Lust by Elfriede Jelinek
Things are not as they appear in a small ski resort in Austria. The manager of a paper factory, Hermann, has concluded that sexual fulfilment starts at home. This refers to Gerti, his wife and possession. How Gerti feels about Hermann using her is not questioned. She serves as a vessel for Hermann to savagely, viciously, and briefly pour his juices into. Gerti, who has endured much abuse, believes she has found love and salvation in Michael, a student who saves her after a day of brutal abuse by her husband. However, Michael is a man and is climbing the Austrian political ladder.
Lust by Elfriede Jelinek
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In addition to being a book about power dynamics in marriage, Lust is a book about rape in marriage. Unflinching and arguably the most unrelenting of Jelinek’s books, which is saying a lot, it chronicles the narrative of Gerti, who is locked in a sexually and mentally abusive relationship. It is like a sinister fable. The characters—who don’t even have last names—can come out as extremely stereotypical. Also secondary is the plot.
It’s a little challenging to read. It is unquestionably not a feminist understanding of the gender dynamic. Jelinek writes in a casual style that is full of wordplay and jokes.
