The pinnacle of Fuster's essay writing, Final Judgements is a book of aphorisms that, used to teach moral and/or philosophical truths, reveal things that are relevant to the universal human experience. As Adam Gopnick of The New Yorker puts it, "the aphorism is, in its algebraic abbreviation, a micro-model of empirical inquiry." And Fuster uses the aphoristic tradition, less to establish truths than to undermine them, to question the conceits contained in the established truism. Despite the seriousness of its subject matter, however, this book is laugh-out-loud funny, Fuster's wit revealing that the best aphorisms are based in stripping language of its artifice and revealing its contradictions, and the cumulative effect is a quintessentially Mediterranean kind of playfulness.

About the Author

Joan Fuster (1922-1992) is perhaps the most prolific and important essayists in the Catalan language. Fiercely against the Franco regime, he published over 70 books and wrote for newspapers, magazines and literary journals.

Mary Ann Newman is an award-winning translator from Catalan and Spanish and has published works by Quim Monzo, Xavier Rubert de Ventos, and Josep Carner. Her most recent translation is Private Life, by Josep Maria de Sagarra.

Reviews

'Joan Fuster is one of Catalan literature's most enduring voices. His sense of humour and insight into the human condition is inspiring.' -Jordi Llavina, author of London Under Snow and Poetry & Prose

'Catalan language's most important essayist of the 20th century and a key figure in the culture and recent history of the Valencian region.' -Metode magazine

'Without doubt, Fuster should be placed up there with Erasmus, Rabelais, Montaigne, Voltaire, Mann and Bertrand Russell.' -Josep Ballester, Visat

Book Information
ISBN 9781913744359
Author Joan Fuster
Format Paperback
Page Count 150
Imprint FUM D'ESTAMPA PRESS
Publisher FUM D'ESTAMPA PRESS
Weight(grams) 173g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 8mm