Let’s carry on littering this place with more monuments to nonentities, shall we
Malta, where total and utter mediocrity is celebrated because it is ‘Maltese’, while Renzo Piano’s worked is dissed and disrespected.
Now it is revealed in a letter to The Times that our prime minister, before he became prime minister, promised the people of Haz-Zebbug (can’t see how most of them give a damn) a monument to the dead author of such great works as ‘Paceville’, Frans Sammut.
On parallel lines, we Żebbuġin now lament that, although in a few weeks’ time, it will be the second anniversary of the demise of literary magnate Frans Sammut, yet another Żebbuġi, the locality’s mayor, who boasts of being a Belti, has as yet not organised anything in honour of Sammut.
It was the Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat, then Leader of the Opposition, who, on May 4 last year, on the first anniversary of Sammut’s demise, promised us, Żebbuġin, that the mayor would erect a life-size monument in our town to honour Sammut. However, despite it coming from the Prime Minister himself, nothing seems to be forthcoming. The mayor laments that the local council has no money in its coffers.
Issa jigi xi hadd jghidli ‘don’t speak ill of the dead, ta, ghax it’s in bad taste, maaaaa, you have to tink of de family’ u intajjarhom.
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http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20130411/letters/Monument-to-Sammut-has-yet-to-happen.465073
Why don’t you try separating your political views from your aesthetic ones? Have you read Samuraj, Il-Gaġġa and Il-Ħolma Maltija?
[Daphne – Yes. They’re bloody awful, and reading them is as tedious as sloughing through mud. Badly written, poorly conceived, and as pompously and pointlessly verbose as their author. Your problem is that you can’t dismiss mine as the non-expert opinion of a Philistine, so you suggest that I am unable to separate my political views from my aesthetic ones. Frans Sammut was a bad or indifferent (let’s be charitable) writer. He made an impact in 1970s Malta because he was the dog that could walk on its hind legs (‘it is not so much that it is done well as that it is done at all’). He is a salient example of the celebration of Maltese mediocrity in Malta. You should not compare a Maltese writer to other Maltese writers, but to the writers in the world outside, then rank and assess him or her accordingly.]
De gustibus non est disputandum I guess.
[Daphne – It’s got nothing to do with personal taste, actually, Alex. There are standards. I will never hazard an opinion about a subject of which I know virtually nothing, like music, but I’m pretty well placed to give a well-considered and well-formed opinion about writing. I also distinguish between whether I like something and whether it is well written.]
And by the way, he was not the only dog walking on hind legs. Alfred Sant, the author, arguably not only walked on hind legs, but ran too, although I’m probably preaching to the unconvertible here. Silġ Fuq Kemmuna and Bejgħ u Xiri are probably mediocre too, in your books.
[Daphne – Oh yes, Alfred Sant is an absolutely terrible writer. So dense and Germanic and up himself.]
OK, could you name three contemporary/modern novels, in any language, which you admire or love. I’d like to see where you’re coming from.
[Daphne – Oh my goodness, where do I begin? I don’t like novels; I like writers – in the sense that if I like one of their books, I tend to read their entire oeuvre and generally like the lot. There’s also no pattern, except for technical brilliance and (this is an important one for me) insight into human nature and behaviour – so anything by Brett Easton Ellis and Jay McInerney to William Trevor. One of the best novels I read recently looked unpromising but turned out to be totally compelling: Jill Dawson’s Watch Me Disappear (p 2006).]
An excellent and relevant piece:
http://www.transcript-review.org/en/issue/transcript-38-malta/essay-incongruity-and-scale-by-ivan-callus
Agree totally, Daphne, that those books are awful – well, as awful as Vella Gera’s short story which made the news.
Now that comment would have broken Sammut’s heart. He absolutely reviled Li tkisser sewwi, and made no secret about it.
Totally in agreement. Utter rubbish, literally.
His work was imposed on us at school because we were living under a Mintoffian regime at the time and that work was glorified, although in a cunning veiled way, the ideas of the the Great Leader and of real socialism.
