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A novel that continuously reminds us that poets and their vocation are instrumental in shaping the opinions and values of a certain epoch. Life is Elsewhere, written by Milan Kundera, was completed in 1969 and published in 1973.

“I wanted to solve an aesthetic problem: how to write a novel that would be a “criticism of poetry” and yet at the same time itself be poetry.” Kundera writes in the postscript of this novel: Before delving into the esoteric layers and themes of the novel, it would, however, be apposite to first give a terse synopsis.

The novel is set in three defining periods in European history: before the Second World War, during it and after it. The protagonist of the novel is Jaromil. The second most important character is Maman, the domineering and overbearing mother of Jaromil. Jaromil was conceived by her mother “on a particularly sunny summer morning behind a huge boulder picturesquely silhouetted against a green valley traditionally favoured by the citizens of Prague for Sunday outings.” His father and Maman were in a romantic relationship that spawned Jaromil, but his father showed caveats when Jaromil was conceived. Inasmuch as Jaromil was conceived, they both had to tie the proverbial knot and get married, only to lead a reluctant marital life.

The novel follows the life of Jaromil, who is a young poet who aspires to become an artist and is inclined to the political ideology of communism that has taken half of Europe by storm immediately after the Second World War. Her mother, Maman, projects her own pent-up and stifled desires onto her son and unrelentingly keeps vigil over him. Intriguingly, the novel portrays how life can be designed, groomed and manufactured by someone other than you to match certain desires. Maman has been jilted by her husband and now completely banks on her son and derives happiness from him.

Her son began to be the zenith of her freedom, excitement, and exuberance. The feelings that her son gave her were unprecedented. She had always felt embarrassed when her husband touched, caressed, or titillated her body. But her son had different emotional connectivity with her that was intrinsic, integral and powerful. In precise terms, her son was her flesh. “No, no, she would never forget that the excitement her husband made her feel was full of risks and uncertainty, whereas her son gave her a tranquility full of happiness; that is why she continued to cleave to him for consolation.” Some other lines can tell us how she envisages her son: “Ah, the joy of sucking! She lovingly watched the fishlike motions of the rootless mouth and she imagined that with her milk there flowed into her little son her deepest thoughts, concepts, and dreams.” Maman had this idea that since she was nursing her and was the only source to do so, she had the right to own, possess, and dominate him in all facets. She thought he was her kingdom.

Excessive and exorbitant amounts of motherly love brought several sexual imbalances into Jaromil’s life. When he reached the threshold of puberty and began to navigate her sexuality, primarily mentioned in Chapter 3: The Poet Masturbates, he further disassociates himself from girls and finds joviality in himself. He develops a kind of self-obsession with himself, first for being a prodigy and second for having no quality to perform well in relationships. Hence he faces this question: “Whenever she met Jaromil, she asked him the same stereotyped question: How are you doing with girls? Jaromil longed to spit in her face because her condescendingly jovial question touched on the whole crux of his misery. It is not that he did not have any contact with girls, but his dates were rare events, as isolated as the stars in the sky. The word “girls” was depressing, like the words “loneliness” and failure.” His remote cognisance of girls emanates from his mother’s toil, right from childhood, to disassociate him from girls, fearing that he would be taken away from her by another woman. I believe that in this novel, Kundera has penetrated the unfathomable and abysmal territory of human consciousness.

Moreover, on account of her mother’s overbearing response to Jaromil’s formative period, he now encounters challenges that truly daunt him to offset his timidity and bashfulness with his desire for playfulness. He befriends a girl named Kamila, who is his classmate, but the entire mechanism of relationships dismally disappoints him. His performance in bed makes him feel sexually inferior. Her second relationship is an iota better than his previous one. But he finds himself always in choppy waters while sailing in the sea of romantic relationships.

Her mother dotes on him so much that she continuously encourages him about his precocious talent-earlier for painting and later for becoming a renowned poet of calibre. Due to this, Jaromil is bifurcated and invariably invaded by dilemmas. Even politically, he is substantially influenced by his mother. He supports the onslaught of communism in Czechoslovakia all because her mother was prone to it. They both think that the ruse that has been set by the bourgeoisie radically needs to be dispelled and the poetry must be instrumentalised to serve the interests of the masses in the face of the gargantuan illusion of capitalism being sold by the bourgeoisie.

Later, Jaromil gets disillusioned when he becomes conversant with the communist government’s implacable curb on freedom. He comes to know that all he was believing and buying into was a sham. But it is too late for him to recant his ideological beliefs. He dies at the tender age of twenty, bedridden and struck by pneumonia. When he was born, his mother was with him, and when he was shuffling off this mortal coil, his mother was there administering him. The love of motherhood and its subterranean veers and subterfuges are key themes of this novel.

