te“) bio je prvi dobitnik te nagrade... Kroz jednu pri- ču iz doba okupacije Fran- cuske govorite o ljudskim slabostima, o dvoličnosti i kompromisu? – To je jedna univerzalna priča, koja jeste smeštena u doba okupa- cije, ali u njenoj suštini je priča o potkazivanju kao ljudskoj slabosti. Knjiga je prevedena na puno jezika i gde god sam pozivan da o njoj go- vorim, uvek bih čuo: Vi ste napisa- li našu priču... A radnja se zapravo događa u Francuskoj. Postoje meha- nizmi koji odslikavaju suštinu nečeg neiskorenjivog, usađenog u ljudskoj prirodi (zavist, ljubomora, mržnja) što otkrivamo u svim epohama i u mnogim društvima. U svom poslednjem roma- nu „Plivač“ („Le Nageur“) govorite o sportu i otpor- nosti. Biće to i jedna od te- ma o kojoj Francuski in- stitut želi da se govori na Sajmu knjiga, u skladu sa Olimpijskim igrama u Pa- rizu. Koja je snaga jednog čoveka, sportiste, suoče- nog sa ponižavanjem, sa zlom i odlučnim da ga pre- vaziđe? – Moj junak Alfred Nakaš je ne- ko ko nosi otpor u svom duhu, neko ko je naoružan gvozdenom voljom, snažnim karakterom, iskaljenom lič- nošću. Nikada se ne predaje, uvek bodreći drugove iz svoje ekipe. Sve njegove odlike sportiste, stečene i osnažene tokom šampionske kari- jere, doći će do izražaja od trenutka kada je deportovan u Aušvic i Buhen- vald, u jednom tragičnom kontek- stu težem od svih sportskih izazo- va. Prevazići će sve i vratiti se životu uprkos svemu. Kakav primer, kakav uzor i kakva životna lekcija! Da li pratite sport i koje je njegovo mesto u književ- nosti? – Kada je sport u pitanju, u nje- ga verujem i njega upražnjavam. Na- žalost, njegovo mesto u književno- sti je dosta skromno, možda i zbog toga što sportiste bije glas da sla- bo čitaju...
Pierre Assouline is a member of the Académie Goncourt . A novelist, biogra- pher, critic, journalist and chron- icler on French radio, he is former editor-in-chief of Lire Magazine and a member of the editori- al board of L’Histoire magazine. He received the 2007 Prize of the French Language [Prix de la langue française], which is awarded to “the work of a personality of the literary, artistic or scientific world, who has contributed significantly, through the style of their works or actions, to illustrating the quality and beau- ty of the French language”. You’ve visited Serbia twice and participated in the Days of Moliere literary festival of the French In- stitute in Serbia, which is dedicated to promoting contemporary French lit- erature. What memories of Serbia do you have and what do you expect from your latest visit? - I expect to be surprised by what I already know! And I’m cer- tain there will be no shortage of that and that there will be plen- ty of surprises in my encounters with writers, publishers, journal- ists and literary critics from Serbia. And those contacts are also always an opportunity for me to discover a literary scene that I don‘t know well enough, but also to see what kind of view of French literature Serbia has. This time around you will arrive in Belgrade straight from Krakow, where you will attend celebrations commemorating the 25 th anniversary of the literary prize Choix Goncourt de la Pologne (Goncourt Polish Choice). Your novel La Cli- ente was the first recipient of that award... In it you used a story from the pe- riod of the occupation of France to address human weaknesses, duplicity and compromise?
- That’s a universal story that is indeed set in the period of the oc- cupation, but in essence is a story about informing as a human weak- ness. That book has been translated into many languages and wherev- er I’ve been invited to speak about it I’ve always heard: ‘you wrote our story...’ And the plot actually un- folds in France. There are mecha- nisms that reflect the essence of things that are ineradicable, sown into human nature (envy, jealousy, hatred) and which we discover in all eras and many societies. You address sport and re- silience in your latest nov- el, The Swimmer (Le Na- geur). This will also be among the topics that the French Institute intends to discuss at the Belgrade Book Fair, with a view to the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris. What is the strength of a man, an athlete, who is confront- ed by humiliation, by evil, and is determined to over- come it? - My hero, Alfred Nakache, is someone who carries resistance in his spirit, someone who is armed with an iron will, a strong char- acter, a tempered temperament. He never capitulates and always cheers on his teammates. All his qualities as an athlete, acquired and fortified during his victorious ca- reer, would come to the fore from the moment he was deported to Auschwitz and Buchenwald, in a tragic context that was tough- er than all sports challenges. De- spite everything, he would over- come it all and return to life. What an example, what a role model and what a life lesson! Do you follow sport and what place should it have in literature? - When it comes to sport, I be- lieve and engage in it. Unfortunate- ly, it has a rather modest place in literature, perhaps because sports- men have a reputation for being poor readers...
Books » Knjige | 41
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