The Violent Bear It Away

De: Flannery O’ Connor

Narrado por: Mark Bramhall

First published in 1960, The Violent Bear It Away is now a landmark in American literature. It is a dark and absorbing example of the gothic sensibility and bracing satirical voice that are united in Flannery O'Conner's work. In it, the orphaned Francis Marion Tarwater and his cousin, Rayber, defy the prophecy of their dead uncle - that Tarwater will become a prophet and will baptize Rayber's young son, Bishop. A series of struggles ensue, as Tarwater fights an internal battle against his innate faith and the voices calling him to be a prophet, while Rayber tries to draw Tarwater into a more “reasonable” modern world. Both wrestle with the legacy of their dead relatives and lay claim to Bishop's soul.

O'Connor observes all this with an astonishing combination of irony and compassion, humor and pathos. The result is a novel whose range and depth reveal a brilliant and innovative writer acutely alert to where the sacred lives and where it does not.

©1960 Flannery O'Connor (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Reseñas de la Crítica

“There is very little contemporary fiction which touches the level of Flannery O’Connor at her best.” ( New York Herald Tribune)

“I am sure her books will live on and on in American literature.” (Elizabeth Bishop, American poet laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner)

Excellent

O'Connor is an excellent writer. This audiobook had a good narrator who was able to capture the tone of the book.

Mark Bramhall is phenomenal

Where does The Violent Bear It Away rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Among the best.

What did you like best about this story?

The narration really helped to capture the grotesque nature of the characters.

What about Mark Bramhall’s performance did you like?

The manner in which he made the different characters come to life.

Classic Flannery

What made the experience of listening to The Violent Bear It Away the most enjoyable?

the realism in the telling of the story

What did you like best about this story?

the almost expected outcome of this freight train coming at full throttle

What does Mark Bramhall bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

excellent characterizations - outstanding performance

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

The Violent Bear It Away

Any additional comments?

A good reading adds great value to the story - it is truly a performance

Thought provoking story

Strange and beautiful story with well told narration. Makes you wonder how a nice southern gal could write such complex and troubled characters.

fantastic storytelling

Fantastic storytelling with an under developed conclusion. Really very worthwhile story on the great themes of faith and reason.

Southern Gothic Gold

Dark and fascinating. O’Connor gives us here a vivid novel of how the wounds people give others can linger throughout life, shape us, and leave us longing for redemption.

The Violent Beat it Away

Loved it thank you, both the story and the way IT was read. The best book by FOC

Violence to Youth of Good Ol' Fundamentalism

If you were raised in the rural South or spent the summertime there with someone in your WASP family, you may still suffer the occasional nightmare, as I do, from the trauma left by hellfire and brimstone sermons or a fundamentalist Sunday "school" or two, having been left at an impressionable age (8 to 14) with the constant fear that you and all who have not yet been saved will be eternally damned if you do not save them from this blasphemous world, and spooked by the bountiful ignorance that surrounded you.

Flannery O'Connor, a devout Catholic, was super-critical of fundamentalist Protestants. Her short stories and two novels either explored dark religious themes or were tinged with often morbid religious undertones.

THE VIOLENT BEAR IT AWAY's title is taken from a verse in the Douay-Rhiens Catholic Bible at Matthew 11:12: "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent bear it away."

I'll forego delving into possible meanings of the title, and any discussion of the novel gives away what happens at and near the end of the book. I'll just say that it's a BRUTAL book, dealing with a 14-year-old boy, fanatical, Southern fundamentalists and the related themes of destruction and redemption.

If you are looking for an enjoyable summer read, perhaps you should look elsewhere. If you'd like to get a sampling of the deeply dark, morbid and haunting world of Southern fundamentalist ol' time religion, purchase now.

The Title Says It All

A bleak book with sustained religious imagery, that's what you're in for. O'Connor is such a powerful writer, though, that you occasionally get lost in the poetic beauty of her phrasing and forget how depressing the story is. But the story always jerks you back to reality.

Disturbing yet oddly mesmerizing & highly original

The vernacular of the star rating system is woefully inadequate in this case: 'I love it' (as five stars is meant to convey) seems the wrong sentiment for a story as dark and disturbing as this one, which showcases a place and time that is unpleasant to imagine existing, but unforgettable once introduced. Yet I can't imagine giving it anything other than five stars. I found it to be very beautifully written and perhaps uncomfortably evocative in its depiction of the inner motivations and thoughts of characters brutally shaped by their experiences and helpless in their power to overcome them. I almost didn't want to know about these people, but once started on the narrative I couldn't help wanting to continue the journey. I listened to it primarily as I tried to fall asleep, which I'm sure added to the haunting quality of the story, as the despair and darkness infused my dreams and always lingered when I awoke. This was my first Flannery O'Connor, and my reaction was similar to reading William Faulkner and Carson McCullers: the story is darkly alluring, the writing style leaves a singular impression (O'Connor being my favorite of the three), and the characters stir powerful and often disquieting emotions. The story crawls into your bones, and once there, it lingers until it's almost hard to know if you're glad you allowed it in or not. The effect is made all the more dramatic by the narrator, who was so masterful it's hard to imagine that anyone else could have brought this to life so vividly as to make the events almost painful to bear witness to. I encourage you to press 'play,' in the end I'm glad I did.