Genius and Discovery

Zweig needs no introduction by me as he is one of the greatest European authors of the twentieth century. Out of his enormous volume of writing it is perhaps his historical non-fiction that is the most fascinating and erudite, making a historical moment rich in its tragedy and beauty.

This lovely slim volume at merely 159 pages covers five moments of discovery and achievement in the modern era. Some like that of Handel in his creation of the Messiah show why its inspiration to its creator was personally a moment of triumph that defines his life. Alternatively that of Vasco Núñez de Balboa who was the first European to discover the Pacific Ocean is one that reads as a morality tale. Here daring audacious cruelty lead a savage trail though central America where Balboa faces his justly deserved fate at his moment of success.

The discovering the genius of Zweig as a writer in this book is not difficult. He gives history its context and makes each moment of triumph and its tragedy as real and personal to the reader as was to those who lived it. If you want a good read, well written you can't go wrong with this book.

Stefan Zweig adds unimaginable value to history. He can take a fact, a story, a personality, and spin a yarn around them that makes them real, visceral, human, fallible and heroic. His style is appreciative. He loves the superhuman effort, the lightning strike of inspiration, the blind faith, and the persistence of men. They are all on display in this short book, Genius and Discovery.

There are five short chapters in this collection. It begins with Balboa, a dismal failure who has little to lose and gambles it all on immortality. He bamboozles his way into “discovering” the Pacific Ocean for the glory and everlasting possession of the king of Spain, but does not outlive his earlier treacheries.

George Frideric Handel comes to life as a suffering failure, blowing his life’s savings on his unimpressive music, until one miserable day he receives the libretto that would become The Messiah. His life before and after are vividly and intensely portrayed around this lifesaver of a gift and the superhuman, intensive creative spurt it inspired.

The story of the creation of the Marseillaise, the French national anthem, is a pathetic comedy of wild acceptance and zero credit to its creator, who spent the rest of his life trying to get recognized for his achievement. Captain Rouget de Lisle was an unsuccessful poet and writer, and his one hit got completely away from him.

The long forgotten story of John Sutter’s gain and loss of San Francisco and environs is a tragedy worthy of a classic horror film. Human greed, the madness of crowds and murderous destruction are as vivid as Straw Dogs or The Mother or anything by Steven King – except this actually happened.

Cyrus Field is a long forgotten Silicon Valley type entrepreneur and venture capitalist, whose blind faith in a transatlantic cable eventually brought the world to instant communication. But not before repeated failures of every conceivable kind, from weather to bad design to bad luck. Vilified as a huckster, feted as a conquering hero and forgotten as a total failure, he re-emerged to complete his vision, but is nothing like a household name today.

The sheer variety of the stories alone makes Genius and Discovery a distinct pleasure. Zweig’s easy and comfortable style makes them an effortless read. This is a great intro to a great writer.

David Wineberg

Like Zweig's ‘Triumph and Disaster’ this short collection of essays considers five pivotal moments, although these are characterised, rather loosely, as sublime moments of revelation, namely, the discovery of the Pacific Ocean by Vasco Núñez de Balboa on 25 September 1513; Handel’s receipt of the libretto of the Messiah on 21 August 1741; Rouget de Lisle’s composition of the Marseillaise on 25 April 1792 (although it only acquired that name later); John A. Sutter’s El Dorado moment at Sutter’s Mill at Coloma in January 1848, which sparked the Californian gold rush; and Cyrus W. Field’s completion of a trans-Atlantic telegraph cable on 28 July 1858.

Zweig’s historical judgment is sometimes open to question. For example, although aware that it was actually Sutter’s employee, James W. Marshall, who first discovered the gold, Marshall is dispensed with in a single paragraph and the essay is named for and focuses almost exclusively on Sutter. Zweig is also far too fond of imagining what he can’t know (“tears suddenly broke from his eyes, and his whole body trembled in the rage of his impotence. … But he could not sleep. … He tossed from left to right and then from right to left again, becoming ever more wakeful”).

Although to modern tastes Zweig’s style can sometimes seem overblown, he writes vividly and with great verve and this collection of essays offers a very pleasant way of acquiring some eclectic historical knowledge.

This book is short. But succinct.

