The Counterfeiters by André Gide
Translated from French by Dorothy Bussy
Oh, simplicity! What a pure angelic soul you possess! And consciously. Life, my dear fellow, is nothing but a comedy. But the difference between you and me is that I know I am playing a part, whilst … ~ Olivier to Bernard
For starters, I did not like this novel.
But, I am trying to adopt John Updike’s rules for literary criticism (I don’t truly consider my “reviews” as criticism, but merely my own reaction). Nonetheless, rule #1 is:
- Try to understand what the author wished to do, and do not blame him for not achieving what he did not attempt.
As best I can discern, and as concisely as I can put it, I believe Gide intended to show that we all wear masks. If I am half-correct, I have to admit that he portrayed that premise fairly well, though I am not half-convinced that it is universally true. In this regard, and only this, The Counterfeiters reminds me of To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf.
Updike’s second rule:
- Give enough direct quotation—at least one extended passage—of the book's prose so the review's reader can form his own impression, can get his own taste.
A conversation between two main-characters Oliviers and Bernard:
“Then why am I telling you all this? … Because, reflecting on my own case, I became aware that not only images but ideas may strike the brain with more or less clearness. A person with a dull mind receives only confused perceptions; but for that very reason he cannot realize clearly that he is dull. He would only begin to suffer from his stupidity if he were conscious of it; and in order to be conscious of it, he would have to become intelligent. Now imagine for a moment such a monster—an imbecile who is intelligent enough to understand that he is stupid.”
“Why he would cease to be an imbecile.”
“No my dear fellow; you may believe me, because as a matter of fact, I am that very imbecile.
The Counterfeiters is a complex, character-driven story with no central plot but several interconnected subplots, including a group of schoolboys passing counterfeit coins to collect change in real currency—a literal and allegorical nod to the title. Gide uses numerous unreliable narrators, shifting perspectives, and even metafiction: one character, Édouard, is writing a novel also called The Counterfeiters, possibly as Gide’s alter ego. A chapter titled “The Author reviews His Characters” left me wondering who was speaking, Édouard or Gide.
Updike’s third rule:
- Confirm your description of the book with quotation from the book, if only phrase-long, rather than proceeding by fuzzy précis.
Consider a line from the character Sophroniska:
“Yes, yes; I’m beginning to see,” said Sophroniska politely, though Laura’s laugh was very near conquering her. “But you know it’s always dangerous to represent intellectuals in novels. The public is bored by them; one only manages to make them say absurdities and they give an air of distraction to everything they touch.”
I quite agree with the Sophroniska. All the brilliant intellectuals and their absurd navel-gazing left me bored and distracted.
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
This novel fulfills the “Crime” category for the What’s in a Name? 2025 challenge, as the title features the crime of counterfeiting.
The rest of Updike’s rules for literary criticism can be found HERE
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