The confusions of young Torless

Paperback, 208 pages

English language

Published Nov. 5, 2014 by Oxford University Press.

ISBN:: 978-0-19-966940-0
OCLC Number:: 855046122

The Confusions of Young Törless (German: Die Verwirrungen des Zöglings Törleß), or Young Törless, is the literary debut of the Austrian philosophical novelist and essayist Robert Musil, first published in 1906. Musil's novel is ostensibly a Bildungsroman, a story of a young disoriented man searching for moral values in society and their meaning for him.

The expressionistic novel, based on Musil's personal experiences at a boarding school in Hranice (in Austria-Hungary, now in the Czech Republic) was written according to Musil "because of boredom". In later life, however, Musil denied that the novel was about youthful experiences of his own. Due to its explicit sexual content, the novel at first caused a scandal among the reading public and the authorities of Austria-Hungary.

Later, various prefigurings of Fascism were identified in the text, including the characters of Beineberg and Reiting, who seem to be orderly pupils by day but …

The Confusions of Young Törless (German: Die Verwirrungen des Zöglings Törleß), or Young Törless, is the literary debut of the Austrian philosophical novelist and essayist Robert Musil, first published in 1906. Musil's novel is ostensibly a Bildungsroman, a story of a young disoriented man searching for moral values in society and their meaning for him.

The expressionistic novel, based on Musil's personal experiences at a boarding school in Hranice (in Austria-Hungary, now in the Czech Republic) was written according to Musil "because of boredom". In later life, however, Musil denied that the novel was about youthful experiences of his own. Due to its explicit sexual content, the novel at first caused a scandal among the reading public and the authorities of Austria-Hungary.

Later, various prefigurings of Fascism were identified in the text, including the characters of Beineberg and Reiting, who seem to be orderly pupils by day but shamelessly abuse their classmate psychologically, physically and sexually by night.

2 editions

asiem reviewed The confusions of young Torless by Robert Musil (Oxford World's Classics)

Review of 'The confusions of young Torless' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

2.5 stars for language.

This book is set in an all-boys boarding school in Austria, somewhere in the 19th century. In addition to the eponymous Törless, there are two other boys, Beineberg and Reiting. Beineberg fancies himself an-almost mystic, drawing on the experiences of his father in India, who encountered the wonders of asceticism while he was there. Reiting is far more straightforward, possesses an aggressive swagger and is the de-facto 'leader' of the boys in his form. Törless, around whom the book revolves, is at that confused early adolescent phase of his life, where he attempts to explain the happenings around him through philosophy and literature.

And then there is Basini.

Basini, in my opinion, is the glue that somehow holds the other three together. An aristocratic child, he is soon discovered to be guilty of thievery, and from there his fate is sealed. He becomes the victim of …

2.5 stars for language.

This book is set in an all-boys boarding school in Austria, somewhere in the 19th century. In addition to the eponymous Törless, there are two other boys, Beineberg and Reiting. Beineberg fancies himself an-almost mystic, drawing on the experiences of his father in India, who encountered the wonders of asceticism while he was there. Reiting is far more straightforward, possesses an aggressive swagger and is the de-facto 'leader' of the boys in his form. Törless, around whom the book revolves, is at that confused early adolescent phase of his life, where he attempts to explain the happenings around him through philosophy and literature.

And then there is Basini.

Basini, in my opinion, is the glue that somehow holds the other three together. An aristocratic child, he is soon discovered to be guilty of thievery, and from there his fate is sealed. He becomes the victim of bullying, especially by Reiting and Beineberg, which soon metamorphoses into something more predatory. There is sexual abuse, and, when that is not enough, there is physical abuse (whipping).

Throughout all this, Törless maintains an almost detached view of the proceedings, becoming more interested only when he is suddenly inflamed with desire for Basini, whereupon he proceeds to debase that poor boy in his own cruel way, before relinquishing him to the authorities.

For every person who has been the victim of bullying at school (boarding or otherwise), this book may act as a trigger at various stages. The fall from grace of Basini, who is eventually expelled for thievery, is a horrifying reminder of the bullies in our lives who managed to get away with almost-murder, without being duly chastised or reprimanded.

Perhaps the cruelest revelation is that this is an autobiographical account of Musil's own adolescence. At a point in the book where Törless is reminiscing of his school-days, he mentions:

"I certainly do not deny that this was a humiliation. Why should I?... But anyway, are you going to count the moments of humiliation that every great passion burns into our soul?"

He views it as a learning experience, something that helped him become who he is today.

But what. Of. Basini? Sullied, expelled, never to be heard from again - this is the fate that so many victims of abuse and bullying undergo. And it is never so appallingly apparent as in this book.