Homo Faber (novel)
Encyclopedia
Homo Faber is a novel
by Max Frisch
, first published in Germany
in 1957. The first English edition was published in England
in 1959. The novel is written as a first-person narrative. The protagonist, Walter Faber, is a successful engineer traveling throughout Europe and the Americas on behalf of UNESCO. His world view based on logic, probability, and technology is challenged when he falls victim to a series of incredible coincidences.
In spring 1957, Faber recounts the events of Faber's travels in America. On a flight from New York to Mexico, his plane makes a forced landing in the desert. During the following stay he meets the German Herbert, who turns out to be the brother of Joachim, Faber's friend. Faber had not heard from his friend since 1936. Faber decides to accompany Herbert, who is on his way to visiting his brother. After an oddysey through the wilderness, they reach Joachim's plantation. But Joachim has hanged himself. Herbert decides to stay behind and manage the plantation.
Faber returns to New York City, but meets up with his married mistress, Ivy. Looking to escape their relationship, Faber takes an unplanned cruise to Europe. On this journey, he meets the young woman Sabeth, with whom he falls in love. He proposes to Sabeth at the end of the journey, but she is traveling with a male friend. Faber and Sabeth meet again in Paris and Faber decides to go on vacation and accompany Sabeth on a road trip through Europe.
Because of a foreboding, he asks Sabeth for the name of her mother: Hanna. Faber still hopes that Hanna has aborted their child, but it turnes out soon that Sabeth is his daughter. In Greece, where Hanna now lives, a poisonous snake bites Sabeth, who falls down a cliff and dies.
Walter Faber is the protagonist of Homo Faber. He is an engineer and technologist who works for UNESCO
. Born and educated in Switzerland, he now lives in an apartment in New York City
, but travels extensively for work throughout Europe and South America. Walter has never been married.
Sabeth
Sabeth, or Elisabeth, is the 20-year-old daughter of Walter and Hanna. Born in Switzerland, she believes that Joachim is her father. She speaks English, German, and French.
Hanna
Hanna Piper (née Landsberg) is the German-born half-Jewish mother of Sabeth. Formerly Walter's lover, she married Joachim, and then later married Herr Piper. She works at an art institute in Athens, Greece.
Herbert
Herbert is Joachim's brother, who meets Walter on a plane. He is employed by the same company that sent Joachim to Guatemala.
Joachim
Joachim was Walter's German born friend, who was studying to be a doctor. He married Hanna, but they separated after she refused to have any more children with him. Sabeth believes that he is her father. After separating from Hanna, Joachim joined the German army and fought in World War II
; Hanna and Sabeth never saw him again. Decades later, he moved to Guatemala
to run a tobacco plantation. A few weeks after arriving, he committed suicide.
Ivy
Ivy is Walter's married American mistress, who comes to New York once a week to see Walter and her psychiatrist.
The theme of fate versus coincidence also appears throughout the novel. The events in Homo Faber are presented in such a way so they appear to be either a string of coincidences resulting in an unlikely outcome, or a sequence of predestined actions and decisions leading to a necessary outcome. This dichotomy is reflectd in a larger series of seeming antinomies: faith or reason, modern knowledge or ancient beliefs, free will or predestination. Walter never resolves this conflict.
The theme of travel plays an important role in the novel. Using many modes of transportation, Walter is constantly on the move, visiting multiple continents, almost a dozen countries, and dozens of cities, for business and pleasure. This constant travel underscores Walter's sense of dislocation; he has no family, no real home, and no real country. Through travel, Walter is able to avoid permanent connections, to escape responsibilities, and to remain completely unknown and unjudged.
. The first English edition, translated by Michael Bullock, was published in 1959 in London, England by Abelard-Schuman. The book has been translated into numerous languages, and has appeared in numerous editions, both in hardcover and paperback.
, and starring Sam Shepherd
and Julie Delpy
.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Max Frisch
Max Frisch
Max Rudolf Frisch was a Swiss playwright and novelist, regarded as highly representative of German-language literature after World War II. In his creative works Frisch paid particular attention to issues relating to problems of human identity, individuality, responsibility, morality and political...
, first published in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1957. The first English edition was published in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in 1959. The novel is written as a first-person narrative. The protagonist, Walter Faber, is a successful engineer traveling throughout Europe and the Americas on behalf of UNESCO. His world view based on logic, probability, and technology is challenged when he falls victim to a series of incredible coincidences.
Plot
During the 1930s, Walter Faber, who works at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, meets an art student Hanna. The two become lovers, and one day Hanna reveals that she is pregnant. Faber asks her to marry him, but she hesitates. Faber receives an offer by UNESCO to work in Baghdad and he accepts it; he and Hanna split up. Before his departure, Faber asks his friend Joachim to take care of Hanna, and Hanna agrees to abort their child.In spring 1957, Faber recounts the events of Faber's travels in America. On a flight from New York to Mexico, his plane makes a forced landing in the desert. During the following stay he meets the German Herbert, who turns out to be the brother of Joachim, Faber's friend. Faber had not heard from his friend since 1936. Faber decides to accompany Herbert, who is on his way to visiting his brother. After an oddysey through the wilderness, they reach Joachim's plantation. But Joachim has hanged himself. Herbert decides to stay behind and manage the plantation.
