Michel Houellebecq

A controversial, intelligent, and mordantly funny new novel from France's most famous living literary figure It's 2022. François is bored. He's a middle-aged lecturer at the New Sorbonne University and an expert on J. K. Huysmans, the famous nineteenth-century Decadent author. But François's own decadence is considerably smaller in scale. He sleeps with his students, eats microwave dinners, rereads Huysmans, queues up YouPorn. Meanwhile, it's election season. And although Francois feels "about as political as a bath towel," things are getting pretty interesting. In an alliance with the Socialists, France's new Islamic party sweeps to power. Islamic law comes into force. Women are veiled, polygamy is encouraged, and François is offered an irresistible academic advancement--on the condition that he convert to Islam. Adam Gopnik in The New Yorker has said of Submission that "Houellebecq is not merely a satirist but--more unusually--a sincere satirist, genuinely saddened by the absurdities of history and the madnesses of mankind." Michel Houellebecq's new book may be satirical and melancholic, but it is also hilarious, a comic masterpiece by one of France's great novelists.

A Novel

Submission

Katie Chua

my first houellebecq, won't be my last. idk i liked this and i'm trying to still parse out why because i actually couldn't tell if this was satire or not and if he's being *too* reactionary or what. i think some of the stuff he proposed actually felt legitimate, but i think i mainly liked this because it made me think.

Donald

What a hateful, hilarious novel.

The funniest thing about Submission is that it's not about Islam. Houellebecq doesn't seem to care or know about Islam at all. It's an object of reactionary fantasy (order, patriarchy, etc)... but even the fantasy is more puerile than reactionary. Islam is equated with high salaries and submissive (young) wives. An adolescent fantasy. It's hard to know if Houellebecq has more disdain for men or women.

Any pundit who reads this book as original or insightful commentary on "the West and Islam" is a moron. In some ways, the goal of the book is to mock such commentary.

The plot is just so silly. The collapse of European civilization described is real, not imagined, but the collapse of Arab civilization has been much faster and more extreme. The decadence and nihilism of the Saudi or Qatari elites make their European counterparts look good in comparison. And the collapse in birth rates is even worse in places like Iran than it is in France. The longterm financial picture for Saudi Arabia is not good, and starvation was a major problem in Syria before the civil war started. Etc etc.

The problems in European liberal democracies are real, but however bad it gets, the problems in the Arab autocracies are much worse. Houellebecq isn't stupid. He knows this, and that's why the Islamist fantasy in Submission is so lacking in detail about politics/economics... and so focused on the erotic possibilities of polygamy.

In a near-future France, Fran�ois, a middle-aged academic, is watching his life slowly dwindle to nothing. His sex drive is diminished, his parents are dead, and his lifelong obsession - the ideas and works of the nineteenth-century novelist Joris-Karl Huysmans - has led him nowhere. In a late-capitalist society where consumerism has become the new religion, Fran�ois is spiritually barren, but seeking to fill the vacuum of his existence. And he is not alone. As the 2022 Presidential election approaches, two candidates emerge as favourites: Marine Le Pen of the Front National, and Muhammed Ben Abbes of the nascent Muslim Fraternity. Forming a controversial alliance with the mainstream parties, Ben Abbes sweeps to power, and overnight the country is transformed. Islamic law comes into force: women are veiled, polygamy is encouraged and, for Fran�ois, life is set on a new course. Submission is both a devastating satire and a profound meditation on isolation, faith and love. It is a startling new work by one of the most provocative and prescient novelists of today.

Diana Platgalve

Good read on sexual/social failure of finding fulfilment and European self destruction.

Ronas K

Only a book that Houellebecq can write. Insanely well done. It is difficult not to read into it various agendas and hidden messages, when the main plot-device is the electoral takeover of France by a Muslim party bankrolled by the Saudi government. But you have to get past the point of searching for Houellebecq's intentions for the book to truly open up and become an enjoyable read.

Pim Van

A book with potential, but it just didn't work at the end. At least not for me. Too many loose ends and cut corners. I pity that as the book had some great writing by Houellebecq in it as well and the topic has great potential.

