A book that is read in one day, but that remains in heart forever. Only fifty pages and yet one gets the impression of being in front of a long novel and concentrated. The two main characters, Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist, cowboys are rough accustomed to hard work on the farms and pastures and the long loneliness of transhumance. They meet for the first time in the summer of 1963 when they find themselves working together in a pasture on Brokeback Mountain (a fictional place in Wyoming). In the silence of the dark nights and cold, broken only dall'ululato of a coyote, Ennis and Jack chatting and exchanging confidences before the fire and a spoonful of beans. Ennis is a taciturn, fragile, accustomed to hard work, Jack is his opposite: an extrovert, strong, passionate about rodeo. One night he suddenly unleashed a strong physical attraction between them, an erotic drive that leads them to eat a wild sex in the tent. It turns out love, without knowing it, without intending it, but decided that what must remain a secret between them. They were born in the heart of rural and conservative, where gender roles are well defined and homosexuality is considered a perversion to be repressed with violence if necessary. Ennis and Jack have the same initially some difficulty in accepting the nature of their relationship and only with the passage of time will be able to develop a greater awareness of its diversity. After that seasonal work in Brokeback Mountain, their paths separated. Both are married to women who have children from. They meet again after two years, finding himself more in love than ever. This way they will begin a series of occasional clandestine meetings, away from their families, to love freely in the shadow of their world. For twenty years, settle for a short break for love and live their history struggle between the desire to drop everything to start a life together and the fear of the proceedings of a company too conventional to accept a story of love between two men. It will be sudden death and in some respects mysterious Jack divide them forever. Enigmatic phrase "Jack, I swear ..." spoken by Ennis in tears in front of the shirt of the deceased partner, are contained all his anger and his pain. A book
raw and intense, as is the harsh reality and deep is the love of Ennis and Jack. Annie Proulx addresses the issue of homosexuality with skill, showing light and shadow. He manages to be delicate and tough at the same time, stripping the player of prejudice, causing him to reflect, moved to tears and generating in him a deep loathing homophobia. The language used by the author is blunt, coarse, sometimes vulgar and fits perfectly with the roughness of the two main characters, but also with the hardness of a stupid and bigoted society. Descriptions of natural landscapes and moods of the verges instead moments of high poetry.
Brokeback Mountain is a place born from the imagination of Proulx, a choice dictated by the case this is not certain: it is more than place of the real place, a pristine place where everything is pure, simple, and the air smells of unconditional freedom. And indeed that is where Ennis and Jack discover their true nature, that's where they can live freely moments of profound tenderness and carefree joy.
from this book was made into the eponymous 2005 film directed by Ang Lee, winner of the Golden Lion at Venice 2005, three Oscars, four Golden Globe and many other prizes. In the role of Ennis and Jack are remarkably decreased the actors Jake Gyllenhaal and the late Heath Ledger. The film, faithful to the text, can give some emotion more than the book.
Edna Annie Proulx (pictured right) was born in Norwich, Connecticut (USA), August 22, 1935. Canadian-born writer made his debut in 1988 with Heart Songs and Other Stories . In 1992 he published the novel cards with which he won the PEN / Faulkner. In 1994 he achieved the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for fiction for her novel Notice to Mariners , also won the National Book Award and several other literary awards. Since this book is based on the 2001 film The Shipping News - Shadows from the depths directed by Lasse Hallström. Other known works of Annie Proulx's Accordion Crimes are , That old ace in the hole and close . The latter is a collection of short stories, including Brokeback Mountain . Annie Proulx now lives in a small town in Wyoming.
RATING: 4 / 5
The Italian trailer of the film by Ang Lee:
Title: Brokeback Mountain
Original title:
Brokeback Mountain Author: Annie Proulx
Translator: Mariapaola Dettore
Publisher: Baldini Castoldi Dalai (Pocket series I)
Year: 2008
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