I have a great deal to say about this book, and thus I might forget some of the ideas that come to my mind.

To begin with, I must point out that I have been residing in Prague for several years, and as a result, I truly feel a sense of identification with this book.

I think I'll commence with the four main characters. Kundera decides not to describe them physically in excessive detail but instead focuses on their psychological or moral aspects.

I believe I read this book at the opportune moment in my life, as it frequently delves into what is good or bad, morality and immorality.

Now, how can these be defined? Why does something that is good for you have to be good for me as well, and vice versa? What is correct or incorrect in life? What is moral or immoral in life?

I am firmly convinced that every human being can think and do as they please as long as they do not harm others. I say this in reference to Tomáš and Tereza, who view life from different perspectives but ultimately love each other. Maybe in their own unique way, but does it really matter? They love each other, and that's all that counts. They are happy in their own fashion.

I like that the narrator is not all-knowing and is at the same time told in the third person, from an external perspective. I also want to emphasize the thoughts that the chapters usually conclude with and what Milan writes with the intention of making you ponder who or what we are and if we have any mission in life, if we should have any mission in life, if we are a good person or not.

I adore reading novels that make you think repeatedly; it's truly captivating.

Special mention must be made of the remarkable Karenin, specifically regarding the end of the book (I won't give any spoilers, so keep reading), as I went through a similar situation not too long ago, and it touched me so deeply that I shed tears.

Regarding the plot, I have read and watched numerous documentaries about Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic since this has been my home for years, and the situation regarding politics, wars, and those abhorrent things is rather sad. I am glad to read about the history of this country that definitely does not receive all the popularity it deserves, as it is a country with a beautiful culture and language.

Of course, this book is highly recommendable, but I suggest reading it carefully so that you can enjoy the book even more. I will wait for a couple of months to read it again. I liked it a great deal.

I was initially led to believe by the attractive cover and the enticing blurb that this was going to be a truly great book. However, right from the beginning, I had my doubts and wondered if it was really worth reading. In fact, I almost stopped reading it several times. But, I kept going in the hope that it would eventually get better.

This is precisely why I read it so quickly - I just wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. The author writes in such a detached manner that it becomes extremely hard to form any kind of emotional attachment to the characters. It feels as if they are just mere puppets on a string, going through the motions without any real depth or personality.

Among all the characters in the book, my favorite one was actually the dog. At least the dog seemed to have some sort of genuine charm and character. It was the only glimmer of hope in what was otherwise a rather lackluster reading experience.

(Book 256 From 1001 Books) - Nesnesitelná lehkost bytí = L’insoutenable légèreté de l’être = The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Milan Kundera

The Unbearable Lightness of Being, a 1984 novel by Milan Kundera, delves into the lives of two women, two men, and a dog during the 1968 Prague Spring period of Czechoslovak history. The story explores profound themes such as the choice between weight and lightness in life.

From the book, Kundera writes, “The heavier the burden, the closer our lives come to the earth, the more real and truthful they become. Conversely, the absolute absence of burden causes man to be lighter than air, to soar into heights, take leave of the earth and his earthly being, and become only half real, his movements as free as they are insignificant. What then shall we choose? Weight or lightness?”

The novel has been published in Iran under different titles, including “بار هستی” and “کلاه کلمنتیس.” It has been translated by various translators and published by different publishers.

Kundera, in his portrayal of the characters, states that the fictional personalities he has written are his own unfulfilled possibilities. This is why he fears them and also loves them. They have crossed the border that he has only skirted.

The dates of adaptation are 03/04/1399 Hijri Shamsi and 07/02/1401 Hijri Shamsi. A. Sharbiani

This is not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill novel. It's not for everyone. It's enigmatic, provocative, philosophical, and at times, somewhat confusing. It has a touch of romance, a hint of history, and a sprinkle of politics. All of this might make it sound unappealing, but it's not. The writing is beautiful, and it's truly character-driven. There are three main characters: Tomas, the surgeon who becomes a window washer; Teresa, his shy and devoted wife; and Sabina, his mistress, the keeper of the bowler hat. Tomas is a cad with dozens of mistresses, but he can separate this from his marriage and still loves his wife. Teresa knows about the lovers and agonizes over it, yet still loves Tomas. The story is set in Prague and Zurich, mostly Prague, in the 1960s during the Soviet Union's invasion of Czechoslovakia. This event is the catalyst for the story. As I said, it's complicated, with a lot going on, and it doesn't always flow as smoothly as one might like. However, it works, and most critics agree. I give it 4 stars, mainly because of the strength of the characters.

