The Red-Haired Woman

"Manyyearshavenowgoneby,andjealousycompelsmetokeephernameasecret,evenfrommyreaders.ButImustprovideafullandtruthfulaccountofwhathappened."Itismid-1980sIstanbulandMasterMahmutandhisapprenticeuseancientmethodstodigwells-theyaredesperatetofindwaterinabarrenland.Thisisthetaleoftheirstruggle,butitisalsoadeeperinvestigation-throughmesmerisingstoriesandimages-intoPamuk'sprevailingthemes:fathersandsons,thestateandindividualfreedom,readingandseeing.Itisalsoarichlyliterarywork:TheRed-HairedWomanborrowsfromthetraditionoftheFrenchcontephilosophiqueandasksprobingquestionsofethicsandoftheroleofartinourlives.Itisbothashort,realisttextinvestigatingamurderwhichtookplacethirtyyearsagonearIstanbul-andafictionalinquiryintotheliteraryfoundationsofcivilizations,comparingtwofundamentalmythsoftheWestandtheEastrespectively:Sophocles'sOedipusRex(astoryofpatricide)andFerdowsi'staleofRostamandSohrab(astoryoffilicide).TheRed-HairedWomanisamasterfulandmesmerisingworkwhichfurtherconfirmsOrhanPamukasoneofourgreatestnovelists.