The Cave

"The Cave" opens with an excerpt from Plato's Republic, specifically from what is usually known as The Allegory of the Cave: "What a strange scene you describe, and what strange prisoners. They are just like us."Though it is hard to see as the novel opens, this quote sets the stage for everything that is to come. Deceptively simple and straightforward at the beginning, by the time I reached the end I found "The Cave" to be an immensely rewarding novel, very thought-provoking and as rich in original ideas as any of Saramago's other books.In terms of story, "The Cave" is about an aging potter named Cipriano Algor, his daughter Marta, and her husband Marcal. Early on in the book Cipriano receives the news that the Center, where he has been selling his earthenware plates and jugs, is no longer interested in purchasing his goods. He is told that consumers now prefer plastic wares, and the work of his hands is no longer profitable. Cipriano takes this news understandably hard, but he and his daughter Marta decide to try making clay figurines to sell, an idea which the Center is willing to test. They order over a thousand of the small figurines, and suddenly Cipriano's life sems to have purpose again. As the story continues, a lost dog is found, new love begins to blossom, and a new life begins to grow.As simple as this story seems at the beginning, I should have known better. I've read Saramago before, and I know that his stories are rich with ideas and imagination, and everything tends to mean something. In his other works, such as "Blindness" or "The Stone Raft," the big idea behind the story was posed right up front, almost from the first page. In "The Cave," the ideas of the story are under the surface until the very end, constantly present, but revealed in only tiny hints and suggestions, subtle wordplay and fragments of thought which must be assembled at the end. When we get there, despite the simplicity of the beginning, the conclusion is dramatic and inescapable...perhaps even revolutionary. It is as near to a perfect ending as any I have ever read.While developing these ideas, Saramago keeps us interested with warm characters who we can truly understand and feel for. They have depth, charm, humor, and heart. Saramago's descriptions of their conversations are well-crafted, and he creates as much depth with what they do not say as with what they say. Nobody is simple in this story, and even the dog is important. I came to care about them, their simple life, their everyday decisions. Though it is the ideas which impressed me at the end of the book, it is the characters which made me want to continue reading.I've said it before, reading a Saramago novel should not be a light undertaking. A summer beach novel or light bedtime reading this is not. In both style and content, Saramago's books are challenging stuff. A page or more of text can pass with no paragraph breaks, dialogue lacks the usual markers like quotation marks and line breaks, punctuation is irregular. Somehow, despite these stylistic oddities, Saramago makes it all work, and a rich story comes together from the threads he weaves. As challenging as this book may be to read, like his other novels, in the end, the result is well worth the extra effort. Like a clay pot shaped by the rough, worn hands of a master craftsman, it is a piece to be admired and treasured.In the way Saramago has written "The Cave," he clearly wants you to care about Cipriano and Marta and Marcal and all of the characters. And if you read it, so you shall. It is only through coming to know these people, their loves and annoyances, their fears and hopes, their limitations and their triumphs, that we can understand their story and why it is important. Pay attention to these simple people and their simple lives, because as you will see, it is important. They are important.Because they are just like us.