It's a novel that makes you think, feel, and question. It's not an easy read, but it's a rewarding one. If you're looking for something different, something that will challenge you, then this is the novel for you.

Since when have I not read a novel with such charm? Milan Kundera has brought me back to the world of translated novels that I have loved for quite some time. Where did Kundera get all this philosophy and these profound meanings? Kundera poses a deep question about "the possibility of eternal recurrence". That is, can we judge the right or wrong of our actions when our lives are only one? Against the backdrop of these profound philosophical images, the story of Dr. Tomas and his life is presented to us. The fate that he was in and the choices that caused his path to change more than once. Dr. Tomas was a model for many intellectuals. The Russian occupation of Czechoslovakia and the resulting political and social changes affected the shape of society and the lives of individuals. Kundera puts our feelings on the scale of life to determine their weight and then redefine the meaning of heavy and light. To get to know again which of those feelings have burdened our lives with their heaviness or perhaps with their lightness! So which feelings are better for our lives, the heavy ones or the light ones? Perhaps this is one of the questions that the author talked about. "Only the simple questions are really important questions. Those questions that remain unanswered. A question without an answer is a barrier with no way around it. In other words, the questions that remain unanswered are those that point to the limits of human possibilities, and they are the ones that shape our existence."

Milan Kundera’s book was the very first title that I added to Goodreads way back in 2013.

Despite this initial addition, it actually took me quite a while to finally pick it up and read it.

I guess I had a bit of a fear that the philosophy-dense prose would be just too much for me, especially since I didn't have a background in this particular subject.

Thankfully, I needn't have worried as I ended up enjoying most of it and I didn't feel overly overwhelmed.

"We can never know what to want, because, living only one life, we can either compare it with our previous lives nor perfect it in our lives to come."

I firmly believe that Kundera’s characters are constantly in search of the ideal life, yet they don't actually know which one it truly is.

They are extremely confused about what direction they should take.

They make life-altering decisions and then suddenly feel choked by them.

However, when they consider the option of going the other way and freeing themselves, there is always the lurking fear that the road could potentially lead to their peril.

Having the ability to make choices definitely gives one a certain amount of power, but it can also be incredibly overwhelming.

The author is essentially saying that, since we live only one life, our decisions are extremely difficult to make as there is no basis for comparison.

However, in the grand scheme of things, since we live only one life, our decisions don't really matter all that much as reputation tends to increase their importance.

As Tomas so aptly puts it, Einmal is keinmal.

"The novel is not the author’s confession; it is an investigation of human life in the trap the world has become."

I truly feel like the characters are trapped not only by the social and political environment but also by their own choices and their incapacity to realize what they truly want from life.

That being said, there were definitely some parts of the book that I didn't enjoy as much.

I was actually a bit furious with what I perceived as Kundera’s misogyny and really wanted to shake Teresa to get her to come back to her senses.

She said she wanted more from her life, and yet she ends up accepting a cheating husband, even though it clearly makes her miserable.

I spent a significant part of my lazy weekend indulging in the act of reading this particular book. I was seated on the grassy hills of The Huntington Library, which was beautifully adorned with gardens, filled with exquisite art, and oozing with beauty at every turn.

The serene and idyllic surroundings, combined with what I thought would be a sensational reading date, should have made for a perfect experience. However, much to my disappointment, this book failed to live up to any of my expectations.

The characters within the book were weak and lacked any real depth or substance. The assumptions made throughout were horrible and often seemed baseless. What's more, the so-called philosophy presented was nothing more than pseudo-philosophy, lacking in any real intellectual rigor.

It was also evident that the author had no clear understanding or grasp of how women are actually motivated.

In my opinion, only those wannabe Lotharios who delude themselves into thinking they are philosophers would find any enjoyment in this book.

I truly tried to give this book a fair chance. I really did. But alas, it was a lost cause.

All began with an apple… No, I'm not talking about the mythical apple of sin that chased the human race out of the idyllic paradise. I'm rather referring to the one that, due to the weight associated with its ripening or the weakness of the branch that held it, hit Isaac Newton's head, offering him the pivotal idea that culminated in the Law of Gravity. It's this force that keeps us nailed to the Earth and prevents us from floating eternally in the world of dreams.

I don't know what the hell force impelled me to this reading but I believe it was something we could call destiny, in a clear illustration of the Law of Action-Reaction. Perhaps its poetic title, perhaps the so ambitious opinions, led me to want to prove this fruit cataloged as forbidden. With each new bite, the reader dissects several love relationships, established at as many levels, always with art as the backdrop. And, when looking at the flesh of this fruit, one has access to another dimension, where time passes but not in a cadenced way - it crosses, goes back and advances to offer different images.

