NLPVF:: Gerard Reve diesGerard Reve dies
On 8 April, Gerard Reve (1923-2006) died in the nursing home in the Flemish town of Zulte where he had been a patient for some time. Along with Hermans and Mulisch, Gerard Reve belonged to the major figures of Dutch twentieth-century literature.
His oppressive and simultaneously amusing novel De Avonden (The Evenings) had a great impact on Dutch literature, especially – as Remco Campert articulated it in the Volkskrant daily newspaper – on ‘the young, post-war generation that recognized themselves in this book, in its tone, in the distress at the imperfections of humanity, and in the ineluctable humour.’
He found his true style in his compilations of letters Op weg naar het einde (On My Way to the End) and Nader tot u (Nearer to Thee). He discovered that he could simply write about himself and his emotions in these letters, he could express his ideas and broodings.
With his own distinct baroque style and choice of theme – homosexuality and religion – Reve’s work is not easy to transport abroad. Nevertheless, translations of De taal der liefde (The Language of Love) appeared in Russia, De avonden, Bezorgde ouders (Parents Worry), Moeder en zoon (Mother and Son), and De vierde man (The Fourth Man) in France, Bezorgde ouders in the UK, and Nader tot U and De vierde man in Germany.
Reve was 82 years old.
photo Klaas Koppe