Zorba the Greek (1946) by Nikos Kazantzakis (tr. 1952)

Zorba the Greek is a powerfully simple novel. There isn’t much that happens in the story. The essence of the novel is really the character of Zorba: his being, his ideas, and his life. However, for many readers it represents the ethos (characteristic spirit or attitudes of a people) of Greece. This ethos can be taken two ways: in part the universal, microcosmic, immortal Greece, and—by extension—us; alternatively, it is an exotic Greece of beautiful landscapes, peasants ruled by a code of vendetta and patriarchal hierarchies. It is made accessible to us through a first person narrator who is both Greek (though in the movie version Boss is British) and an intellectual, rational man with an eastern contemplativeness. The dominant conflict—or duality—is focused on the juxtaposition of the narrator and Zorba.

Suggested thematic topics:

  • a life of action versus a contemplative life

(is one superior? is there an appropriate balance? how does one lead one’s life?)

  • passion (body, emotion) versus discipline (intellect, reason) [see above]
  • the relationship between art and life
  • human beings and their relationships with others; love; saving fellow human beings
  • humanity and God
  • the search for truth; the search of identity
  • love of life; life affirming principles

Mythical Aspects

Dionysus: Greek god of wine and festivity

Impetuous and passionate; unreflective and irrational, his passions were expressed in the strong emotional (performative?) arts such as music and dance. Dionysus gave emotions free reign.

Zorba is Dionysian, wildly sensual and unrestrained. He is the quintessential free spirit. He follows his passions, the passions of the moment, and suffers pain in the service of intense pleasures that accompany his acts. Zorba is described as “orgiastic, nearly chthonic.”

[orgiastic: resembling an orgy; excessive indulgence; indiscriminate sexual activity]

[Chthonic: relating to the underworld]

Consider how Zorba could be characterized as Dionysian.

Apollo: Greek god of the sun and arts.

Apollo is rational, reflective, passive, and restrained. The Apollonian view is expressed in literature and sculpture—in the contemplative arts rather than the active ones. Apollo checked the emotions.

The narrator (Boss) is Apollonian. His Buddhist preoccupation accentuates this asceticism; although at times his Buddhism propels him, will it continue to do so?

Consider: Will the Dionysian and Apollonian unite or blend? Will either or both change? What references to a “quest” are made in Zorba the Greek?