Politics (novel)
OCLC 52455510 | | |
Politics is a
goodness
".
Plot summary
Nana, an attractive young "non-talker" in her mid-twenties—"tall, thin, pale, blonde, breasty"—who is working on her
Jewish actor from Finsbury, and they start a relationship. As time goes by, Anjali, a friend of Moshe's, joins them more and more in their sparetime activities until Nana, for whom sex
is not necessarily a top priority, suggests a "threesome" because she wants Moshe to be happy.
Accordingly, due to Nana's
socialist utopia of sex", describes not only the sociology, psychology and ethics of their ménage à trois (for example by comparing it to the love triangle depicted in the film Cabaret) but also, in some detail, the technicalities and what he calls "sexual etiquette". However, he also frequently ponders philosophical questions and occasionally redefines old concepts such as that of infidelity
("the selfish desire to be helpful to more than one person").
In the summer Nana goes on holiday with her Papa, leaving behind two thirds of the ménage à trois. In
stroke
—a good excuse for Nana to break up with both Moshe and Anjali, although her father is saddened by the thought of his daughter giving up her boyfriend on his account.
Characters
- Nana – protagonist
- Papa – Nana's father
- Moshe – a Jewish actor
- Anjali – a bisexual
Allusions/references to actual history, geography and current science
The ramblings of the narrator and Nana's interest in
.When rendering spoken language (see Estuary English), Thirlwell time and again uses pronunciation respelling. Accordingly, he has the protagonists say things like akshully, arkitetcha, fra bit, frages (= for ages), I dint say, I spose, internaschnal, keemo (= chemo (as in chemotherapy)), Le mgo, Not tonigh, refyoose, restron, snot (= it is not), and therpy.
External links
- A Review Of Politics (with links to further reviews)