Conjugal Love

October 9, 2006
Italian stylist Moravia (1907–1990) had his novels The Conformist
and Contempt
filmed by Bertolucci and Godard, respectively; this novel, freshly translated by Harss (who provides a short note), was written in 1949. Independently wealthy narrator Silvio Baldeschi is in his early 30s, an aesthete whose two elusive desires in life are to love a woman and create a great work of literature. He marries the sensuous Leda, a woman unschooled in everything except love, with whom he feels harmoniously suited. Together they move to his isolated villa in Tuscany for several months, where Leda is to act as muse for Silvio's great work. But Silvio decides their nightly lovemaking saps the energy he needs to write his masterpiece: over 20 days of intensive writing, they abstain while village barber and notorious womanizer Antonio, who comes daily to shave Silvio, moves in on Leda. The writer's inability to defend his wife's honor as the barber makes advances, let alone take her desire for Antonio seriously, begins the unraveling of their marriage. Moravia, in this Contempt
-like setup, achieves a sly, convincing portrait in the voice of Silvio, whose love for Leda emasculates him, yet fuels his work.

December 1, 2006
In this brief novel, celebrated Italian novelist Moravia ("The Conformist") probes many issues, including literary inspiration, the effect of a muse on both creativity and self-discovery, and the possibilities of platonic and conjugal love. Silvio Baldeschi is a wealthy man with a beautiful young wife named Leda. A successful critic, Silvio believes that there is a literary masterpiece inside him somewhere. After giving up the nightly pleasures of his wife's bed so that he can concentrate on his writing, he discovers that she is having an affair with his barber, Antonio. In a fury of inspiration he writes out their own story and, upon typing it from his handwritten pages, discovers that it is as mediocre as his true relationship with Leda. Boasting a fluid style that is elegant yet simple, Moravia is a master of writing about men and women and their love lives. Recommended for all libraries that collect classics and novels about male-female relationships.Lisa Rohrbaugh, East Palestine Memorial P.L., OH

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.