The Approach to Al-Mu'tasim is a short story written by Jorge Luis Borges. Released in 1936, it was reprinted in Borges' A History of Eternity (alongside The Garden of Forking Paths/Ficciones) and serves as a review of a fictional novel.
Characters[]
- The narrator - the reviewer of the novel
- Mir Bahadur Ali - the author of the novel
Plot[]
In the 1930s, an author named Mir Bahadur Ali wrote a novel dubbed "The Approach to Al-Mu'tasim" (or The Conversation with the Man Called Al-Mu'tasim: A Game of Shifting Mirrors, as it is later reprinted). The narrator begins his review by referencing previous reviews - with one describing Mir Bahadur Ali's novel as a fusion between Islamic poetry and detective/horror novels. The novel was first printed in Bombay in 1932 - with its first edition comprising of 4,000 copies and bringing much attention to the novel. Its second edition was printed in 1934 with some major changes and was later reprinted by the English publisher Victor Gollancz.
After describing the history of the novel, the narrator describes its plot. Set within Bombay, its main character is a law student who (unlike his family) is a disbeliever in Islam. During a riot between Muslims and Hindus, the main character seemingly kills a Hindu and flees the city. He hides in a tower where he meets a grave-robber (a man described as being extremely disgusting, actively bathing in buffalo dung to "purify" himself). After talking with the grave-robber, our main character begins a spiritual journey (which is described in more vague terms by the narrator) before meeting the titular Al-Mu'tasim (a mysterious man who is alluded to throughout the second printing of the novel as being a manifestation of a benevolent God). This is where the novel ends.
After this summary, our narrator gives his criticisms - which are somewhat harsh, as he states that Bahadur has "evading the most vulgar of art's temptations: that of being a genius" - and links the novel with several other works (such as The Conference of Birds, which is summarized in a lengthy footnote and The Faerie Queene) with unseen major characters.
Sources[]
- Wikipedia