Die Dinge

Georges Perec became famous almost overnight with this work published in 1965, for which he received the prestigious Prix Renaudot, and which proves to be more relevant than ever 50 years after its first edition. In this slim book, Perec describes the life of the young couple Jérôme and Sylvie as entirely determined by the things they own or wish to own, subordinating all their human relationships to these possessions. Both have given up their studies and now conduct market analyses for the very consumer industry that they exemplify, using fragments from psychology and sociology. Driven by the question of how to acquire the seemingly abundant money that is available to the other, they become increasingly trapped in the prisons of excess, though not without attempting to break free. Perec's narrative combines literary elements with social critique.