Face to face
Words against weapons
ANITA JOSHUA
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It is important to have rational debate on issues, feels Jostein Gaarder, the Norwegian novelist.
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Photo: V.V. Krishnan
Building bridges: Jostein Gaarder.
A teacher by training and a writer by calling, Jostein Gaarder's interest in philosophy should have brought him to India much earlier. But, a host of reasons kept him away till the Crown Prince and Princess of Norway decided to pay a State visit recently. Part of the royal entourage representing Norway's literature, his maiden visit also coincided with the release of a Hindi translation of another of his titles The Orange Girl. Though this visit to India was long overdue and, too short and sanitised for his liking, Gaarder insists he has lived with India for long. Excerpts from a conversation...
Is this your first visit to India?
Absolutely. But, I'm very familiar with Indian culture; the Hindu culture, the Indo-European common background, Vedic philosophy. So, I've lived with India very much.
Recently, you were in a spot of trouble over your article God's Chosen People in which you criticised Israel. Didn't you know you were asking for trouble?
I was prepared for a debate but I hadn't anticipated the international uproar. I wrote for a Norwegian audience. I was naοve not to have anticipated the attention it would draw because of my international repute as an author. I wrote in Norwegian and there are no authorised translations. I'm a deep friend of Jews and Israel but I do think that at times they've been brutal against Palestinians. In a way, society has forgotten and betrayed the Palestinian people. I wrote this during the latest Israel-Lebanon war where many civilians and children were killed. I used words — strong words — against sharp weapons. Believe it or not, I'm really afraid and concerned for the future of Israel. They have support from the international community but they are also creating so much of frustration and hatred. I was then accused by some people of being anti-Semitic which I'm definitely not. That is a very serious accusation. It's terrible not just because of historic reasons but also because it means one is a racist.
You never anticipated this kind of a debate?
Not the extent of it. I never thought it would go out of the borders of Norway. But, this is in keeping with the "you are either with us or them" kind of debate the world is seeing post-9/11. I'm saddened by the polarisation taking place in Europe. A large number of Muslim people feel forgotten and misunderstood by the West. We have to build bridges in the spirit of Mahatma Gandhi. Europe is no longer a Christian continent. We must live in a secular world together. We should never allow any State to be Muslim or Christian or Jewish because all countries have a mixed population.
You said in the article that the State of Israel does not respect Israel. What do you mean?
The State of Israel was established in 1948. But, in 1967, they occupied Jerusalem and West Bank. My view is the same as the United Nations. I respect Israel as it was in 1948 but Israel itself does not do that by occupying.
Why, after stirring the debate, did you decide to withdraw from it?
Three days after the first article and the heated debate — to which I responded several times — I wrote another article clarifying my position. Thereafter, I decided to withdraw from the debate because I had nothing more to say. Anyway, the debate was very polarised. As a humanist, I wanted to build bridges; not divide people further.
But, as a writer, didn't you feel your freedom of expression was being curtailed? Especially through strong-arm tactics like your Israeli publisher threatening to stop publishing your books?
I withdrew because I felt no purpose would be served if I continued to contribute to the debate. May be, I'll come back to this subject in a book. After this experience, maybe as a writer
I should concentrate on novels and avoid writing in newspapers!
Coming to your books...
My breakthrough was a book called The Solitare Mystery. That gave me the opportunity to work fully as a writer. I'd been a teacher for many years. I wanted to finish that chapter of my life; so I wrote Sophie's World. It's a novel about the history of European philosophy. That immediately became an international bestseller. I was astonished because I was convinced it would be of interest to just a few people. It has now been translated into 55 different languages and has sold more than 30 million copies. As a result, some of my other books also got translated into different languages. After Sophie's World, I had the time to write The Christmas Mystery and Through a Glass, Darkly. After that, I couldn't write for some years; not because of writer's block but because I had many places to visit, interviews to give. So much so that I began to say I had more time to write when I was a full-time teacher than when I'd become a full-time writer.
So, you have given up teaching totally. Do you miss it?
Yes. I don't miss it because I feel I'm still a teacher when I travel and meet people. But, I do miss the dialogue because philosophy is all about being in dialogue. A monologue is not very philosophical. Without the dialogue I had as a teacher with young people, I couldn't have written Sophie's World. Because, that is a didactic pedagogical project even though it is a novel. My other novels are ordinary novels but many of my stories are kind of philosophical because I am a philosophical human being. That's what made me a writer. When I was 11 years old, I felt I was part of a mystery and I began wondering at my very existence in this huge universe. When I mentioned it to adults and asked them whether they didn't feel strange to be alive, they dismissed me saying, "Well... not really." Then, I decided not to take the world for granted. This experience has followed me since. That's my inspiration for writing.
But, doesn't all this philosophy make your books heavy to read?
No, quite the opposite. In fact, in my country, I've been accused of making things too accessible. But, philosophers are happy because books like Sophie's World generate interest in philosophy. People think philosophy is interesting, maybe important but also too academic. Also, there is a feeling that philosophy is too boring to read. I offer it within the framework of a story; so it's easy to access. I do think the human brain is made for stories.
Are you working on any book right now?
Usually, I work on a specific book. This time, I'm working on two projects simultaneously; so I don't know what will be my next book. Also, I have promised myself not to talk about the book I am writing because if I talk too much about the story, it can vanish.
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