I have just read two of the greatest writers of the 20th century, W. B. Yeats andJose Saramago. As there is almost no source of Saramago for reference or for study,the only and best way to study them was to read him closely. As a matter of fact,it seems to me the best to measure up the depth and width of Saramago as novelistby going deep into his novel, The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis.
The workmanship of Saramago, as in the case of Yeats, is extremely delicateand precise. Every image, every syllable of every word, each counts while in theprocess of the story as well as toward the end of the story. Saramago casts away thequotation marks when he has a dialog; as a result, when reading a dialog, you can’ttell who is who. But no problem arises, for once you read it, you enjoy beingforced to go along the dialog, understanding and appreciating every syllable of thewords in the sentences, as if you are part of the dialog. This is one secret attractionto Saramago. That is, he is a great, inventive stylist.
Another characteristic is that Saramago makes no distinction between the visibleand the invisible world. Just as Yeats did, before him, Saramago treats the invisibleas if it is alive and lives with you.
Compared with Saramago, Yeats is read through one of his best stories, “TheCrucifixion of the Outcast.” Yet, as Yeats had been studied for quite a long time,both in English-speaking world and in other countries, like Korea, I could have morethan enough materials with me. So, I decided to use his Letters exclusively. As inother stories of The Secret Rose, Yeats’s use of punctuation is traditional, as in hispoetry; yet, if you look closer, you will see Yeats is different from other traditional writers. He has gone much farther than his contemporaries.
Yeats as novelist should be reevaluated. His workmanship as short storytellercompares well with his French counterparts. Yeats could be a great novelist, if hehad worked on it further, as Robert Bridges had once advised him to do.
But as he is, Yeats as novelist should be thought of highly, as the finestnovelists of the 20th century, like Saramago (who might have been influenced byYeats’s stories) must been inspired by the fire Yeats has just bought from heaven.