A comfortable family, placed in an apparently idyllic family environment.

It is interesting the way the author reveals each of the "faults" and secrets of her protagonists. None of them has a lofty or appalling morality, no one is good, no one is bad. They are beings living in an atrocious situation of extreme selfishness.

Let us remember that Iris Murdoch in her novels delicately deals with the delicacy of morality and ethics; in these worlds of economically comfortable people, reality is distorted into lives dedicated to solving pleasure for pleasure's sake, feelings are something of others and the family nomenclature, an uncertain fallacy.

The reader can fall into despair, but one of her many successes is the power to engage surely when she makes narrative turns. The only flaw and misstep is the death of one of her protagonists, I believe, in a useless way. It would seem that the disappearance of the character arises as redemption for the rest.

Do not expect vengeances or characters paying for their faults. Another success of the author.

Fiction Reviews: The Sacred And Profane Love Machine

The Sacred And The Profane is a renowned painting by Titian, housed at the Galleria Borghese in Rome. In this painting, at the center lies an open sarcophagus, with a putto retrieving something from within. On his side, there are two feminine figures, who are twins. According to literary critics, the left figure represents the sacred, embodied by Harriet Gavender, while the other, Emily McHugh, represents the profane. In my view, the putto is Blaise Gavender, who loves both women but is unable to make a choice. Harriet Gavender is his wife, and they have a sixteen-year-old son, and both care deeply for him. Emily McHugh, on the other hand, is Blaise's mistress, and they have an eight-year-old son together. Blaise is desperate to find true love that satisfies his desires, but the competition is fierce. Emily is more egoistic, while Harriet wants to find a way to ensure she isn't excluded and needs her husband's love. Blaise's love intentions are questioned by his children, and he tries to deny reality. However, with the help of his friend Montaque, he will eventually change his mind. The story continues with contrasts and the inability of the characters to be faithful to their spouses, all dissatisfied with their way of loving.

Literary Criticism: The Sacred And Profane Love Machine

The Sacred and Profane is set in contemporary London. The main characters include Blaise Gavender, a psychotherapist who loves two women, his wife Harriett and his mistress Emily. Harriet Gavender loves her husband Blaise, unaware of his betrayal. Emily McHugh is the mistress of Blaise, an egoist and Harriet's bitter enemy. Luca McHugh is the son of Emily and Blaise, and David Gavender is the son of Blaise and Harriett. Montague Small, a friend of Blaise and a novelist, offers guidance on how to behave during this period of deep crisis. He tells Harriet that her suffering will enhance her love with Blaise, who is incapable of choosing. Sophie Small, Monty's wife, still has a profound impact on him. Edgar Demanray, a friend of Monty, also tries to assist in the unfolding events. The plot is simple, but the consequences for the main characters are not. Each action has a consequence, implying that they are not completely free. The most interesting character is Harriet, as seen in the line: "Harriet had been impressed by the fact that she could meet her husband's mistress without any approach to jealous fury."
Philosophical Reviews: The Sacred And Profane Love Machine

The Sacred and Profane and the Putto are central to the philosophical message of this novel. It implies the deep suffering of humans who are unable to find true love, leading to betrayal, which is linked to the possession of the other. Montague, or Monty, in the midst of the crisis between Harriet and Blaise, tells her that love does not involve any right over the other. In his opinion, she will reunite with Blaise. He harshly criticizes Harriet's behavior, attributing it to jealousy rather than love, which should be immune to everything. In the novel, "The Sacred and Profane Love Machine" presents a philosophical battle between two questions: Are we able to live without God? If so, how will our behavior be? And what is honesty? Is the feminine universe better than the masculine? In other words, this novel is a portrait of insignificant people who are extremely capable of inflicting suffering on their peers. Reading The Sacred and Profane, one will be surprised by the characteristics of Blaise Gavender, who is proud of his double life with two women, a supporter of betrayal, and able to lie to them. Harriet, Blaise's wife, utters a central phrase that summarizes her suffering: "I am not the good person I used to think I was." The reason for her pronouncement could be due to her personality, a reaction to Blaise's betrayal, or the influence of the local society. In conclusion, this is a perfect and true portrait of our society, lacking in morality and justice, where everything is driven by our interests and an erroneous interpretation of our free will.