Il-Gagga? We were living in a gagga under Mintoff.
Why don’t you try calling a spade a spade. You’re always on the defensive.
Veru partit tal-imbarazz. Monument lil Frans Sammut, mhux ghax ma jixraqlux tafux. Imma jekk naghmlu monument lil dan ejja ha naghmlu monument kbir lil Peppi Sufa, it-tallab nazzjonali ta’ Malta b’qalb tad-deheb. Veru pajjiz tal-mickey mouse kif jghid il-venduto John Bundy.
Naqbel perfettament.
Ħaż-Żebbuġ also erected a monument to Paul Mifsud, a billiards player. The strange thing is that the statue was unveiled while Mifsud was still very much alive, as he still is today.
Rather defeats the purpose of having a monument, doesn’t it?
Yes but Thatcher had a statue in bronze done for her whilst she was still alive.
Yes but Thatcher brought 72 billion into the British economy.
Next we’ll have Norman Lowell proposing a monument for the object of his admiration..
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20110515/opinion/Inheritance-of-icons.365380
Now bugger off.
[Daphne – Language unbecoming, son of Frans Sammut and man with the ‘golden’ gun. Fr Serracino Inglott, too, was an absolutely appalling writer. A good, strong thinker, yes – but it just didn’t translate well onto the page. The best writing, like the best design, is clear and simple, and the construction must be harmonious. Unfortunately, Maltese writers suffer from the same disease as the Italians: unnecessary verbosity. It is practically impossible to translate a piece of Maltese or Italian writing into effective English – very often, the whole thing has to be rewritten and a page shrinks to a paragraph.]
Another sacred cow attakkat b’mod fahxi! Serracino Inglott is worshipped as the greatest philosopher of his time but how many Maltese have read his works?
They’re dull as fuck. Both in form and in content.
Serracino Inglott formed many of his ideas, whatever they might have been – because you could never tell – round about the early 1970s. Then he stayed there.
Meanwhile, the world moved on. And he became the Nationalist Party’s guru.
It’s no wonder they find it so hard to do politics. Their think-tank was a one-man act, and the water so murky you couldn’t tell if there was gold or shit at the bottom.
Lino Spiteri too?
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120101/opinion/How-the-Maltese-heart-beats.400585
[Daphne – Lino Spiteri? His writing is shockingly bad, both the journalism and the literature. Give up, Mark. Your father was a bad writer, acclaimed only by other bad writers or by those who don’t read. I wouldn’t have said anything had he understood the limits of his competence and imagination and stuck to it as some kind of private pastime, but this business of having him celebrated and shoved down our throats is so offensive. The celebration of mediocrity is damaging to all.]
Mal-monument ta’ missierek misshom jaghmlu lilek bil-pistola hdejh.
Sometimes it’s the partnering of the apparent randomness and digressions to the well prepared mind that counts. It could be that there was such a particular partnering that worked well in synch.
Malta has no philosophers.
Mela rxuxtajt, el pistolero? Mela qlajta t-tabella ta’ konslu tal-Latvja?
Umberto Eco is one good example of brilliant writing, even when translated into English.
While the Zebbugin work to find funds to build a monument to one of the “magnates” who haunted our childhood with irrelevant literary drivel, our Reich Minister for the Creation of the New Middle Class drops his first bombshell:
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2013-04-12/news/no-funds-for-new-schools-priority-on-maintenance-minister-1379270656/
Another Labour nail in the coffin of high quality education.
‘Come come now Daphne, you shouldn’t speak ill of the dead…’
The crucial thing that people don’t understand about this sentiment is that very often the person’s work is being judged, not the person himself.
The Maltese have a tendency to attach themselves too closely to their work, making it an extension of themselves. An insult to their work equals an insult to themselves and their whole family.
I agree – Samuraj and Paceville are awful. I’ve never met the author so I can’t comment on him.
Of course judging the work but not the person does not refer to Mintoff who was an equally vile statesman and person.
Sod the statue, what we need are street lamps on the main street.
And those lovely orange trees which have been removed back. This was one of the loveliest streets in Malta ruined by this obsession our Local Councils have of removing trees.
