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Inside This Issue
Some Thoughts on Student Loans Page 1
A Biking Adventure Take a Break Page 2
Can You Prevent Identity Theft? Senegalese Lamb Skewers Page 3
Older and Wiser Page 4
‘Darkness at Noon’ by Arthur Koestler A Page FromMatt’s Bookshelf
Have you ever been so certain of something when you were young, only to look back as an adult and realize, “Wow, I had no clue”? This is the idea behind “Darkness at Noon.” The author, Arthur Koestler, created a story about a man who is accused of treason by the government he helped create. “Darkness at Noon” was published in 1940, and though it doesn’t outright mention Russia or the Soviet Union, the events of the book are based on the Stalinist Great Purge and the Moscow show trials. Nicholas Salmanovitch Rubashov is an Old Bolshevik. In his 50s, Rubashov was a high-ranking official, until he gets on the wrong side of the new government and is imprisoned by the secret police. If you’ve ever studied Russian history, you’ll note the trend of revolutions. The younger generation doesn’t like how things are going,
and they decided that if they kick out the older generation and put themselves in charge, things will be great. Then that younger generation becomes the older generation and is forced to look at their own mistakes when the new generation kicked them out of power. The
brilliant literature, it is probably most valuable as an interpretation of the Moscow ‘confessions’ by someone with an inner knowledge of totalitarian methods.” Koestler’s work clearly influenced Orwell’s own writing later.
“Darkness at Noon” isn’t a paperback beach read, but it’s short enough that you could read it over the course of a long weekend. And I do recommend reading it. This book is the ultimate example of how our perspective on life grows as we get older, becoming wiser and humbler. When we recognize this early, we can hopefully avoid the fate of poor Rubashov.
majority of the book deals with Rubashov, of the older generation, ruminating in his cells, reflecting on his choices as the younger generation replaces him. “Darkness at Noon” is often discussed alongside George Orwell’s famous dystopian novel “1984.” Orwell reviewed “Darkness at Noon” in 1941 and wrote, “Brilliant as this book is as a novel, and a piece of
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