The following are the most important themes that this novel entails:

Liberty – Kundera explores how perception in a certain epoch can affect the nature of liberty. Jaromil believes that what he writes must adhere to the regime’s principles, and insofar as the regime’s principles are commensurate with the higher good of the society, his contribution will not go in vain. Liberation in the novel is layered and brimming with complications. “The worst thing is not that the world is unfree, but the people have unlearned their liberty.” Kundera writes. Jaromil and his mother are toeing the line drawn by communism. Hence their liberty is also defined by the regime. Kundera is never judgemental about his characters. Jaromil, even if delusional about liberty, has the freedom to rationalise his delusions, and Kundera never adds his inclination. Artistic freedom is also an intriguing sub-theme in the novel in the broader theme of liberty. Certainly, Jaromil faces constraints imposed by the regime but despite that, he continues to justify them. Freedom in this novel is ambiguous. Jaromil is ostensibly free and basks in it, but quite late in his life, he feels disillusioned and gradually realises how reality is different from what he has been injected with.

Poetry – Kundera delves deep into the question of what is the role of a poet in modern society as poets were very key in history, and their role was instrumental in all affairs of society. Goethe, for example, was the national poet of Germany. But in modern society, the role of the poet is whittled away and reduced to a very minimum level. Our poet, Jaromil, seeks appreciation and self-expression. His political ideology steers his artistic expression and defines it. Kundera writes that a poet is not a poet until somebody takes an interest in his work and reads it, thereby giving his opinion, either rejecting it or lauding it. He emphasises a poet must yearn for appreciation. Let me quote an excerpt: “He was in his room, thinking about poetry: if a poem is to be a true poem, it must be read by somebody else besides the author; only then can it prove that it is not merely a disguised diary and that it is capable of living its own life, independent of the person who had written it.” Our poet is divided so much that we can’t tell if he is himself. First, he is overwhelmed by his mother. The second political system of the communist regime substantiates his talent with communist propaganda.

Running – Jaromil is on the run. He runs from girls. He runs from his mother. He runs from his friends and society. Similarly, the juxtaposition of running of Percy Shelly, who runs from London to Ireland to participate in protestations, Rimbaud, who runs throughout Europe for almost similar reasons and Jaromil, who runs from everyone around him, depicts a common theme which is: life is elsewhere and to reach that elsewhere one must continuously run. Even if Jaromil supports the communist regime but over time, he comes to know how things are complicated, and beyond his country, there is a completely different world. Jaromil escapes from reality and finds solace in poetry. He knows society is brutal and oppressive, but his perception is blurred. Jaromil runs because he has not still met his authentic version. Circumstances prevent and hamper him from confronting his true aspirations and dreams. His desires are the reflection of the desire for a regime and an anxious mother. Hence he runs throughout the novel and fails to find his authentic self.

Love – Jaromil tells his red-headed girlfriend that either there is complete love or there is not. Jaromil broods: “When it comes to love, there is no such thing as compromise. When you’re in love, you must give everything.” He expects that if someone loves him, he/she must surrender everything to that person. His family, friends, or anything that is close to him/her must be relinquished if his beloved says so. But love and a romantic relationship are very elusive for Jaromil. He continuously strives to find a love that must stay and gives credence to fidelity. Jaromil thinks when you love someone, you must love that person through and through without any doubt or reason. Love should be total. But the love of his mother is total. Can Jaromil tolerate total love? Love entails insecurity, confused relationship, and expectation. Jaromil is insecure, confused and does not live up to the expectations of the girls. Hence he always complains about his inability to love. Love in poetry, Jaromil thinks, must be used in terms of socialism. He scorns the love which subscribes to the shibboleths of capitalism. For him, love must, apart from sexual desires, serve the interests of the masses. Hence communism has overshadowed all of his life and his preferences.

Identity crisis- Jaromil can’t identify himself with something in stringent and exacting terms. Illusion and confusion inform his life. When he manifests an interest in painting and paints a few surrealistic paintings, his mother contacts an artist to teach him art and make him a renowned artist. Later, his mother realises Jaromil writes poetries. She now goads him to write poetries and helps him to hone his poetic flair. Now he aspires to be a poet and renounces painting. When it comes to his romantic relationship, he is unable to find real love. He struggles to maintain a relationship. Amidst expectations from the communist regime and his mother, Jaromil struggles to find his true self. When he writes poetry, the poems must not contravene the regime. When he loves, his girlfriends must not hurt his mother. Whatever he touches is brimming with expectations and he is very careful lest he go against the expectations. Hence he suffers from an identity crisis. Disillusionment informs his personality. He can’t find his true self in the abysmal state of confusion. Our poet is invaded by unrelenting motherly love, the looming monster of communism and pending disillusionment.

The writer is a student, based in Turbat. He Tweets at @shahabakram6 and can be reached at shahabakram0852@gmail.com