Faber returns to New York City, but meets up with his married mistress, Ivy. Looking to escape their relationship, Faber takes an unplanned cruise to Europe. On this journey, he meets the young woman Sabeth, with whom he falls in love. He proposes to Sabeth at the end of the journey, but she is traveling with a male friend. Faber and Sabeth meet again in Paris and Faber decides to go on vacation and accompany Sabeth on a road trip through Europe.
Because of a foreboding, he asks Sabeth for the name of her mother: Hanna. Faber still hopes that Hanna has aborted their child, but it turnes out soon that Sabeth is his daughter. In Greece, where Hanna now lives, a poisonous snake bites Sabeth, who falls down a cliff and dies.
Characters
WalterWalter Faber is the protagonist of Homo Faber. He is an engineer and technologist who works for UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
. Born and educated in Switzerland, he now lives in an apartment in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, but travels extensively for work throughout Europe and South America. Walter has never been married.
Sabeth
Sabeth, or Elisabeth, is the 20-year-old daughter of Walter and Hanna. Born in Switzerland, she believes that Joachim is her father. She speaks English, German, and French.
Hanna
Hanna Piper (née Landsberg) is the German-born half-Jewish mother of Sabeth. Formerly Walter's lover, she married Joachim, and then later married Herr Piper. She works at an art institute in Athens, Greece.
Herbert
Herbert is Joachim's brother, who meets Walter on a plane. He is employed by the same company that sent Joachim to Guatemala.
Joachim
Joachim was Walter's German born friend, who was studying to be a doctor. He married Hanna, but they separated after she refused to have any more children with him. Sabeth believes that he is her father. After separating from Hanna, Joachim joined the German army and fought in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
; Hanna and Sabeth never saw him again. Decades later, he moved to Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
to run a tobacco plantation. A few weeks after arriving, he committed suicide.
Ivy
Ivy is Walter's married American mistress, who comes to New York once a week to see Walter and her psychiatrist.
Major themes
There are several major themes to the novel. The theme of technology as philosophy describes the belief that everything is possible and that technology allows people to control all aspects of their lives. This view is contradicted throughout the novel by events. By the end of the novel, Walter's belief in technology is severely tested.The theme of fate versus coincidence also appears throughout the novel. The events in Homo Faber are presented in such a way so they appear to be either a string of coincidences resulting in an unlikely outcome, or a sequence of predestined actions and decisions leading to a necessary outcome. This dichotomy is reflectd in a larger series of seeming antinomies: faith or reason, modern knowledge or ancient beliefs, free will or predestination. Walter never resolves this conflict.
The theme of travel plays an important role in the novel. Using many modes of transportation, Walter is constantly on the move, visiting multiple continents, almost a dozen countries, and dozens of cities, for business and pleasure. This constant travel underscores Walter's sense of dislocation; he has no family, no real home, and no real country. Through travel, Walter is able to avoid permanent connections, to escape responsibilities, and to remain completely unknown and unjudged.
Publication history
Homo Faber was first published in 1957 in Frankfurt, Germany by Suhrkamp VerlagSuhrkamp Verlag
Suhrkamp Verlag is a German publishing house, established in 1950 and generally acknowledged as one of the leading European publishers of fine literature.In January 2010 the headquarters of the company moved from Frankfurt to Berlin.-Early history:...
. The first English edition, translated by Michael Bullock, was published in 1959 in London, England by Abelard-Schuman. The book has been translated into numerous languages, and has appeared in numerous editions, both in hardcover and paperback.
Adaptations
The novel was made into a 1991 film, Voyager, directed by Volker SchlöndorffVolker Schlöndorff
Volker Schlöndorff is a Berlin-based German filmmaker who has worked in Germany, France and the United States...
, and starring Sam Shepherd
Sam Shepherd
Sam Shepherd may refer to:*Samuel Shepherd, British barrister*Sam Shepherd , killed by Sheriff Willis V. McCallSee also:*Sam Shephard *Sam Shepard, American actor and writer...
and Julie Delpy
Julie Delpy
Julie Delpy is a French-American actress, director, screenwriter, and singer-songwriter. She studied filmmaking at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and has directed, written, and acted in more than 30 films, including Europa Europa , The Voyager , Three Colors: White , Before Sunrise...
.
External links
- Daynard, Jodi. "Max Frisch, The Art of Fiction No. 113" in The Paris Review, Winter 1989. Retrieved: 2011-11-21.