Road to Emmaus. Two people walk towards the city discussing the recent events in Jerusalem. A man approaches them for companion. He is amazed by their story, they are amazed by his ignorance. Jesus was captured. Jesus was killed on a cross. Jesus was buried and according to few witnesses he is resurrected. Alive. Again. When they reach Emmaus they invite their new acquaintance to dinner. When the man blessed the bread, they realize that the one standing at the same table with them is Jesus Himself. The moment He is recognized, Jesus disappears. no explanations given.
The most salient thing is the fact that in this story, no one seems to know anything. The starting point is complete ignorance. The two main characters discuss rumors. They mostly guess what happened based on the only known fact: Jesus was dead. Then it seems that not even Jesus is aware of the whole story. He listens to it like he wasn't its subject. The fact that He died and came back to life is a surprise even for Him. Then the veil lifting, at the dinner: when He blessed the bread, that's when they finally recognized Him. The mystery revealed, Jesus disappears. Makes you wonder if He was ever there and if the revelation wasn't more than a result of the thought.
This short interesting story is the starting point of Baricco's novel. Four youngsters, Catholics, believers, raised and educated within the Church's guidelines, virgins, struggle with the fascination for a liberated woman and with sexual desire. Their fantasy develops to the point where they are all sexually initiated by her in a sort of orgy. They then have to face the consequences of their acts and assume responsibility: one becomes a drug addict, one impregnates the girl, another one commits suicide thinking he's the one who impregnated the girl and the fourth one lives to tell the story.
But the book is not solely about the above story line. That orgy is quick, strange, weird, and disappears as fast as Jesus after being recognized. No, the book is actually about the road to Emmaus. About the guess. The figuring it all out. These youngsters don't know. Don't know anything. They just anticipate, talk about things they've only heard of. Women. Sex. Initiation. Adulthood. The transition is simple, unanticipated, quick. And instead of really answering their questions, it leaves them with even more. Some of them cannot even deal with its consequences. Knowing, finally knowing, brings an incredible burden and causes an incredible turn of events.
Another interesting fact is the meditation on the initiation. People shouldn't just make assumptions. Should be warned. Their families left them unprepared. Their education is more of a barrier than a mean of understanding. The woman who gave herself to all of them assumes that they all got it, that their sexual encounter meant nothing more than that. And she also assumes it's all out in the open, that in any case, the boys will come and ask if something is not clear. No one even considers the inner torment, the inner thought.
Appearances are as always deceiving. In the Emmaus story, Jesus doesn't appear to be Jesus. Nothing gives Him up: he's ignorant, curious, doesn't even look like Himself. The same in Baricco's story. The Saint, isn't really the holy one. The supposed suicidal father has no such thoughts. Quite the opposite. The good son ends up killing himself, hurting everybody around him because he assumes some facts to be true when they aren't. Even sexual initiation is something different than it is supposed to be: quick, dirty, strange, feelings free.
The story teller has seen his own Jesus. He now knows. He grew up. No notification given. What next? No one knows. He is just aware that something happened, that something is forever lost. As Jesus didn't stick around to explain to his companions what they have just witnessed it is their own job to find that sense. And that's the whole point of the story: experiences are given, they happen, but their meaning is something that is only ours to find.
The most salient thing is the fact that in this story, no one seems to know anything. The starting point is complete ignorance. The two main characters discuss rumors. They mostly guess what happened based on the only known fact: Jesus was dead. Then it seems that not even Jesus is aware of the whole story. He listens to it like he wasn't its subject. The fact that He died and came back to life is a surprise even for Him. Then the veil lifting, at the dinner: when He blessed the bread, that's when they finally recognized Him. The mystery revealed, Jesus disappears. Makes you wonder if He was ever there and if the revelation wasn't more than a result of the thought.
This short interesting story is the starting point of Baricco's novel. Four youngsters, Catholics, believers, raised and educated within the Church's guidelines, virgins, struggle with the fascination for a liberated woman and with sexual desire. Their fantasy develops to the point where they are all sexually initiated by her in a sort of orgy. They then have to face the consequences of their acts and assume responsibility: one becomes a drug addict, one impregnates the girl, another one commits suicide thinking he's the one who impregnated the girl and the fourth one lives to tell the story.
But the book is not solely about the above story line. That orgy is quick, strange, weird, and disappears as fast as Jesus after being recognized. No, the book is actually about the road to Emmaus. About the guess. The figuring it all out. These youngsters don't know. Don't know anything. They just anticipate, talk about things they've only heard of. Women. Sex. Initiation. Adulthood. The transition is simple, unanticipated, quick. And instead of really answering their questions, it leaves them with even more. Some of them cannot even deal with its consequences. Knowing, finally knowing, brings an incredible burden and causes an incredible turn of events.
Another interesting fact is the meditation on the initiation. People shouldn't just make assumptions. Should be warned. Their families left them unprepared. Their education is more of a barrier than a mean of understanding. The woman who gave herself to all of them assumes that they all got it, that their sexual encounter meant nothing more than that. And she also assumes it's all out in the open, that in any case, the boys will come and ask if something is not clear. No one even considers the inner torment, the inner thought.
Appearances are as always deceiving. In the Emmaus story, Jesus doesn't appear to be Jesus. Nothing gives Him up: he's ignorant, curious, doesn't even look like Himself. The same in Baricco's story. The Saint, isn't really the holy one. The supposed suicidal father has no such thoughts. Quite the opposite. The good son ends up killing himself, hurting everybody around him because he assumes some facts to be true when they aren't. Even sexual initiation is something different than it is supposed to be: quick, dirty, strange, feelings free.
The story teller has seen his own Jesus. He now knows. He grew up. No notification given. What next? No one knows. He is just aware that something happened, that something is forever lost. As Jesus didn't stick around to explain to his companions what they have just witnessed it is their own job to find that sense. And that's the whole point of the story: experiences are given, they happen, but their meaning is something that is only ours to find.
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