In this panoply of metaphors, dangerous for love, blossoms the theory of return, where the ephemerality of life doesn't end in its duration but repeats itself in successive cycles because unfortunately the authors of life stories sin by lack of originality. The knowledge of this sad sign leads those who live entangled in the plot to an immense vertigo due to the fall motivated by the false perception of lightness that we carry with all our weight – of guilt, of feelings, of stories, of life… This game of opposites is not limited only to these definitions. Many others are added that are clarified or complicated in the indecision carried by each being who, denying his essence, bursts into a kitsch, generated by the oppressive totalitarian regimes that set the stage for history.

Continuing to play with opposites, the cold war is then fought by the heat of two bodies together. Everything comes wrapped in the criticism of an author who doesn't limit himself to narrating facts but breaks the fourth wall (third leaf!?) and presents a set of reflections for life and lyrical phrases (some of them listed below) that soak anyone with the heart in the center of the chest and the brain protected by its skullcap.

I read the last page and closed the book, with the full conviction that all the words remained bound to me, like a tattoo. I always believed that there are certain moments to read certain works and the current one proved to be the most suitable to deflower this story. And unfortunately I won't be able to fulfill the first (and last) law of Newton: there is here a will to live life, inhibiting any inclination to inertia.

\\"Culture is disappearing in an infinity of products, in an avalanche of letters, in the dementia of quantity.\\" (p. 112)

\\"Then, Franz asked: «And why don't you sometimes use your strength against me?
- Because to love is to renounce strength»(...)\\" (p. 121)

\\"When we are in front of a person who shows himself to be kind and courteous to us, it is very difficult to always be thinking that nothing of what he is saying is true (...) To doubt (...) requires a huge effort, and also to have some training (...)\\" (p. 200)

\\"Kitsch is the station of correspondence between being and forgetting.\\" (p. 299)

\\"If they were happy, it was not despite sadness, but thanks to sadness.\\" (p. 313)

\\"(...) happiness is the desire for repetition (...)\\" (p. 318)

Before reading this book well, I had watched the film directed by Philip Kaufman. I had a special fear, and that was that the book was censored, and I was sure it was; for this reason, I was reluctant to read it. On the other hand, I was not able to read the English version either. With the questions I asked my friends, some of them had definitely refused to read the book, and some, despite the censorship, had definitely recommended reading it. Anyway, the recommendations to read were more, and I listened to them. At present, I do not regret reading the book and I have enjoyed it. However, I still recommend to my good friends who have read the book or not and have the intention to read it that they must also watch the film, which is not without charm and has its own special pleasure. Although I admit that the world of film and book is different, and in this particular case, Kundera himself has claimed that his novels are not suitable for cinematic adaptation, but he has collaborated as a consultant in making this film.

By the way, the film is not very strong and taping. But it is not a bad film either, as it has a score of 7.3 on IMDB and a Metascore of 73.

With the hope of a free and uncensored future for our country.

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«My contemporary Milan Kundera wrote novels that drank from the wellspring of our literary tradition, and referred to a distant time when philosophical and historical thinking was part of literature and offered a narrative or prophetic perspective. Kundera's novels, despite their complexity or density, spoke to his contemporaries. His works show the symptoms of the times that we are subject to, and that the times must be more "environmentally friendly."» The Prague spirit. Ivan Klima. Khashayar Dehqan. Page 180 of the book.

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Tomas repeated this German aphorism to himself: Once is not once. Once is as if never. Living only once is like never having lived at all. Page 39 of the book.

The book gave him the opportunity to escape from a kind of life that he had no nostalgia for. Page 77 of the book.

Something that is not the result of a "choice" cannot be considered worthy or unworthy. He believes that in the face of such a situation, one should act correctly. In his opinion, rebelling against the fact that a woman is pregnant is as absurd as pride in being a woman. Page 115 of the book.

Believe me, the only banned book in the country has more meaning and significance than the billions of words that our universities pour out. Page 131 of the book.

What does "living in truth" mean? It is easy to give a positive definition of it: not lying, not doing anything secretly, and not hiding anything is living in truth. Page 142 of the book.

One can betray one's father and mother, one's spouse, one's love, and one's country, but when there is no longer a father and mother, a husband, a love, or a country, what can one betray? Page 153 of the book.

If we are ignorant, are we innocent? Is the man who relies on the crutch of power only absolved of all responsibility because of his ignorance? Page 200 of the book.

The novel is not the confession of the writer, but the crucible of human life in a world that has a name. Page 238 of the book.

