O conto da ilha desconhecida by José Saramago
Published 1998 · 5,860 words · about 1 hour at an average pace · Short Fiction, Literary Fiction, Magical Realism
How hard is O conto da ilha desconhecida to read?
O conto da ilha desconhecida scores 65 out of 100 for difficulty on ReadingRate, making it quite demanding. The score is a weighted composite of nine measures: four of how hard the prose is to parse, five of how hard the meaning is to extract.
- Vocabulary: 55 out of 100
- Saramago employs a literary vocabulary, using words like 'impetrante' and 'nesga,' which are not overly obscure but require a degree of familiarity with formal Portuguese. The language is elevated without being inaccessible, placing it slightly above *The Great Gatsby* in complexity.
- Sentence structure: 70 out of 100
- The text features long, winding sentences that often span entire paragraphs, characteristic of Saramago's style. While the sentences are lengthy, they remain navigable due to clear punctuation and logical flow, similar to the sentence structure found in *2666*.
- Abstraction: 68 out of 100
- While the narrative is grounded in a simple quest for an unknown island, it delves into philosophical themes about identity, purpose, and the nature of exploration. The story uses the literal journey as a vehicle for exploring abstract concepts, positioning it near *2666* in its blend of narrative and philosophical inquiry.
- Information density: 60 out of 100
- The text presents a moderate amount of concepts per page, requiring attention to follow the narrative and its underlying themes. While not as dense as *War and Peace*, the story is carefully layered with symbolic meaning, demanding more attention than a purely plot-driven novel.
- Narrative indirection: 75 out of 100
- The narrative relies heavily on implication and symbolism, requiring readers to infer meaning rather than being explicitly told. The story's allegorical nature and the characters' motivations are revealed through their actions and dialogue, demanding active interpretation from the reader, similar to *Lolita*.
- Symbolic density: 80 out of 100
- The story is rich in symbolism, with the unknown island representing a quest for self-discovery and the characters' journey embodying broader themes of exploration and identity. The boat, the sea, and the act of searching all carry symbolic weight, approaching the level of symbolic density found in *Gravity's Rainbow*.
- Ironic distance: 60 out of 100
- There is a subtle ironic distance in the narrative, as the characters' idealistic quest is juxtaposed with the mundane realities of their journey. The king's bureaucracy and the sailors' skepticism create a gap between the characters' aspirations and the world's indifference, placing it near *The Great Gatsby* in its blend of sympathy and critique.
- Resolution withholding: 70 out of 100
- The ending is somewhat ambiguous, as the characters set sail without a clear destination, leaving the reader to ponder the ultimate success of their quest. While the plot resolves with the couple embarking on their journey, the meaning and outcome remain open to interpretation, akin to *Lolita*.
- Structural complexity: 45 out of 100
- The narrative follows a mostly linear structure, with a straightforward chronological progression. While there are some dream sequences and shifts in perspective, the overall structure is relatively simple, similar to *War and Peace*.
How O conto da ilha desconhecida is regarded
O conto da ilha desconhecida holds a literary regard score of 48 out of 100, weighing its place in the canon, its critical reception, its influence on other writers, and the standing of its author. Regard is measured separately from difficulty: a demanding book is not necessarily an admired one.
Prizes
- Nobel Prize in Literature 1998, awarded to José Saramago
Where O conto da ilha desconhecida sits in Northrop Frye's Anatomy of Criticism
Placed by a full reading of the text (15 passages), not from reputation. Each verdict quotes the passage that earned it. On the axis from myth to irony, O conto da ilha desconhecida scores 57 out of 100. A second mythos, irony, pulls at it with a weight of 0.2. About the map of stories.
- Mode: Low Mimetic
Tenho, tive, terei se for preciso, mas quero encontrar a ilha desconhecida, quero saber quem sou eu quando nela estiver
- Symbol: Mythical (archetypal)
A Ilha Desconhecida fez-se enfim ao mar, à procura de si mesma.
- Mythos: Comedy iii (Normal Comedy) (comedy iii)
Acordou abraçado à mulher da limpeza, e ela a ele, confundidos os corpos, confundidos os beliches, que não se sabe se este é o de bombordo ou o de estibordo.
- Genre: Romance + Anatomy
dizia que todo o homem é uma ilha, eu, como aquilo não era comigo, visto que sou mulher, não lhe dava importância
Where the story of O conto da ilha desconhecida takes place
- Unnamed kingdom of fable: a palace and a port with a caravel, the main setting
5 things that are true of O conto da ilha desconhecida, with the passage for each
The king comes to the petitions door in person only after the man has waited three days.
foi ter ido o rei, ao cabo de três dias, e em real pessoa, à porta das petições
The neighbours and other petitioners chant for the king to give the man the boat.
começando a gritar, Dá-lhe o barco, dá-lhe o barco.
The cleaning woman leaves the palace by the rarely used door of decisions.
Saí do palácio pela porta das decisões
No sailor agrees to join the voyage, so the man returns to the dock alone with food.
Não veio nenhum, como podes ver
The book ends with the caravel, newly named, putting out to sea at midday.
A Ilha Desconhecida fez-se enfim ao mar, à procura de si mesma.
Scenes in O conto da ilha desconhecida that Frye would name
16 sightings of Frye's terms in the text. The strongest:
- Senex iratus, untitled
Então não te dou o barco, Darás.
The blocking king threatens to withhold the wish, and is overruled.- Cognitio, untitled
Acordou abraçado à mulher da limpeza, e ela a ele, confundidos os corpos, confundidos os beliches
The dream's shadow beside his own becomes the woman; the pair is joined, which resolves the comic action.- Anatomy, untitled
este chamava o terceiro, que mandava o primeiro-ajudante, que por sua vez mandava o segundo
A satirical catalogue of the bureaucratic chain.- Alazon, untitled
Sou o rei deste reino, e os barcos do reino pertencem-me todos
The king's pompous claim of ownership is undercut by the man's reply.- Agon, untitled
Estão todas nos mapas, Nos mapas só estão as ilhas conhecidas
The verbal contest between king and petitioner over whether unknown islands exist.- Anagnorisis, untitled
Se não sais de ti, não chegas a saber quem és
The man states the philosophical discovery that drives the voyage: self-knowledge requires leaving the self.
Books that share these scenes with O conto da ilha desconhecida
- Anagnorisis: Jane Eyre, The Reader, The Wasp Factory
- Cognitio: Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, The Color Purple
- Agon: The Old Man and the Sea, The Pilgrims Progress, King James Bible
- Displacement: Wuthering Heights, The Metamorphosis, Don Quixote
- Masque: Don Quixote, Bring Up the Bodies, The Idiot
- Senex iratus: A Midsummer Night's Dream, Pride and Prejudice, Palace Walk
- Alazon: Hard Times, The Idiot, The Wind in the Willows
- Anatomy: Waiting for Godot, Don Quixote, 1984
- Analogy of innocence: The Old Man and the Sea, Wuthering Heights, King James Bible
- Eiron: Pride and Prejudice, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Idiot