the comings and goings perfectly clear in this amusing and acerbic commentary on English society. Margolyes's mellow tones give believable voice to every character, from our heroine Dora to the gruff-voiced local handyman. Her pacing heightens the story's multiple tensions, and her nuanced reading highlights Murdoch's sly social commentary. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review

“A distinguished novelist of a rare kind.”
– Kingsley Amis

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10 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

4.3 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars One of Murdoch's best (and a real page-turner to boot!), April 29 2002

By	D. Cloyce Smith (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews

This profound and haunting novel features Murdoch's unique blend of religious preoccupations, sexual politics, and philosophy (or, as she more accurately referred to it elsewhere, "moral psychology")--but, in spite of its many-layered symbolism, it still manages to be surprisingly suspenseful. If you've never read a book by Iris Murdoch and are interested in finding a good place to start, read "The Bell."

A sort of psychological detective novel, the story is told through the eyes a leader of a lay religious community who is haunted by secrets from his past and also from the perspective of two visitors: a carefree woman returning to her boorish husband who is studying at a nearby convent and an innocent youth hoping to be inspired by the community's spiritual atmosphere before he goes to Oxford. The plot revolves around a bell missing for centuries and the community's plans to replace it with a new one, but I will say nothing else that might give it away.

The first half of the book is a very British comedy of manners (and it is at times very funny), but then things get out of hand when the two visitors, both knowingly and unwittingly, set into motion a series of tragic events that shatter the faith and foundations of the group. Although I was constantly surprised by the book's twists and turns, when I finished the novel I felt that all the events were very nearly pre-ordained by the actions and ethics of its characters.

Murdoch's genius is her ability to pose many complicated questions and provide just enough for readers to decide for themselves. Are the visitors responsible for destroying the community's equanimity or were they simply the catalyst that exposed the hypocrisies and self-centeredness of the commune's members? Must a person transcend selfishness in order to influence others for the better? Does it take tragedy to bring out the best in people? Is it ever really possible to wall oneself away from the rest of the world?

It seems almost incidental in this day and age to acknowledge that the novel portrays two gay men in a sympathetic manner astonishing for a book published in 1958--yet another aspect that displays the power and forwardness of Murdoch's thinking.

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4.0 out of 5 stars The Bell (Iris Murdoch), April 28 2002

By	"larrywithbullseye" (England) - See all my reviews

I begain to study this book as part as my a level english corse this year. I really liked the book and found it enjoyable. There is only one thing i can say about it: Has any one ever written a study guide? If you know of one please let me know. But I found this book a very good read. I suggest you read it too. My favouite character was dora Greenfeild. The book starts off when she has left her husband and then desides to return to him. At the present time he is working in a lay community. The other people living in this community are all completly mixed up. There is a new bell on the way to the abbey and the old one is rediscovered but trouble is lerkin everywhere.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Breathtaking, Jan 11 2002

By A Customer

I just finished this novel a half hour ago and am moved to write immediately. It was one of the most moving and staggering novels I've read in my life (and I''ve read countless of the "major" works). What begins as an almost Austenian comedy of manners becomes a glorious, compelling novel of ideas, of the relationship between action and meditation and of the complicated ways of love. Filmed once for British TV, it would make a splendid film, particularly now that homosexuality is no longer taboo. Michael and Dora emerge as unlikely, yet extraordinary heroes, whose lives I will wonder about for a long, long time.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars THE BELL A METAPHYSICAL JOURNEY
This beautifully constructed novel begins and ends with a description of Dora Greenfield. I feel that it is Dora who makes this novel. Read more

Published on Nov 27 2000 by ANDREW KIELY

4.0 out of 5 stars The Preverse Laughter of Nuns
The first fifty or so pages of Iris Murdoch's The Bell chronicle how the terminally confused but kind Dora Greenfield leaves her emotionally sadistic husband only to retun in a... Read more

Published on Jul 18 2000 by Mr. Cairene

5.0 out of 5 stars A Gorgeous Book
The Bell is the only Murdoch novel I've really liked. I've read it, probably, dozens of times, and it improves with each read. Read more

Published on Feb 19 2000 by Dylan Moore

4.0 out of 5 stars Generally well constructed, enjoyable and thought provoking.
I am studying 'The Bell' for A Level English Literature along with 'The End of the Affair' by Graham Greene and 'Loitering with Intent' by Muriel Spark. Read more

Published on Jan 11 2000 by Sarah Raftery