Zebbugin, Beltin, locality, demise, literary “magnate” [sic!].
Jaqq and jaqq a thousand times over.
Ifhem, jekk life-size, mhux se jkun xi monument enormi, ghax kien qisu z*** go bott.
Jekk nibqghu sejrin b’din ir-rata li kull personagg politiku wara mewtu naghmlulu monument, f’dan il-pajjiz zghir li ghandna, ser nispiccaw kull kantuniera jkollna wiehed.
Il-Mosta hemm wiehed iddedikat lil Freddie Micallef – ma nafx x’ghamel izjed minn haddiehor u ghalxiex iriduh jibqa’ mfakkar.
Ghalija sar qisu dizunur li jaghmlulek monument. Biex ghamlu wiehed lil Lorry Sant, mhemmx fejn tasal izjed.
Franco will intrigued to have one in Hal Ghaxaq as well.
We hit rock bottom with Lorry Sant’s monument. Nothing surprises me anymore in this mediocre island.
If they so want it, then they should make a collection and get one done. That is how these things are done.
Another real socialism relic to fill our village squares.
Malta taghhom biss – and this only after their first month in power.
This is only the beginning of what is to come.
God help us all.
Do not speak ill about the dead! you should be ashamed!
[Daphne – God, how tedious. By that same reasoning, Ms Camilleri, nobody should be permitted to write disparagingly about the writing skills (or personality) of any dead author.]
And by the same reasoning, we should not speak ill of Hitler and Kim Il Sung, should we? Let’s sing their praises, shall we?
I’m not fond of self-citing but vide my comment about cognitive warfare. Labour has won the battle of ideas here, and we haven’t even noticed.
I have. Plus source. You’re spot on. People don’t yet see the relevance.
Well said, a son with the golden gun! El Pistolero.
Since joining the EU and obtaining official recognition of Maltese within the EU, there has been a Maltese revival which I find tends to celebrate nothing but mediocrity with a Malta tag on it.
I am put off by pompous language and academic literature. I expect my reading to be engaging and enlightening and regretfully most Maltese talent just doesn’t do it for me.
Likewise with Maltese music. Anything that has an amateurish Maltese sound to me, does not cut it but some of Ira Losco’s works do. The litmus test: when I take to a song and to my surprise discover that it is Maltese. That’s the kind of culture I celebrate.
Do you know how to recognise brilliant Maltese? When you can’t tell they’re Maltese.
How many of us have heard of Tenishia? OK, many. So how about Jo Micali? Or Napoleon Tagliaferro? Or Martin Grech (doesn’t really count because he holds a British passport). As for literature, wake me up the day a Maltese author makes the bestseller list with a novel IN ENGLISH. Simon Bartolo did it.
Until then, we’ll just keep wallowing in our bloody Malteseness.
Is Tagliaferro’s mother a relative of Daphne?
[Daphne – I wouldn’t have a clue. Is she?]
His mother was Mamo. It would seem the same Mamo family to which Sir Anthony belonged. Would that make him a relative of yours?
[Daphne – No, not at all. My mother is Mamo/insurance not Mamo/FIAT and the two are not related. My mother-in-law was Mamo too (leading to some confusion) but no relation there either.]
What the hell difference does it make? He isn’t that brilliant anyway. I was just struggling to find examples from further back.
Criticising and offending are not the same. Being offensive personally is not good for anyone here.
But let me say this; if during the election campaign Joseph Muscat has implemented the concept which is similar to the one that this author had political faith in during his writings, then the author has been successful.
Unfortunately the best artists get their merit after death.
May God give you rest Mr.Sammut.
Matt Bonanno
“In this piece Daphne accuses Maltese writers of ‘unnecessary verbosity’. One has to assume that this applies to her also since in the first paragraph she mentions that ‘Renzo Piano’s worked (sic) are dissed and disrespected’.
Erm, does she know that one word is an abbreviation of the other and she just used the same word twice? Maybe someone should phone and telephone her…Ż
What a dumbfuck of a woman.
