A Severed Head

This dark, extremely well-written comedy takes you to hell – well, close anyway – and back, concluding in a hilarious couple of chapters. Along the way, the soon-to-be-divorced protagonist, Martin, learns a few lessons about life, power, love and fidelity (or lack thereof). The novel starts in a foreboding manner, with mythological references scattered throughout that are worth making note of – their attributes and actions mirror those of some of the characters. When the samurai sword made an appearance, I figured it was only a matter of time before someone would become, well, a severed head. The ceremonial weapon is a red herring, as far as I can tell, and no one suffers more than a well-deserved punch on the nose. Who's sleeping with who takes on epic proportions, but all seems to end well. Well, fairly well for Martin and most of the other characters. But we're free to think otherwise, and I think this was Murdoch's intention. This is a smart, well-paced novel with great dialogue and psychologically-rich characters. Definitely deserves another reading!

One thing for sure, you will never guess what happens next. The motivations of the characters are simply not the motivations that drive most people. I expected to gain some philosophical insight on the human condition but no such luck.

This book is one of Iris Murdoch’s most brilliant, wickedly funny books. A tour de force by a great author.

This book is a sexy, tantalizing gem. I felt Ms. Murdock wanted to go places she didn't quite know how to get to, but got to them anyway. Martin Lynch-Gibbon, the book's main character, is both villain and victim. The book twists and turns. There is Georgie, Martin's beautiful but woeful mistress, his wife Antonia, her lover, Palmer, Martin's brother Alexander and perhaps the book's strangest and most intriguing character, Honor Klein. I had seen the movie, "Iris," which is about Murdoch' descent into Alzheimer's disease, but I had no idea what a wonderful writer she was and is.

I read this book as it was a recommended text for a Master Class in Fiction text that I am slogging through. Severed Head was used for the chapter on dialogue. It does have some great, conversations. It was a fun read - a comedy of ever changing relationships - all revealed to the reader by a very self-absorbed, clueless and unreliable narrator.

The first half of the book is gripping and excellent, comparable with a decent Murakami novel. The second half it descends into farce that is impossible to take seriously. Feels like the author wanted to do something serious than got bored (and horny!) halfway through.

I have always loved Iris Murdoch's books, and I thought this book particularly brilliant. The same sort of people inhabit Murdoch's books -- terribly successful intellectuals who live terribly miserable lives and who insist on causing others misery. This is, of course, hilarious, as long as you don't actually run into any of Murdoch's misanthropic intellectuals."A Severed Head" is a rare book that actually redeems Murdoch's protagonist. It can be hilarious at times, and it is a brilliant and deeply absorbing read.

Oh it's the typical incest, Freud, Oxford Dons, everyone sleeping with everyone. All it missed was murder. I liked it a lot!

I'll start with a warning. Before the novel, we have a most lucid and preceptive introduction. Unless you want a synopsis of events, together with critical comments in advance of encountering the characters and themes first hand, leave it alone until you have read the book.This is different from most of Iris Murdoch's novels. It is an intellectual exercise, clever, but ultimately cold. It may be a farce in structure and content, but there is precious little real humour to be found here. Indeed, it is hard not to agree with the review which speaks of the' obnoxious, self-centred individuals' who people the world of the novel. These semi-bohemian, academics and the like intertwine themselves in a rarefied Bloomsbury environment, insulated from the lives of most people. None of them seem much involved in their various occupations. Their focus on their inward lives and those of the other characters. This is especially true of the central character, Martin, whose spiritual journey, if it can be dignified thus, is at the heart of things. Martin's mistress, Georgie, is the one flesh and blood, likeable character. The role of Honor Klein is central to the meaning of the novel, as is the fog that suffocates London. However, Honor is never much more than a dea ex machina, which limits the novel and particularly its dénouement.Iris Murdoch was both an academic philosopher and a person who shunned much of conventional morality, as her letters and biography show. Nonetheless, in her finest work, and there are some wonderful novels, she is much more closely involved in living, breathing people rather than sophisticated patterning of ideas as she is here. 'A Severed Head' is certainly clever, but there is much that is very unpleasant in the book.

Umm...sort of Bertie Wooster meets Evelyn Waugh only not as deft as either. Not I.M at her best but funny in parts; just a shame that those parts are a little far distant at times. Tackles dark subjects but essentially a marital farce. Probably one for existing Murdoch fans rather than novices.

I read most of Iris Murdoch's novels years ago and enjoyed them thoroughly, then recently Radio 4 revisited two of her books — The Sea, The Sea and this one — and that rekindled my interest in her work.Iris Murdoch's cleverness and wit shine through brilliantly in A Severed Head. The plot borders on farce, with the six central characters, three men and three women, forming various love affairs amongst themselves. As is often the case in Murdoch, these relationships can be obsessive, particularly Martin's desire for Honor Klein. On a second reading I realised how from the start the reader is prepared for each of the couplings, often well in advance. Masterly writing throughout and very entertaining. One of her best.

Entertaining if bizarre. Set amidst the moneyed class of 1950s London, the novel is entirely concerned with love and desire in their many forms whilst never failing to lampoon its own characters. The reader is held at a distance, never fully sympathising with any of the characters whose problems are entirely of their own making. Readers of Evelyn Waugh might recognise some similarities in style, tone and subject matter.

This book is a delight, but I felt moved to post a review to warn people not to read the introduction by Miranda Seymour before reading the novel, because it gives away many of the important plot developments. Half the fun of the novel comes from some of the unexpected events, so do read the introduction afterwards rather than before. Luckily this is what I did, so it didn't spoil anything.