Being There (novel)
First edition
|
|
| Author | Jerzy Kosinski |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Harcourt Brace |
|
Publication date
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1970 |
| Pages | 141 |
| ISBN | 0-370-01453-7 |
| Preceded by | Steps |
| Followed by | The Devil Tree |
Being There is a satirical novel by the Polish-born writer Jerzy Kosinski, first published in 1970.[1] Set in America, the story concerns Chance, a simple gardener who unwittingly becomes a much sought-after political pundit and commentator on the vagaries of the modern world.
A film based on the book was made in 1979; Kosinski co-wrote the film's screenplay with Robert C. Jones.
Background
When Jerzy Kosinski published Being There – wrote historian Monika Adamczyk-Garbowska – "most Polish critics immediately recognized [his book] as a version of Kariera Nikodema Dyzmy (Nikodem Dyzma's Career) by Tadeusz Dolega-Mostowicz, a very popular novel from the interwar period, and Kosinki was again accused of plagiarism."[2]
The authorship controversy was a repetition of an earlier case, concerning Kosinski's first novel, The Painted Bird published in 1965, which was plagiarized from a book published in the Second Polish Republic by the Polish ethnographer Henryk Biegeleisen.[2]
References
- ↑ eNotes.com, copy-paste excerpts from: 1971 and 1973 periodicals including Times Supplement (1971), Chicago Review (1973), Harper's (1973), Critique (1973), Hudson Review (1973), and Books and Bookmen (1973). Retrieved December 16, 2012.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- Short synopsis, 2014 Guardian News.[dead link]
- Being there / Jerzy Kosinski Catalogue of the British Library.
