“For those who lack eyes to see,” the blind man said. “The ways of the Antichrist are slow and tortuous. He arrives when we do not expect him: not because the calculation suggested by the apostle was mistaken, but because we have not learned the art.” Then he cried, in a very loud voice, his face turned toward the hall, making the ceiling of the scriptorium re-echo: “He is coming! Do not waste your last days laughing at little monsters with spotted skins and twisted tails! Do not squander the last seven days!” (1, p. 83)
That was Sunday, day one. The book ends on Saturday. We have reached the end of the novel, and the end of the abbey’s world. The library that men would kill for is no more. In a strange twist, Jorge was right. The Apocalypse has come, and the Antichrist has had his way. All that remains now is to make sense of it.
Any of my analysis at this point would, I think, stint or slant conversation about The Name of the Rose and what you make of it. Therefore, for now, I want to refrain from offering any commentary. Up to this point, I’ve focused on the medieval aspects of the book, trying to give you the keys that you need to make the writing, the story, the time frame, less obscure and more familiar. Tonight is for reader response.
I’d like to come back next week, with your approval — after everyone’s had time to digest the entire book, with some ideas about meaning: what the novel signifies, how to read all the signs therein. We can talk about how the novel is a detective story and a postmodern literary work; we can talk about theory and the ideas behind the text, nominalism, ways of reading, and whatever else you wish. It would help if I knew where you have questions — and I mean questions beyond Jorge and Gui and the particular evils of both men. Or anything else you want to discuss.
For tonight, the novel has come to its devastating climax and denouement. You, the reader, get the floor. How did you react? What do you make of it? Was it worth the reading? It’s your turn to hold forth, and my turn to listen.
Sources
1. Eco, Umberto. The Name of the Rose. NY: Harcourt Brace, 1984.
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