Opening
Péter Nádas
My world is a workplace
The Passa Porta Festival was launched in style.
The Hungarian Péter Nádas, one of Europe's top authors, gave the opening speech.
He is best known for his highly autobiographical prose. His masterly Book of Memories invites comparison with Thomas Mann and Marcel Proust. His essays are less well known, but he proves to be a master at analysing the human soul. In addition, he often comments on the changes in the world since 1989. The mechanisms at work in contacts between two people can after all best be compared to the relationships between various countries or continents.
In his speech, Péter Nádas told the story of building a house. Day after day the first-person narrator works on his new home with a labourer. They work with their hands and their brains. The labourer knows exactly which physical actions are necessary and when, and the future owner is better at expressing his thoughts. The words the two men exchange form a sort of song that sets the rhythm of work and brings them closer together. Until a false note is struck that threatens to bring down the whole structure of their mutual understanding.
The Passa Porta Festival looked upon Péter Nádas as a guest of honour. He also appeared in ‘Remapping the World' on 28th March and in the literary route on Sunday 29th March 2009.
Org.: Passa Porta, Het beschrijf, Entrez Lire, Hungarian Culture Brussels
The world is a workplace.
- Thu 26.03 | 20:00
Passa Porta
02 226 04 54
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