Review: The Loved One

[s_kiser]

The Loved One by Evelyn Waugh is a satire that reminds me of a dystopia novel (especially Brave New World). It's set in or near Hollywood. I don't think it was originally written as historical fiction, but it was published in 1948. One main character is a minor British poet (lacking inspiration for pretty much the entire story) who originally came over to work in the film industry, but as that didn't work out, started working as a pet undertaker. When a friend (possibly his patron. I read it a month or so ago, and sadly have already forgotten) dies, he goes to the Whispering Glades, a cemetery that seems more like an amusement park, to make arrangements. While there, he meets Aimee Thanatogenos, a cosmetician for corpses who is very enthusiastic about both her job and her boss. A love triangle ensues among the boss, the poet, and Aimee, with Aimee writing to newspaper advice columnists for guidance, the poet wooing her with borrowed lines from English literature, and the boss, who is almost divine in Aimee's world, being something of an oaf and thinking very highly of himself.
I have to admit, this is not really my favorite genre and a lot of the humor was probably lost on me. Probably because it was a comic story, the images it created in my head were almost animation. Still, Waugh did point out some of the foibles in recent ways of dealing with death, love, and decisions. Even though the characters were almost intentionally shallow and lived in a phony world, Waugh manages to suggest that they might have deep and true emotions (worthy of more than a sneer or chuckle), but just no way of validly expressing them and many ways of running away from them. As someone looking for a reason to spend a lot of time reading, I think that in this way Waugh may have been hinting at the importance of language. Everything in the world he created (or caricatured) is full of euphemisms, not quite untrue, but definitely sanitized. Also depth and reflection are not really encouraged, and it sometimes seems certain things are gnawing at the edge of the characters' consciousness, just outside of what they can really grasp or express.
This book is a quick and entertaining read (191 pages, with fairly large print and margins), and even 66 years after it was written, could be a caricature of a lot of modern society. If you're looking for something funny and little bit cynical, you might enjoy this. If you're looking for something deeper, you could probably also find material to ponder, if you are so inclined.