**Title: The Allure of Love's Underpinnings**

I initially came for the title, which had a certain charm that piqued my curiosity. However, as I delved deeper, I found myself completely captivated by the philosophy and psychoanalytical underpinnings about love.

The exploration of love from a philosophical perspective offered profound insights into the nature of this complex emotion. It made me question my own understanding of love and its various manifestations.

The psychoanalytical underpinnings added another layer of depth. They delved into the unconscious motives and desires that drive our experiences of love. This examination helped me to see how our past experiences and psychological makeup can influence our relationships.

Overall, my encounter with this piece on love's underpinnings was a truly enlightening experience. It made me realize that love is not just a simple feeling, but a rich and multi-faceted phenomenon that warrants further exploration and understanding.

In college, I came across a remarkable book by Iris Murdoch titled Under the Net. However, as the years passed, I completely forgot the title and the author. But I vividly recalled that I had a great liking for this book which was about a writer in London and a dog that he kidnapped. I couldn't even remember the plot, just the fact that I liked the book and the story the author told. I also remembered that the book started with a "U." For many years, I scoured bookstores, hoping to find that "U" book that would jog my memory, but all my efforts were in vain.

Finally, one day as I was browsing through the M's in a bookstore, there it was - Under the Net by Iris Murdoch. I picked it up, took it home, but unfortunately, after reading a few pages, I gave up. At that stage of my life, I wasn't ready to engage with Murdoch's pensive and character-driven style. Her writing demanded that I immerse myself fully in the book, and I simply didn't have the time or energy to do so.

A couple of months ago, I noticed Murdoch's The Sacred and Profane Love Machine on the shelf of a local bookstore. The title alone piqued my interest - it's not often that a good title can draw in a potential reader like that. And of course, the author herself convinced me. By this time, my life was in a more orderly state, and I felt ready to handle Murdoch at her best.

What Murdoch does exceptionally well is give her characters an interior voice, often before pages of dialogue that build upon those inner thoughts. Her story revolves around Blaise, a psychotherapist leading a double life. He has a wife, Harriet, and a son David in suburban London, yet he also has a long-term mistress and another son on the other side of town. Caught in the middle is their neighbor, Monty, still mourning the recent loss of his wife. The reader watches with growing interest as these worlds collide, and the flaws of each character interact with the others in fascinating ways. Each character has a unique philosophy of love - unrequited love being a favorite - but the book never delves into the erotic, only hinting at what might happen behind closed doors.

Be prepared for surprises. Murdoch doesn't shy away from her literary responsibilities, and although the ending resolves many things, it also satisfies the reader. In war, all may be fair, but in love, nothing is ever truly fair.

How to end a book about the irresolvable pendulum of desire? Badly. Nevertheless, it is a book.

The depth to which Murdoch can look into the moral evolution of the characters is like nothing I have read lately, and it has amazed me. Moreover, it is a book about sex, desire, love, evil. (What a mess the books that try to avoid or simplify these themes! What a joy to find someone who looks at them face-on, who has no complex about describing all the impulses, from the wounded love of a mother for her son who has changed to the malicious impulses of two lovers!)

The plot is merely moral: strictly speaking, only one thing happens (and when, towards the end, another thing happens, it is superfluous, completely superfluous). It is the characters who keep having flashes of dignity or pride or guilt or fear and keep making cowardly moves in the face of a single act.

Very well. We want more Murdoch. At the end, it really seems that she realizes that it is an irresolvable book and makes one: thus far. But I would have accompanied her throughout life. It is five literary stars, four as a novelistic artefact.