We can never say with certainty to what extent our relationships with others spring from our feelings, our love, our lack of love, our kindness and compassion, or our envy and hatred, and to what extent they are affected by the power and weakness among individuals. Page 304 of the book.

We all want to find a culprit in the powerful and an innocent victim in the weak. Page 327 of the book.

Now Tereza felt both the strange happiness and the strange grief. The meaning of grief was: We have reached the last stop! The meaning of happiness was: We are together! Grief was form and happiness was content, and happiness filled the space of grief. Page 331 of the book.

The longing for paradise if it is a person's desire not to be a human.

This is a sharp, transcendent, and terrifying story that directly confronts us with human impotence, limitations, and fear of freedom, in its nakedness from the illusions and idols lurking behind many names. The story poses an unanswerable question, not just one question but many questions. It leads us to a certain conception about the lightness of human existence. "Isn't that bad? It's not bad." Reading Kundera, like other novelists, is a great pleasure, and the lightness is no less than the departure of the characters in this novel.

The story doesn't end here, but the discussion will expand and branch out into something greater than just a review or an article.

"The longing for paradise if it is a person's desire not to be a human."

This is a sharp, transcendent, terrifying story that directly confronts us with human impotence, limitations, and fear of freedom, in its nakedness from the illusions and idols lurking behind many names. It poses unanswerable questions, not just one but many. It leads us to a certain conception about the lightness of human existence. "Isn't that bad? It's not bad." Reading Kundera, like other novelists, is a great pleasure, and the lightness is no less than the departure of the characters in this novel.

The story doesn't end here. Instead, the discussion will expand and branch out into something greater than just a review or an article.

Tomas is no Dr Zhivago.

Yes, he is a doctor. He is in love. There are difficulties. And the world is toppling around him because of politics. Little else made me think of Dr Zhivago.

The film of Kundera's novel is also no film by David Lean. Forget furs. The actors are lucky to get any clothes. But The Unbearable Lightness of Being is everything that I wanted Dr Zhivago to be. Its lovers are as real to me as if I could touch them.

So many books leave people saying "I couldn't connect" or words to that effect. This book blurred the lines between fiction and reality for me. I know Tomas. I know Tereza. Sabina, too. I love them all. And I wept for them. Crumpled in a chair at home as if terrible news, real news, had come to me by telephone, I was a mess by the book's end.

A story of passion, exile, how ideologies can trap lives, and the redeeming love of a dog. I wish Kundera had had his way to call the novel after the last of these. To me, this will always be Karenin's Smile.

This novel takes the reader on an emotional journey through the lives of its complex and relatable characters. The descriptions of their relationships, the political turmoil surrounding them, and the small but significant moments of love and connection are all beautifully crafted. It makes you think about the meaning of life, love, and freedom.

Kundera's writing style is engaging and thought-provoking, and he manages to convey deep emotions and complex ideas in a way that is accessible to the reader. The Unbearable Lightness of Being is a must-read for anyone who loves literature and wants to explore the human condition.

If you read the synopsis, you will only find out that it is about "a Czech doctor, with an active sex life, who meets a woman who wants her monogamy, and then the Soviet invasion disturbs their lives". In a simplistic, superficial way, that would be all.

However, I think the relevance of Kundera's book lies first and foremost in the depth. Beyond the small (or big) personal dramas, there is the eternal relativity of things, which leads to totally different definitions of the same concept.

For Dr. Thomas, the passion for surgery motivates the curiosity to discover the uniqueness that distinguishes one woman from another - that fine distinction, which is shown only in intimacy.

At the antipode, Tereza sees the body (nude) as a sign not of uniqueness, but of anonymity. Naked bodies lose their uniqueness, and the being is depersonalized.

Kundera fixes everything in the relative, without indicating, however, what would be preferable. Starting from Nietzsche, the idea of eternal Return would be the heaviest burden, and as our life is not under the sign of any repetition, then our lives appear in all the splendor of "their lightness". Hence the indulgence with which the facts are judged.

"How can the ephemeral be condemned?" - Kundera asks, although I think it is precisely the premise that everything is ephemeral that should lead to a harsher judgement of the facts.

The Kitsch and the Show are two of the attributes of totalitarianism. The first eliminates any form of originality, and the other is the last yell of the one who knows that he has no power. Here, Kundera approaches the idea of guilt, globalizing it.

Although he writes in the third person, the author transmits his own emotions to his characters, only as he explains - each character is the fulfillment of a possibility that has not materialized in real life.

My personal conclusion - stop reading the synopses before. After that, it is optional.