I do like this book’s honest telling of what happened to these people. The first story about Vasco Núñez de Balboa’s want to see the Pacific Ocean first is honest and doesn’t cast him as a hero, this book exposes the flaws of these discoverers as much as it does tell of their discovery. In contrast, the story that stood out to me was Handel discovering the libretto of the Messiah which is done with real detail and delivered with optimism that makes it a joy to read.

I also think it’s honest about genius. I think genius is often considered a thing that is kept, but genius is found in moments and this is clear throughout this book. I think you can take a lot of things from this book, but I think the most important thing is that you must keep persevering to succeed at what you love. I think it would be a good read for an older child for those reasons.

I have one issue with this book, for example I know women have made discoveries from Nellie Bly to Calamity Jane to Barbara Hillary (and if anyone recommends books about women doing so, please let me know, I want to read them) I just think one woman’s story could have been included in this title.

Zweig is an imaginative but detailed historian, he gives these people in history a personality, the reader an underdog to root for and it makes for a great read.

Zweig è stato l'impeccabile, malinconico cantore di un mondo in estinzione, quello della Mitteleuropa dei primi del '900.
E' stato anche vivace biografo di grandi personalità, da Balzac a Maria Antonietta.
Ed è qui sensibile e attento narratore di quelli che in Italia sono stati definiti "Momenti fatali": eventi destinati a cambiare il mondo, nel bene o nel male.
Brevi racconti, che testimoniano la maestria dell'autore nel cogliere sfumature e significati dietro azioni piccole e grandi.

I love history and I love fictionalised accounts of history, when an author takes a moment crucial, in their mind, to human history and imagines what must have gone through people's minds. Stefan Zweig promised to do exactly that Genius and Discovery so I faithfully followed him into its pages. And I wasn't disappointed. Thanks to Pushkin Press and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I told my mother I would be reading Stefan Zweig in English she was affronted. Surely I should be reading such a great German author in German? I guess I should be, and after reading Genius and Discovery I also will. But that is the beauty of publishers like Pushkin Press, who allow you discover literature from all over the world in English. This small anecdote also allows me to talk about the idea and theme behind Genius and Discovery. In the five stories contained in this book Zweig celebrates the human spirit. The blind determination and mindless passion that marks some of the key moments in human history has something magical, and Zweig captures that beautifully. Some of the moments he describes have been taken for granted or never even considered to be as crucial as they were to shaping a nation, shaping a century.

There is something magical about these stories. Zweig chose five moments in history that meant something to him, during which something changed forever, in which we progressed. As the reader, not all stories will strike equally close to the heart. Some, like the first story 'Flight into Immortality' following Vasco Núñez de Balboa's journey to the Pacific combine a respect for de Balboa's dedication, as well as a blunt honesty about the costs of his dedication to the indigenous populations. I adored 'The Resurrection of George Frederic Handel', something akin to a love letter to Handel and his Messiah. It is beautifully written and made me desperate to listen to the piece again. 'The Genius of a Night' is a beautiful look at the creation of La Marseillaise, while 'The Discovery of El Dorado' and 'The First Word to Cross the Ocean' are elegies to those giants of spirit who threw their whole being into getting something done, advancing themselves or humanity. I came out of Genius and Discovery with warm feeling, a new love for how foolhardy we are as a species, and with an increased admiration for all that we have accomplished.

Zweig's writing is beautiful.Whether it is describing the beauty of South American countries, the power of Handel's Messiah, the hope gained from singing La Marseillaise, the madness behind the gold rush in California, or the seemingly insurmountable task of connecting the continents, Zweig brings a beauty and a power to it all. He clearly cares deeply about these moments and as a consequence he makes his readers care as well. No matter that these moments are decennia ago and take place in a world fundamentally different form ours, Zweig makes his reader engage with these moments and become invested in them. Anthea Bell's translation of Zweig's prose is stunning. I only have read Zweig in English, through her, but I can see why he is considered such a giant of German literature. Thanks to her, I will definitely be looking for more Zweig to read, both in German and translation.

I adored the stories in Genius and Discovery! There is something incredibly uplifting about these stories of human spirit, of, indeed, genius and discovery. They would indeed make for an excellent Christmas gift. I'd recommend this to anyone interested in short stories, as well as literary fiction.