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    Pilgrim
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    Pilgrim
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    Pilgrim
    Ebook641 pages9 hours

    Pilgrim

    By Timothy Findley

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Ageless. Sexless. Deathless. Timeless. Pilgrim is a man who cannot die, an astounding character in a novel of the cataclysmic contest between creation and destruction. Pilgrim is Timothy Findley’s masterwork, a finalist for the Giller Prize, and a national bestseller that has smashed the author’s own impressive sales records. It is 1912 and Pilgrim has been admitted to the Burghölzli Psychiatric Clinic in Zürich, Switzerland, having failed—once again—to commit suicide. Over the next two years, it is up to Carl Jung, self-professed mystical scientist of the mind, to help Pilgrim unlock his unconsciousness, etched as it is with myriad sufferings and hopes of history. Is Pilgrim mad, or is he condemned to live forever, witness to the terrible tragedy and beauty of the human condition? Both intimate and expansive in its scope, with an absorbing parade of characters—mythic, fictional and historical—Pilgrim is a fiercely original and powerful story from one of our most distinguished artists.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateJun 1, 2010
    ISBN9781443401852
    Unavailable
    Pilgrim
    Author

    Timothy Findley

    Timothy Findley's recent titles include Pilgrim, which was a finalist for the Giller Prize and his first published in the United States; You Went Away; Dust to Dust; and The Piano Man's Daughter. He was also the author of the acclaimed Headhunter, Not Wanted on the Voyage, Famous Last Words, and The Wars. His most recent play, Elizabeth Rex, won the Governor General's Award for Drama. His work has won innumerable honors, including the Governor General's Award for Fiction and the Edgar Award. He was the only three-time recipient of the Canadian Authors Association Award, bestowed for fiction, nonfiction, and drama. He was an Officer of the Order of Canada and, in France, Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. He split his time between homes in Stratford, Ontario and the south of France. He died in France in June 2002 at the age of 71.

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    Reviews for Pilgrim

    3.5/5

    233 ratings12 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I loved this book, about a man called "Pilgrim" whose past is caught up with notables such as Da Vinci and Henry James. But, he's also in an insane asylum with the aspiring Carl Jung. Very cool.
    • 5/5
      Immortal or madman? A story that mixes history, memory and madness with hints of the myth of the Wandering Jew. Findley brilliantly blends history and fiction. I was revetted by Pilgrim's story. The use of dreams, journals and memory was very creative. A great reminder of why I love Findley's work.
    • 5/5
      Canada (and the world) lost a great writer when Timothy Findley died. Each time I read one of his books I am struck anew at what an interesting and varied writer he was. This book, written in 1999, is another example of his intelligent exploration of a subject.Pilgrim is the name of an Englishman who has been brought to the Burgholzli Clinic in Switzerland to be treated by the psychiatrists there. Pilgrim’s friend, Lady Sylvia Quartermaine, was concerned by his suicide attempts and his current inability to speak. Pilgrim is installed at the clinic and Lady Quartermaine, her maid and Pilgrim’s valet move into the nearby Hotel Baur au Lac. Initially Pilgrim was seen by Doctor Furtwangler but Lady Quartermaine was not happy with him and asked for Carl Gustav Jung to treat him. Jung had just started to move away from Freud’s theories and his exposure to Pilgrim’s story helped him solidify his theory of the collective unconscious. Pilgrim claimed to be unable to die and remembered past lives all the way back to the Trojan Wars. He was an apprentice to his father who was a stained glass maker involved in making the windows of Chartres Cathedral; he had been a disabled shepherd boy who first witnessed St. Teresa of Avila perform a miracle; most famously he had lived as Elisabetta Gherardini whose portrait by Leonardo da Vinci is known as Mona Lisa. As much as the story of Pilgrim this is the story of Jung. Findley freely admits that much is fiction, including the whole cloth of Pilgrim’s story, but it serves to expose Jung’s astonishing life. I have never read much in the fields of psychology and psychiatry but I have often felt that the practitioners of these fields are drawn to it because of their own mental needs. Certainly this portrayal of Jung shows him as a deeply flawed man with episodes of depression and obsessions that would now be treated with pharmaceuticals. It was fascinating to me to see how he used these problems to develop his theories that underpin much of current psychiatric practice. Lots to ponder in this book which I have only briefly summarized so read it for yourself if what I have written sparks an interest.
    • 3/5
      Well written, although I found it lost some momentum during the second half of the book. I like the unresolved aspect of the main character - Pilgrim... was he an immortal or was it mere madness? The issue is never resolved. I identified more with Emma Jung than Carl Gustav. I never knew about his concubine and how he thrust that on his children as well as his devoted wife. What a schmuck.
    • 5/5
      The story of a man who can't die, his memories of an eternal life, including encounters with Da Vinci and Saint Theresa. Brilliantly done, with plenty of history, psychology, and lots more.
    • 4/5
      engaging magic and fantastical historyThis book is why I love Findley. It doesn't necessarily exemplify his usual story type or structure, but it does display his creative brilliance and ability to form an emotional environment. Much of this tale is half remembered dreams, hallucinations, semi lucid thoughts and journal entries which woven together make closing the book seem akin to waking from a particularly vivid daydream. A book of lovely longing. Perhaps in five or ten years I will read it again. I think I will enjoy that.
    • 4/5
      This is the story of a man who cannot die...but wishes he could. Ths story follows the different 'lives' he experiences and we get to meet a few famous people along the way; Leonardo Davinci, St. Teresa, and Carl Jung.
    • 5/5
      Pilgrim (that’s his name) seems to be unable to die. A failed suicide attempt brings him to Bürgholzli Clinic, and the care of Dr. Carl Jung. Are Pilgrim’s claims to past lives merely indications of his illness (schizophrenia), or did the man really model for Leonardo, meet St. Teresa, and survive the sinking of the Titanic? A wonderful story of life and death, madness and imagination, and the search for meaning.
    • 5/5
      History meets Science Fiction - two of my favourite things!
    • 5/5
      Love this book. Story of immortatlity with writing that makes Anne Rice look like a local newspaper journalist.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful melange of philosophy, psychology and how we judge the world
    • 5/5
      This is my favourite Timothy Findley book.