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The Name of the Rose (Everyman's Library (Cloth))

by Umberto Eco
3616 members / 0 friends / 22 groups / 99 reviews / 162 tags
(Book Jacket Status: Jacketed)

A spectacular best seller and now a classic, The Name of the Rose catapulted Umberto Eco, an Italian professor of semiotics turned novelist, to international prominence. An erudite murder mystery set in a fourteenth-century monastery, it is not only a gripping story but also a brilliant exploration of medieval philosophy, history, theology, and logic.

In 1327, Brother William of Baskerville is sent to investigate a wealthy Italian abbey whose monks are suspected of heresy. When his mission is overshadowed by seven bizarre deaths patterned on the book of Revelation, Brother William turns detective, following the trail of a conspiracy that brings him face-to-face with the abbey’s labyrinthine secrets, the subversive effects of laughter, and the medieval Inquisition. Caught in a power struggle between the emperor he serves and the pope who rules the Church, Brother William comes to see that what is at stake is larger than any mere... see complete book description
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Rated 4.322327 stars
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Rated 4.5 stars

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  • andrew p's Avatar

    andrew p says

    I am more than a little surprised that this is a reading people give to the book. Sure, that is a side note in the larger picture, but Eco is largely interested in the control of knowledge. This story could not be set in another age, as a couple hundred years in either direction fails to present such centralized control of knowledge.

    Of his novels, this is Eco's least favorite, and that may be because he was (almost idly) playing around with a number of threads. His interest in the history of Western thought comes through, though not as clearly as later in Foucault's Pendulum (his favorite among his novels). Similarly, he doesn't play as successfully with ideas drawn from his favorite authors, though he places a few in the novel.

    Finally, remember that Eco's fortunes in his native Italy have, in the past, been connected to the politics of his novels. The Name of the Rose is also social critique, which is something he managed to have supported until Berlusconi's administration and Baudolino.

    posted Friday, January 11 2008

    (This is a response to a previous comment)

    (andrew p’s previously rated this books 5 stars)

  • felicia_angel's Avatar

    felicia_angel says

    Faith vs Knolwedge? It's a good question set up within the book, but I don't try to look into it too much, but rather to simply read and enjoy. I did, though it did make me think when I finished it. Faith is changed by knowledge, and knowledge is challenged by faith...in the end, no one won or lost, and the Knowledge of Good and Evil is broken down into too many gray areas for one to know who is ultimately to blame for it...but it's a great mystery that I wanted to figure out, and a wonderful read.

    posted Friday, January 11 2008

  • amin s's Avatar

    amin s says

    One of the better books i have ever read. i believe this is Eco's best book, better than his subsequent works. very well reaearched.

    posted Monday, December 10 2007

  • chuck norris's Avatar

    chuck norris says

    ''daramati templul si eu nu am sa ridic altul.am sa va las sa vedeti sacrul asa cum e .nu voi face greseala de a il explica sau de a-l salva in fata voastra,tocmai pentru ca nimeni nu poate,nici macar eu.hai sa mergem sa bem vinul care e vin si painea care e paine.iar cerul vostru nu e de privit ci de acceptat asa cum este.nu purtati razboiul nimanui . omorati-l pe dumnezeu ,nu va sacrificati pentru el p-entru ca timpul vostru trece si petrecerea se va termina."

    posted Sunday, November 25 2007

    (This is a response to a previous comment)

  • grigore 's Avatar

    grigore says

    tematica romanelor lui u.eco tinde spre notiuni planturoase, grave (crestinatate, punctul fix al puterii etc.)-in consonanta cu aceasta este si concluzia: "experientele celor simpli au rezultate salbatice si cu neputinta de controlat"-cinstita afirmatie .... mi-a placut ideea sacrificarii calugarilor pentru salvarea imaginii lui hristos in ochii posteritatii...poate fi considerata un fel de mantuire-rasplata(doar ca impartaseste acelasi scop, binele omenirii)

    posted Sunday, November 25 2007

  • ivana c's Avatar

    ivana c says

    I ludice, pa i ti si posteno oprao Browna, i to na divan nacin, samo si rekao Brownu da tako treba pisati! Super, da bogdo Brown to cuje, stojim iza tebe! (''Mr. Brown this is how to write'') Super! Vidis da dijelimo isto misljenje! hh puno pozdrava!

    posted Tuesday, November 13 2007

    (This is a response to a previous comment)

    (ivana c’s previously rated this books 5 stars)

  • ivana c's Avatar

    ivana c says

    A ovo cu na hrvatskom, nisam ja tebi mislila nista, krivo si skuzio, nego ovoj curi koja je usporedila Daba Browna s Ecom...ma sta ti je, nisam tebe napala...ej! ova sto je rekla da je prije Browna bio Eco...strasno! na nju sam u biti odgovorila. sve 5/5 don't worry....Prije Browna Eco...to je jednostavno prestrasno, kao da kazes da je prije Leonarda Da Vincija bio Brown...nema smisla! Ona ocito nije studirala knjizevnost. (nigel's parrish ova, ne znam zasto, ali mislim da je zensko)

    posted Tuesday, November 13 2007

    (This is a response to a previous comment)

    (ivana c’s previously rated this books 5 stars)

  • mirko b's Avatar

    mirko b says

    I agree, that was my point anyway. No need for you to over-emphasize it that much. Peace.

    posted Monday, November 12 2007

    (This is a response to a previous comment)

    (mirko b’s previously rated this books 5 stars, read review)

  • ivana c's Avatar

    ivana c says

    Don't compare Eco to Dan Brown. It's like comparing McDonald's food with Vitamin C. It shows only lack of education in literature and theory of literature. I, as a professor of literature, know the difference between high literature and best sellers. Dan Brow is nothing but a common best seller and like that, will never be taught in schools and Universities. You don't compare these two. Eco is a literary critic and theoretician of literature. I don't think he would be happy if somebody compared him to Dan Brown. Dan Brown is guy who searched the Internet and used attractive materials in intriguing story.

    posted Monday, November 12 2007

  • ivana c's Avatar

    ivana c says

    Don't compare Eco to Dan Brown. It's like comparing McDonald's food with Vitamin C. It shows only lack of education in literature and theory of literature. I, as a professor of literature, know the difference between high literature and best sellers. Dan Brow is nothing but a common best seller and like that, will never be taught in schools and Universities. You don't compare these two. Eco is a literary critic and theoretician of literature. I don't think he would be happy if somebody compared him to Dan Brown. Dan Brown is guy who searched the Internet and used attractive materials in intriguing story.

    posted Monday, November 12 2007

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