In a near-future France, François, a middle-aged academic, is watching his life slowly dwindle to nothing. His sex drive is diminished, his parents are dead, and his lifelong obsession – the ideas and works of the nineteenth-century novelist Joris-Karl Huysmans – has led him nowhere. In a late-capitalist society where consumerism has become the new religion, François is spiritually barren, but seeking to fill the vacuum of his existence. And he is not alone. As the 2022 Presidential election approaches, two candidates emerge as favourites: Marine Le Pen of the Front National, and Muhammed Ben Abbes of the nascent Muslim Fraternity. Forming a controversial alliance with the mainstream parties, Ben Abbes sweeps to power, and overnight the country is transformed. Islamic law comes into force: women are veiled, polygamy is encouraged and, for François, life is set on a new course. Submission is both a devastating satire and a profound meditation on isolation, faith and love. It is a startling new work by one of the most provocative and prescient novelists of today.

Artas Bartas

Submission is a thought-provoking book. Many a critic will rush to accuse it of spewing Islamophobia, objectifying women, and caricaturing the ideals of Enlightenment. And to some extent, they will be right because the writings of Michel Houellebecq tend to evoke the world where the cornerstone values of the Western middle classes - be it sexual monogamy, human rights, or democratic government - crumble under the weight of internal contradictions and external pressures. The rise of the Muslim government imposing Islamic law on the French society is just the latest variation of the same formula. 

The alt-right movement and casual racists might hail Submission as a book that dares to speak "the truth," but the story of creeping Islamization works only as long as Houellebecq chooses to gloss over the glaring contradictions of the Arab societies (the Sunni-Shia divide anyone?), equate liberalism with social alienation, and proclaim Christianity a spent spiritual movement, to mention just a few, most obvious caricatures. All this makes one wonder, what *is* the real story of the Houellebecq's book? 

Arnold Toynbee once noted that civilizations die from suicide, not by murder. Seen this way, the real tragedy lies not in covert Islamization or the fact that political life comes to be dominated by the National Front and the Muslim Brotherhood, the two parties united by their "rejection of atheism and humanism." No, these developments are only possible when mainstream political parties completely and utterly fail in their task of governing. Fail to enact economic policies benefiting the working class, fail to talk about moral issues publicly, fail to foster local communities and tackle crime, and fail to integrate ethnic and religious minorities into society at large. 

If you accept this interpretation, the next question to ask is where lie the roots of this failure. To Houellebecq, it has to do with liberalism and its emphasis on personal freedom, which leads to the atomization of society and alienation of its members. Other critics might say that the real culprit is not liberalism, but the electoral process that favors candidates with deep pockets and media-savvy advisors over those with fresh ideas and deep commitment to their communities. Remaining an optimist, I think the situation is not so bleak - with the right type of leadership, the liberal values and existing institutions can produce fairer policies and more inclusive governance. 

In the end, the reason why I read Houellebecq is because his books never fail to provoke one to think about the big questions.

Francis Wilson

Philipp

Landen Angeline

As the 2022 French Presidential election looms, two candidates emerge as favourites: Marine Le Pen of the Front National, and the charismatic Muhammed Ben Abbes of the growing Muslim Fraternity. Forming a controversial alliance with the political left to block the Front National's alarming ascendency, Ben Abbes sweeps to power, and overnight the country is transformed. This proves to be the death knell of French secularism, as Islamic law comes into force: women are veiled, polygamy is encouraged and, for our narrator Fran�ois - misanthropic, middle-aged and alienated - life is set on a new course. Submission is a devastating satire, comic and melancholy by turns, and a profound meditation on faith and meaning in Western society.

Sean Wilson

Özgür Özer

Nicholas Barnard

M. Marques

As the 2022 French Presidential election looms, two candidates emerge as favourites: Marine Le Pen of the Front National, and the charismatic Muhammed Ben Abbes of the growing Muslim Fraternity. Forming a controversial alliance with the political left to block the Front National’s alarming ascendency, Ben Abbes sweeps to power, and overnight the country is transformed. This proves to be the death knell of French secularism, as Islamic law comes into force: women are veiled, polygamy is encouraged and, for our narrator François – misanthropic, middle-aged and alienated – life is set on a new course. Submission is a devastating satire, comic and melancholy by turns, and a profound meditation on faith and meaning in Western society.

Submission A Novel

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