3.5 / Usually, I have a penchant for the unlikable characters that Murdoch creates. There's something about their complex and often flawed natures that intrigues me. However, in this particular case, oh lord, what a bunch of nitwits they are! It's almost comical how dim-witted and bumbling these characters seem to be. They make the most absurd decisions and constantly find themselves in ridiculous situations. It's as if Murdoch is deliberately trying to push the boundaries of believability with these characters. But despite their flaws, there's still a certain charm to them. Maybe it's the fact that they're so unlikable that makes them endearing in a strange way. Or perhaps it's just the skill with which Murdoch has crafted them. Either way, I can't help but be entertained by these nitwits, even if they do drive me a little crazy at times.

It is the first book I have read by this author and it has surprised me quite a bit. Basically, I wouldn't know how to say whether she is narrating a serious story or making fun of her own characters. Because the novel is about the inner and outer lives of some very peculiar characters. A man, Blaise, married to Harriet, living in a nice house with a 16-year-old son who is also rather peculiar, with a personality in line with the family world in which he lives, maintains a relationship with another woman, Emily, with whom he also has an eight-year-old son for whom he feels neither pain nor suffering. From here, other characters appear such as Monty, a writer and creator of a TV character who you don't know if he's going or coming, vain or cynical perhaps... the one who writes the script for Blaise's story. Pinn, Kiki, Edgar, are the secondary characters who give shape to this whole story (or parody) of that "love" relationship between those two women over which the "poor" Blaise doesn't know how to decide. Each of them pulls at their corner of the rope and kills each other in their own way, one from peace and love and the other from the dialectical war in getting Blaise to choose them. And he, within a suffering that he enjoys every second, lets himself be loved.

The prose of Murdoch I have liked a lot. I have found it accessible, although slow, which is not a drawback. But what I have liked the most is how she delves into the minds of those characters who, as I have said, are terribly peculiar.

More books by this author will fall into my hands.

Having now read 12 Iris Murdoch novels, which is still less than half of her published fiction, I have noticed several themes and trends.

Her command of written English is truly breathtaking, on a par with Updike's. As I open the first page of one of her novels, I begin to ponder each character. They are usually exquisitely rendered, often but not always sympathetically. I wonder which one(s) Murdoch will kill off by the end of the book, and which ones gratuitously. Her stories are full of "dark humor." In many cases, perhaps a majority, it is her "bad" characters who win and her "good" characters who lose.

Whereas the reader may think that a particular character is the "protagonist" in the early stages of a Murdoch novel, it often becomes clear later that another character eclipses that one, or at least becomes a co-equal star. In fact, most Murdoch novels have several main characters. But even beyond that, by the last chapter or couple of chapters, Murdoch is done with who the reader thought were the stars of the show and focuses on quite another character, often one who has only lately made an appearance or has been a minor player.

Murdoch infused her fiction with not only her advanced understanding of ethical and philosophical questions and dilemmas but also, perhaps even more powerfully, the psychology of her characters. Like many reviewers, I have been disappointed with the endings of some of her books, but usually because I have imposed my own opinion on how the book should have been written, rather than respecting the author's vision. Finally, I have also read all of Muriel Spark's novels. Despite their different educational backgrounds, Spark and Murdoch, who were almost exact contemporaries, produced novels that were surprisingly similar in their tendency toward crazy, weird, flawed characters, strange plot twists and endings, violence, and unique humor.

I just love a Murdoch third act twist. Truly, no one writes like this anymore.

It's as if Murdoch has a magical touch when it comes to crafting those unexpected turns in the story. The way he can completely change the direction and make you gasp in surprise is simply remarkable.

His writing has this unique ability to keep you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire narrative. You think you know where the story is going, but then he throws in that brilliant third act twist and everything you thought you knew is turned upside down.

It's a testament to his talent as a writer that he can create such engaging and unpredictable stories. In a world where so much of the writing seems formulaic, Murdoch's work stands out as a shining example of true creativity and innovation.

