A Review of John F. Landrum's The Jonkheer's Wife
The Jonkheer’s Wife by John F.
Landrum is an excellent work of historical fiction that goes beyond simply
telling an engaging World War II story; this work explores the philosophical
issues surrounding the war and the mentalities held by those who lived through
it. The Jonkheer’s Wife immerses
readers in a rich, multifaceted world where intellectual discoveries are
skillfully conveyed through the lives and actions of the characters.
One of the
book’s protagonists, Erwin Schell, a Nazi colonel occupying Holland
from 1940 to 1945, strives to genuinely embody the collectivist warrior ethic
propagated by Hitler’s regime. Schell is not an evil man; indeed, he is quite a
sympathetic character who has a deep sense of genuine honor and personal
integrity. Certain actions – such as murdering civilians without cause – are
inconceivable to him, and he becomes appalled to learn that the German army
commits them on a systematic basis. But Schell’s worldview at the beginning of
the book is a fundamentally flawed one – a view that emphasizes the
individual’s complete sacrifice for a greater cause, be it History, the
Fatherland, or National Socialism. Much of the book focuses on the incidents
and realizations which exacerbate the tensions between Schell’s personal
integrity and his collectivist worldview – eventually forcing him to
choose.
During the
occupation of Holland, Schell
occupies the house of Sophia Vaubin van Dordrecht, whose husband Willem had
fled to England
when the Germans invaded. Sophia is a strong, capable woman with a deep inner
conflict between her hatred for the German occupation and her sympathy for
Schell – who treats her and her two children with kindness and protects them
from the suspicions and aggression of the genuinely vicious and evil SS. Sophia
has a secret which she needs to keep from Schell and another secret in her past
of which she is only dimly aware but which she struggles to escape; at the same
time, she must deal with the resentment of former friends who falsely construe
her as aiding the Nazi occupation.
Sophia’s
husband Willem is also extensively featured in the book. He longs to return to
his home and family – and he must go through the Western front in order to do
so. A doctor without much combat experience initially, Willem joins a platoon
of American soldiers and follows them through training, the D-Day landings, and
the Allied liberation of France.
Willem’s motivations in fighting differ dramatically from Schell’s; Willem
seeks to defend what is his. He fights to save himself and the people and
things he loves – not to engage in self-sacrifice or to become a noble but dead
hero. The Americans alongside whom he fights share this essential mindset;
their foremost goal is not to die gloriously but to survive and to help their
fellow soldiers do the same. Throughout the course of the war, Willem matures
and becomes significantly wiser and more competent than he had been upon
fleeing Holland. One of the most
interesting events in the book is the eventual meeting between Willem and
Schell – when the two characters finally exchange words at the culmination of
each of their personal developments.
The Jonkheer’s Wife is a fast, engaging
read; each event in the book has an underlying intellectual significance as
well as an indispensable relevance to the plot as a whole. Philosophical
discoveries are skillfully integrated into the flow of events and dialogue, and
Mr. Landrum succeeds at conveying the significance of principled individualism.
At the same time, this work does not lose sight of the complexities of human
interactions – especially during times of extreme crisis and conflict.
Well-intentioned characters often find themselves at odds with one another;
misunderstandings, misinformation, and uncertainty often lead to tragic or
near-tragic outcomes. Even a principled individualist sometimes needs to
recognize his own errors of perception, rethink his conduct, and even forgive
offenses in order to break the cycle of retribution. None of these difficulties
would occur in a world of perfect information, but World War II Europe was far
from such a world – and Mr. Landrum clearly illustrates this.
A few nice
surprises can be found in The Jonkheer’s
Wife as well. Ludwig von Mises and his Nationalökonomie
(later, Human Action) are mentioned once; there is also a creative
reply to Franklin Roosevelt’s “four freedoms” speech. The book guides curious
readers to explore these works and consider their implications. Overall, it
provides an excellent grasp of the intellectual and emotional dimensions of
World War II for both sides and of their relevance to our world – where the
same basic issues continue to require our attention.
G. Stolyarov II is a science
fiction novelist, independent philosophical essayist, poet, amateur
mathematician, composer, contributor to Enter Stage Right, Le Quebecois
Libre, Rebirth of Reason, and the Ludwig von Mises Institute, Senior Writer for The Liberal Institute, weekly columnist for GrasstopsUSA.com,
and Editor-in-Chief of The Rational
Argumentator, a magazine championing the
principles of reason, rights, and progress. Mr. Stolyarov also publishes his
articles on Helium.com and
Associated
Content to assist the spread of rational ideas. His newest science fiction
novel is Eden against the
Colossus. His latest non-fiction treatise
is A Rational
Cosmology. His most recent play is Implied Consent.
Mr. Stolyarov can be contacted at gennadystolyarovii@yahoo.com.
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Consent, a futuristic intellectual drama on the sanctity of
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