The stunning of Anna Enquist Review

After the death of his cancer-stricken wife Hanna psychotherapist Drik de Jong is back (50) is difficult to normal in his everyday life. In the consulting room in his house, he is surrounded by memories and can not escape from them. His younger sister Suzan (46) seems to mind very experienced and received no psychological wounds her work as anesthetist again. When her sister fell ill, she had a leave of absence to take over the care and stun Annas pain in the last phase of life.

noticed the lot and read Dutch author Anna Enquist developed in her novel “De verdovers < "Anna Enquist: "De verdovers" at"

Anna Enquist studied in Leiden clinical psychology. For this novel she gained experience in surgery at the University of Amsterdam and focused in particular on the function of the anesthesia. The efforts of the doctors of this branch aims to take the patient all sense of pain, he that “nothing from the pain know that are inflicted during an operation”

In contrast, should the psychotherapist.

– by Enquist’s understanding – aware of his inner pain patients and noticeable will leave to cure him. “If the feeling must be really experienced, it comes to rest, and the symptoms disappear.”

The conflict between these diametrically opposed positions carry the protagonists in Enquist’s novel.

Drik de Jong’s new patient is the young medic Allard Schuurman. As part of his training Specialist Psychiatry initially he must undergo a “training therapy”. He also holds an assistantship, where he accumulated practical clinical experience.

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The very first meeting runs “strange”, and de Jong feels that he is not easily cope with Allard. Of course, also Drik “confused incompetent” feels in his own momentary mood. The following weekly meetings not improve mutual understanding. Drik noticed the young man who grew up without a father, an affiliated fear loss of feeling. He studied in Drik for a substitute? By Drik derives its therapeutic principles according to the patient with questions about the focus of the anxiety subject and subordinate to him that he “needed concrete help,” he met with fierce resistance. Allard not only feels not understood, but he also sees through Driks uncertainty.

Drik already toying with the idea to pass on his patient to a colleague, the situation changes. Allard is terrible on the ward for the mentally ill witness treatments: “abuse”, “helpless people … aggressive body back”, “the psychiatrist … is the Hangman” – that Allard will not be. He thinks his choice of career, wants to go to anesthesiology.

His psychiatrist Drik interpreted this change as “morbid fear of violence,” as avoiding impossible to circumvent, therapeutically of helpful pain. Allard’s “praise” in the Anesthesiology upset him. . This type of “idealization” is pure “Aggression Defense”

In his new field of activity completed Allard an internship with a doctor who inspired him: She is competent, self-sacrificing, their patients increases fears and gives them peace. Though married, mother of a grown daughter and a generation older than Allard, can this woman on a love affair with her interns

The reports Drik of all this -. Not knowing that his therapist’s brother his lover (Suzan) is. Although Drik recognizes the destructive potential of this affair, but prefers not to be active; medical confidentiality gives him a reassuring shield. Unfortunately, he is doing but his responsibility is not just, and a disaster is about to grow, as it turns out, that Allard top of that lives in a permanent relationship – with Roos, Suzan’s daughter. Drik could have prevented the tragedy that now takes its course.

In addition to the family drama of exciting clinic everyday life takes many pages of this novel one. Experience close up with the surgeon’s work teams at various operations to further education, training programs, simulation exercises and measures to improve workplace as “speed dating”, an initiative aimed at reinforcing the internal collegial relationship. In this team, Suzan is responsible for the pain-free section in the human body, and since they act rationally structured and efficient.

Your private life, however, is anything but painless. She is mentally more damaged than they admit it. She grew up without a mother, now had Hanna’s death twist, and long ago she lost her daughter Roos, who had given far too little time and trust. Their successful and satisfying work has always been a place of escape from all their problems to her.

“Slowly turn up [the patient after surgery] from the depth of anesthesia, in an incomprehensible, cruel world. ” That’s the sad finale of this dead-end for all involved novel. “So far brings us the love for the stunning”, it goes Suzan end through the head after her affair plunged not only her lover into the abyss, but also her little family has broken down completely. Drik, the round has failed, recognizes his guilt share, but can not cope with him. He sold the house and moves to the countryside to be alone. He drowned his pain in alcohol. After all: By admits to having “made mistakes”, he takes a potentially saving Branch, so that in the end a little hope shines through

Anna Enquist has her novel “Anesthesia” into the four. parts exposition, development, recapitulation and coda structured, hence the classical sonata form. (The author is a well-trained concert pianist.) The characters, their network of relationships and the plot it has also implemented architectural concept and surgical precision. The result is a finely balanced structure of opposites and parallels, qualities and defects, omissions and initiatives. Unfortunately, the final product seems a bit too polished, too artificial, Newly Constructed a theoretical programmatic.

That being said, one should know what to expect before accesses this extraordinary reading. Because not everyone wants to listen in excruciating therapy interviews; not everyone wants to look carefully when handling gods in green on their bloody work with a scalpel. Some like it better comfortably numb .