I can't wait to see what other amazing third act twists he has in store for us in the future.

This book was an amazing read. Hands down one of my best reads of 2013. I had never read one of Ms. Murdoch's novels before, but had heard of her notoriety as a quite prolific British author of the post-modern era. I had read about her in literary journals and such, as well as hearing the odd question and answer about her on Jeopardy. I was aware of her noted philosophical treatment of good and evil in many of her works. However, for as much or rather as little as I knew, I always seemed to put off attempting to page through any of her books. Well, I was so missing out.

The Sacred and Profane Love Machine (1974), being my first read of Ms. Murdoch's extensive oeuvre, is the author's sixteenth of twenty-five novels. As I began to read, I became immediately aware of her in-depth analysis in describing her characters. These descriptions were so incredibly complete that at times they were so dense I had no choice but to put the book down and come up for air! You experience these characters inside and out - psychologically, philosophically - their fears, anxieties, quirks, mental acuity... just everything. And you most definitely need to know everything as she makes it imperative for you to fully comprehend the ramifications of their actions and interactions with the other characters. Everyone is connected, however oddly, in some way.

Light/Dark; Good/Evil; Sacred/Profane: these themes at times can become slightly complicated, yet never too complicated to read and grasp all that she selectively unfolds as the plot twists and turns right up to the very last page. When I was halfway through the book, I felt as though it had reached an official climax and found myself thinking aloud, "Well where the hell do we go from here for another almost two hundred pages." It was either going to be a real let-down ending and a waste of time to finish... or... it would maintain its momentum so that you would not want to put the book down for even a moment. Needless to say it was, for me, most certainly the latter. She makes it a point to ensure her readers that there is much, much more on the way.

When I write these little "ditties", I don't go into detail about plot description, etc. as I, personally, wouldn't necessarily want to know more than what is written on the back cover or fly paper as to what the book is about. I will say there are husbands and wives and mistresses and awkward situations and love and death and a nice touch of dark humor. You will laugh aloud, and feel embarrassingly guilty; you will cry, and feel resignedly human. And so I would urge almost anyone to just pick it up, give it fifty pages - you won't be disappointed. Don't wait to experience her writing for as long as I did! Now I must find the time to read her other twenty-four books! I can't say whether or not this is a good book to start with as it was my first. But what I can say is that if you don't want to give this one a try, do at least try one of her other ones for I cannot imagine, after reading this, that all the rest aren't just as much worth reading.

I do not believe I would necessarily enjoy reading her books one after the other, for upon finishing this book, I felt the need for an adequate amount of time to digest it so as to successfully process it all. But, as stated above, one way or another I will find a way to read the rest of her books regardless of how long it takes. Yes, yes, yes, what an amazing read!

Harriet is surely the most cancerous person I have ever seen without seeing in my life.

I have never actually met Harriet face to face, but from the stories and descriptions I have heard, it is clear that she has a certain quality that can only be described as "cancerous."

Maybe it's her negative attitude towards everything, always finding fault and complaining. Or perhaps it's her tendency to spread rumors and cause drama wherever she goes.

Whatever it is, Harriet seems to have a way of infecting those around her with her toxicity, like a cancer that spreads and destroys.

It's a shame that such a person exists, but unfortunately, we all have to deal with difficult people from time to time.

The best we can do is to try to stay away from them and not let their negativity affect us.

This is a fairly typical Murdoch novel.

However, what sets this one apart is its relatively down-to-earth portrayal of relationship tangles. The characters here are not her most outlandish creations.

The novel is well written and has a good pace. It keeps the reader engaged throughout most of the story.

But towards the end, it starts to meander a bit as more minor characters take over the narrative. As a result, the story fizzles out rather disappointingly.

Overall, though, it is a lively novel that delves into the personal intrigues among a cast of mostly quite posh but somewhat marginalised characters.

It is a good read, but it doesn't quite reach the level of greatness.