Why Do Some People Chose Self-Destruction? | Voss (Patrick White)

Is there greater isolation in the Australian desert, or being unable to fit in with society?

'Voss' by Patrick White is a story of adventure into the Australian wilderness. It is set in 1845 and revolves around 2 principal characters: Johann Ulrich Voss and Laura Trevelyan. There are complex weavings of love, passion, inner turmoil and religious symbolism as Voss follows his path of self-destruction and Laura struggles to communicate with others.

I summarised the book as follows. "Much like the central character Voss, the book itself is enigmatic & at times hard to understand. I feel like you could pick it apart many ways & that I've done a disservice to all the other unique characters by only focusing upon Voss and Laura. I see why this book is an Aussie classic and why Patrick White was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature."

I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro
(0:35) - Synopsis
(3:36) - Doom: Why do some people seek self-destruction?
(15:42) - Communication: The imperfection of language
(26:08) - Observations/Takeaways
(31:04) - Summary


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