True to style, Thomas Bernhard's 156-page novel Old Masters: A Comedy consists of a single paragraph. As with most of Bernhard's works, the plot is minimal. The action is conveyed almost entirely through the perspective of a character named Atzbacher. We are told that, on one particular day, Atzbacher—who is a tutor and also, apparently, a philosopher, even though he has never published anything—has been summoned by his elderly friend Reger for a meeting at Vienna's
Ways of Seeing—On Bernhard's Old Masters
Ways of Seeing—On Bernhard's Old Masters
Ways of Seeing—On Bernhard's Old Masters
True to style, Thomas Bernhard's 156-page novel Old Masters: A Comedy consists of a single paragraph. As with most of Bernhard's works, the plot is minimal. The action is conveyed almost entirely through the perspective of a character named Atzbacher. We are told that, on one particular day, Atzbacher—who is a tutor and also, apparently, a philosopher, even though he has never published anything—has been summoned by his elderly friend Reger for a meeting at Vienna's