Dying flesh

Author: Ross
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-11-01
Features: The novel contains certain descriptions of sexuality, yet it does not feel vulgar. The author attempts to place sexuality in a reasonable position, encouraging people to view it rationally. However, the novel ultimately does not focus on sexuality but rather uses its depiction to analyze the thoughts and relationships of contemporary Americans. The themes are profound. "Burn my heart to its very core, it is bound to a / dying flesh, corrupted by desire / already unaware of what it was; / Come quickly / and gather me into the eternal arrangement of art"—excerpted from Yeats' famous poem Sailing to Byzantium.
An American professor in his sixties and his student, a twenty-four-year-old Cuban girl named Conchita, develop an unusual love and desire relationship. He becomes obsessed with her body, unable to resist, while for Conchita, his age and status reasonably grant her the right to submit. However, gradually, his fear of the age gap and jealousy of youth drain his confidence, leaving him torn between sexuality and impending death. The end of this relationship leaves him tormented for a long time.
Eight years later, on New Year's Eve, when he receives a call from Conchita again, the girl brings him tragic news—she has breast cancer. On the day before her surgery, Conchita asks him to take naked photographs of her, adding a tragic and passionate hue to this final death.