Death With Interruptions – Reflection

My first feeling about Death with Interruptions by Jose Saramago was disappointment. I felt a bit disappointed because I had high expectations for the book, but I did not enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed the book, but I did have some issues with it.

My first issue with the book was the writing style. I have read books before that do not utilize quotations (aka Normal People), but this was another level. I really did not like the lack of periods. The lack of periods and in turn the excessive use of commas, made the book weird to read in some parts. I do think if the book was written in a more “stereotypical” way it would have been more enjoyable.

My favorite thing about this novel is its ability to make you think. The novel had me questioning a lot of things surrounding death, especially how death gives people meaning. It made me evaluate how different life would be if us humans were no longer tethered to the Earth for a limited time.

The idea of being immortal leads me to my next topic. I previously never thought about how many issues there would be if humans no longer died. It was shocking to see all the issues with the government, funeral homes, hospitals and even religious groups. The country was definitely turning into this dystopian place with the government trying to make everyone happy.

Another interesting part of the book was the role of the Maphia (which I think the name is hilarious for some reason). The ‘interlude’ section that included the family trying to take some of their family members over the border was a very intriguing part of the novel. When the neighbour questioned the morality of the family’s decision to allow the old man and the child to die, I questioned how I would handle this situation. I think what the family did was perfectly fine, as they were suffering in a constant state of sickness when they should have passed on. I think the whole outrage surrounding the actions of the family was blown out of proportion because no one knew how long this phenomenon would be going on, and these people could be suffering for hundreds of years if nothing changed.

Lastly, my only other gripe with the book is the romance. When reading the synopsis I was expecting more of an intense love story, but to me it just did not feel that way. I do think the romance was an important part to the plot, as death(with a ‘d’ not ‘D’), yet again, ultimately disappears at the end of the book. I feel that death made this decision because she was selfish, even when becoming more human, but isn’t dying very human?

Here is my favorite quote: “This episode in the street, only possible in a small place where everyone knows everyone else, speaks volumes about the inconvenience of the communication system instituted by death for the termination of the temporary contract which we call life or existence.” (138-139)

Discussion Questions: 

1. What would you do if the people in Canada stopped dying? 
2. What do you think is the significance of the envelopes being violet?