[Daphne – Matthew Bonanno is still sort of young. Maybe he’ll grow out of his chips and problems one day. Or maybe not.]
I read Sammut’s ‘Il-Gagga’ umpteen times, and it never ceases to impress me.
It is a landmark in the history of Maltese literature, and is valid as a work of art within itself.
We should be proud of authors like Sammut, who were giants in their field…and it might not be a bad idea to allow ourselves to be inspired by them….we might learn a thing or two about basic writing skills….(S)he who has an ear, let him (her) hear; (S) he who has an eye, let him (her) see; (S)he who has a brain (presumably), try to think.
[Daphne – I hope you have read many other things too, Tyrone, and in other languages (or in translation), so as to have a good basis for comparison. In any case, why read the same book several times when life is short and full of novels demanding to be read? I have never read the same book twice, no matter how much I loved it. It’s a pointless exercise in wasting time.]
If you read this one book ‘umpteen times’, and ‘it never ceases to impress’ you, then something must be wrong with your logic.
Or you haven’t been around much.
Or you have certain limitations.
For fuck’s sake, Tyrone. A “giant”? Compared to a country of illiterates? “His field”? Writing for an audience of 400,000 in a language that cannot convey thoughts adequately?
Anyone who writes in Maltese, by definition, cannot be a literary giant.
[Daphne – ‘Writing for an audience of 400,000’: not quite. Many of those 400,000 are children, senile, illiterate, or can’t speak/read Maltese properly.]
I was being generous. I’m trying to cut down on my attakki fahxija.
Thoughts can never be conveyed fully in any language. Giants are big in stature but not necessarily in intellect or creativity. Of course, well written works still don’t make ‘great’ writers. Just following a few comments and articles would be enough to see how both you and Daphne would always be lacking in depth. Shallow and clinging onto a decadent section of society whose pretentious glory was itself made decadent both from true literary giants and from apostates of your own twisted lot.
Here we stand again with yet another unkept promise by the MLP.
I suppose we should give them time, they’re not done screwing things up just yet and they’ve already been there a month.
As for the cretique, I honestly can’t say anything as I haven’t read much of Sammut’s work. I’m a writer myself although I don’t see myself as good enough to publish anything especially not in Malta as people here don’t seem to be much into reading. I can understand Mark Sammuts retaliation to this cretique, no son enjoys reading such words about their father. However as a writer I must say that when we write something and put it out there, we must first be well aware of what might and will come from it. Yes, some will praise our work, but others will also critisise it. We can never please everyone and anyone who thinks they can has another thing coming.
One last thing about the monument, I must say I find it rather difficult to step away from the fence in such a situation. Of course we cannot possibley build monuments for every public figure, if we did that every inch of each one of the Maltese islands would be covered in statues of people from all throughout history. I think it was very stupid and immature of Muscat to promise the people of Żebbuġ a monument of this particular figure, not because of who the man is but for the very reason I’ve mentioned above. I can’t say that if they want it they should collect money for it, as I believe that a promise is a promise and all promises should be kept. I don’t think it any less silly, and to be honest I don’t really care if they built a statue of Micky Mouse at the door of his clubhouse, in fact I think it would be rather apropriate to build that right outside the national airport to show tourists and legal immigrants just what they’re in for. Nevertheless I honestly don’t see why the locals of Żebbuħ are so insisting that they want this monument built. I know I wouldn’t want a monument built for me if I were the bloody president, but I guess I can only speak for myself.
yes daphne….I do read a lot, and often in the original language (just for the record)…and I disagree that reading the same book again is a futile exercise…but then it depends on how much importance one gives to literature and the art of writing, whether local or international.
I agree that one should judge a Maltese author by international standards; simply being the best of the local bunch is not good enough, if the local bunch is rubbish. However Samuraj is a good book by any standard, and has some really memorable parts. It should be mandatory reading for any young aspiring Maltese language writer. It is a hard to believe that you’re not being just a little bit influenced by your dislike of the man and his views (a dislike which may well be justified, but that is another matter entirely).