Henry Avila's Reviews > Blindness

Blindness in this admirable novel is both physically and mentally accurate (polyvalent) in describing the book, eyes may not see, yet the soul remains empty of emotion as people stumble around in the forever darkness. A superb writer can give light to the land of those who otherwise remain in shadow, still hope for the future will linger...In an unstated nation's large city like any other day turns extraordinary, as the public abruptly loses sight ...one by one for no explainable reason. Naturally the frightened, helpless government begins to place these unfortunates in a ...mental hospital ...but a trickle becomes a torrent and supplies scarce and soldiers trigger -happy not desiring to be victims too. No surprise the natives become restless as they say. The inmates inside have the good and bad like any other institution you randomly pick out of a hat, and the evil soon raises its nefarious head...slowly at first nevertheless the vile spreads as the violence grows intensively. Bullets, blood and fire, the harrowing walks by the escaping group to find food, shelter and loved ones in the immense metropolis while dodging corpses and the stench will not be easily disregarded. The dead will stay dead and the nameless characters with plain monikers like the doctor's wife, the girl with dark glasses, the old man with the black eye patch and the doctor who (not so funny ) is a ... ophthalmologist...let's not forget the dog of tears (my favorite) etc...Of course a parable of human weakness and the lack of empathy for the downtrodden, those not seen but are everywhere. This novel clinched the Nobel Prize for Literature for the author Jose Saramago a well deserved honor, with numerous commas, his lack of periods and extremely long sentences doesn't distract his value as a brilliant writer. The proof is in the pudding and the cliche is fact for any that pour over these printed pages...