Portuguese author José Saramago won the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature. His novel The Cave was published in 2000. The book’s protagonist, Cipriano Algor, is an artisan potter who manufactures earthenware dishes in his home workshop and kiln. He lives on the outskirts of an unnamed metropolis and makes periodic trips into the city to deliver his products to his sole customer: the Center. Imagine if Amazon, the company who sells everything, had a skyscraping retail complex that dwarfed the Mall of America, complete with housing for its most valued employees, and you have the corporate nightmare that is the Center. Cipriano Algor lives with his daughter Marta and her husband Marçal, who works as a security guard at the Center. While making a delivery, the potter is informed that the Center will no longer be buying his wares, as they have decided to sell a factory-made product in its place. This unexpected development suddenly leaves Cipriano Algor without a livelihood, forced to face the possibility of having to close his workshop and leave his home.The story of The Cave is sufficiently interesting to keep the reader involved, but Saramago tells it at a snail’s pace. He begins with an overly detailed description of the potter’s delivery route to the Center. Then a stray dog shows up and joins the family, an event which is dwelt upon for quite some time. It feels as if the story takes forever to get started, when all the while it is slowly growing on you. The reader becomes very fondly engaged in the family dynamic between the three main characters, and the details of the ceramic processes and techniques are surprisingly fascinating. Despite the slow-moving plot, the prose often takes the form of rapid-fire dialogue between the family members in discussions that are often overly protracted and repetitive. There is also quite a bit of interior dialogue, and Saramago very insightfully relates the thought processes of his characters, even the dog. The book has no chapters, and the prose is written in long run-on sentences devoid of punctuation but for commas, forming paragraphs that go on for multiple pages. Dialogue is presented the same way, without quotation marks and with only commas to separate one character’s speech from another. These stylistic choices make for an annoying lack of clarity at times, but they do serve to speed up the reading pace.For much of the book’s length, the reader finds himself wondering why Saramago chose to title this novel The Cave. About halfway through the book, a cave is briefly mentioned, but it hardly seems worthy of being the novel’s namesake. At some point I began to suspect that perhaps the title might end up being a reference to Plato’s allegory of the cave (from The Republic), and sure enough, eventually that turned out to be the case, and in a very heavy-handed way. After having spent so much time wading through long, circuitous conversations, waiting to find out what the novel is actually about, the climax is disappointingly vague and forced, a metaphor taken too far and too literally. If you are not familiar with Plato’s allegory, then you’d better read up on it, or you will not have a clue as to the point of the novel.Overall the merits of The Cave outweigh its faults. I quite enjoyed the relationships between the family members (including the dog), and Saramago’s depictions of the Center amount to a beautifully executed dystopian vision of corpocracy that approaches the level of genius in its balance of satire and foreboding. The Cave is not Saramago’s best-known novel (that would be Blindness) and it probably isn’t his best novel, but it is satisfying enough to make me want to read more of his work.

My first novel by Saramago, and it was flawless. I immediately added several more of his books to my To Read list. It’s a very small, intimate story with few characters. An aging potter works with his daughter at his home outside of the city. Each week he takes his goods to The Center, a vast complex of shops, apartments and offices, where they are bought for resale in the shops there. During one trip to The Center the potter is told his pottery isn’t wanted any longer, shoppers prefer modern plastic crockery now. Faced with this, the potter, along with his daughter and son-in-law try to adjust and plan for their future. A simple story, but wonderfully written, with the right amount of allegory sprinkled in.One of the most interesting qualities was the writing style used. I don’t think Saramago used quotation marks for dialog at all. The conversations were all within long, flowing paragraphs, and it took me a couple of pages to realize. But that technique was really satisfying and it “flowed” so well. Stream of consciousness, I suppose. Engaging and effective. Amazing writing.Highly recommended, loved it.

Saramago best of the writers

first reading of Saramago and really enjoyed although the denseness can be heavy going - it is worth the effort.

This is just the second book I have read by Jose Saramago, the first being "Blindness". Right now I feel that excitement when you discover a writer that you can enjoy on so many levels. The story of what I think is termed a dystopic society could have been bleak, but I very much liked the central characters and the their kindness to each other. The ending was hopeful for the main characters and perhaps be extension the rest of their society. I also relished the language. The style of writing (very spare on punctuation and absolutely none of the clutter of quotation marks or "he said, she said"), is not one I have encountered anywhere else but I found it restful and very engaging. I love too how Saramago reflects on language while he is telling the story and fleshing out the characters.Now I have a world of other books by Saramago to explore. Lucky me.

This was recommended by a friend. It is very well written and very different, and deserves the awards it has received. not an easy read, however and fascinating never-the-less.

Great story, I love Jose Saramago's work and style of writing. My favourite author for sure