Customer Reviews

The Riddle of Nostradamus: A Critical Dialogue (Parallax: Re-visions of Culture and Society)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Few books offer such depth and marvelous furrows for the revistation of some gravid ideas. Perhaps the author is too clever. Dumezil's lifetime is thick with learning, teaching and casting solutions to problems of Indo-European language, myth and culture. The handsome book holds two parts, both framed in dialogue. The first part meditates on the interpretation of some of the verses and prophecy of Nostradamus. If one can show that the prophecy itself is accurate by marshalling the linguistic and historical evidence so convincingly that no other interpretation of the words seems valid, prophecy cannot be entirely wrong, even if it cannot be reproduced as scientific practices require, the dialogue seems to suggest. Perhaps there is excitement for some to consider the connection between the prophecy and its signified event, occurring at a remove of centuries. The disputants combat one another over the correct punctation, syntax, and maniacal (nearly Oulipian) effects that Nostradamus (may have) produced. After the text has been fixed, historical comparisons can be made, once unhelpful skepticism has been dispatched. It's all very exciting in my opinion. The foreward suggests that the book is as much about methods and the author's own life as it is about Nostradamus. Knowing little else about the author himself, I would pretend to agree; for there is much that seems too sensitive to contrive and much that seems indifferent to the portentous parts of Nostradamus.

The smart and gentle dialogue may lead one to long for a teacher and friends of similar inclination in order to pursue a secret or double life for the discussion of things that really don't find fruitful manifestation in society at large. The second, smaller part of the book is a meditation on the meaning of Socrates' last words. This book is not a must read, but it is a delight that vicariously pleasured this reader with the abilities of sophisticated reading and delusions of humanist grandeur.

The first part of this book is about a series of conversations between Dumézil and his scholarly mentor, as well as others, about how to interpret a handful of verses from Nostradamus.

It shows how many languages, how much Indo-European etymology, and how much European (and especially French) history are needed to even begin to understand what Nostradamus was saying. There was a lot more to his multilevel trance-writing than most scientistic critics or gullible New Agers ever notice.

It's also a wonderful example of the sort of scholarly conversation that used to be common among educated people about complex topics -- an art that is now all but lost outside of academia.

I'm a big fan of Dumézil's writing about Indo-European cultures, especially religious and mythological patterns. I'm not a fan of his youthful right-wing political views, but he outgrew those eventually. If you are interested in either Nostradamus or Dumézil, this book should be in your library.