Antagony

Antagony is a powerful drama by Goytisolo that explores the social history of Barcelona and Catalonia since the end of the Spanish Civil War in 1939. It follows the youth and education of Raúl Ferrer Gaminde, son of a Franco-supporting middle-class Catalan family. The work combines modern and historical elements, displaying intelligent realism, emotional gravity, profane beauty, and sweeping rhetorical scope.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 900 pages
Publication date: 16 December 2022
Publisher: Dalkey Archive Press

This powerful drama, a collected volume of Goytisolo's famed tetralogy following a Catalan family, is widely regarded as one of the most profound inquiries ever undertaken on literary creation.

Antagony surveys the social history of Barcelona and Catalonia, primarily since the end of the Spanish Civil War in 1939. The work, originally published as a tetralogy and now collected into one volume, follows the youth and education of Raúl Ferrer Gaminde, son of a well-connected, middle-class Catalan family that embraces Franco and Spanish Nationalism. Its potent drama plays out through Goytisolo's crisp, forceful presentation of youth, humor, optimism, rebellion, violence, sexual awakening, indulgence, punishment, and the realization of one's artistic vocation. Alternately modern and historical, Antagony displays intelligent realism, emotional gravity, profane beauty, brute vulgarity, sweeping rhetorical scope, and seamless transitions through long, streaming passages of narrative and introspection.

The novel's central theme is the struggle for artistic expression in the face of social and political oppression. Raúl Ferrer Gaminde, the protagonist, is a talented painter who is forced to suppress his artistic desires due to the conservative and repressive environment of post-war Barcelona. He is torn between his love for his family and his passion for art, and his journey through the novel is a testament to the power of art to transcend boundaries and inspire change.

Goytisolo's writing is characterized by its vivid and evocative descriptions, which bring the characters and settings to life. The novel is also notable for its complex and nuanced portrayal of characters, who are not always easy to sympathize with but who are nevertheless fully realized and relatable.

Antagony is a masterpiece of Spanish literature that has had a lasting impact on the world of literature. Its powerful themes and compelling characters continue to resonate with readers today, and it is widely regarded as one of the greatest works of Spanish literature of the 20th century.

Dimension: 228 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781628973983