Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Elena Ferrante
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
In Ferrante’s third Neapolitan novel, the divisions between Lenu and Lila grow sharper, and Lenu’s life seems more defined by circumstances that seem uniquely adult—the publication and success of her first book, her marriage and children, and distinguishing herself from her parents and siblings. The breakneck momentum of the first two books comes to a halt here, as Lenu takes stock of her life and finds so much of it lacking. She’s no longer inspired by her own writing, she misses the energy of her youth, she finds little desire in being a wife and mother.
I was struck by the power of a woman (Lenu) struggling to understand the ways in which men frame the entire existence of women, and how she can maneuver within this world. And then finding once again the great passion of her life, the feverish inspiration that can return her to her intelligence and her creativity. But everything feels poised on a precipice as this third book closes.
One narrative feature that stands out to me in Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay is Ferrante’s ability to write about the shape of something without writing about the content itself—a bit like describing the box without telling us what’s inside. In each of her books, but especially here, we find characters in conflict with one another, and that tension is narrated in such a way that we’re drawn to the effect of the argument rather than the content of it. Which, for me, allows the story to reach a tone of universality that transcends its time and place.
