Fast

by Stephen F Cea

Overview

FAST is a modern interpretation of Faust, except that instead of the hoofed personification of evil, it is modern society itself that beguiles the protagonist. Not only is the title an allusion to Faust, but it also refers to the speed of horses which is a major aspect of the novel, and is a metaphor for the speed at which the modern world moves. It is this speed that often makes it difficult for a person to make proper cogent decisions. People react to their particular realities in a manner characterized by Sartre as Being-in-Itself because they don't have time to reflect on their decisions, instead of by Being-for-Itself which requires a conscious evaluation before making those determinations. FAST is narrated in the first person. It has to be in order to attain the level of introspection the author wanted to express to the reader. The prologue is an exposition on how the narrator views the modern world. While sitting in his prison cell contemplating life, he tells the reader that he is about to detail those prior events that led him astray for the purpose of teaching a life lesson. Those events span a forty year period starting with the narrator's early childhood, and it becomes evident that the novel is a "coming of age" piece in the German Bildungsroman tradition. The early chapters of the novel introduce and develop strong familial characters and relationships. The narrator's mother is an intelligent, strong-willed woman whose fortitude keeps the family a cohesive unit. The narrator's father is a physically powerful and violent ex-convict, yet his love for his family is so self-evident that the reader cannot help but like him. His fits of rage are tempered by his love and acts of kindness, such as his refusal to go hunting. The narrator's grandfather is a wise, self-taught character that becomes the moral touchstone for the novel. The narrator's uncle is his early nemesis. Early on, the story predominantly takes place in New York City, with the exception of a visit to the Lewisburg Penitentiary in the first chapter. As the story progresses, the family moves to central New Jersey, and the main character must adjust to suburban life. He adapts well, becoming a young lawyer and husband, but he cannot escape his past. He is seduced into an ongoing criminal enterprise involving the fixing of horse races that ultimately costs him his freedom and law license. From his prison cell the narrator completes his bitter journey. However, all is not lost. Upon his release, he meets with an old friend who convinces him that no matter how difficult and sad life can get, the awareness of existence alone outweighs any hardship. She explains that he needs to look at life differently. She tells him, "How you view the world, is how you see the world." In other words, your perception of the world affects how you conceive the world. In the final pages of the novel he is sitting on the Staten Island Ferry and is consoled by this notion. He looks at the Statue of Liberty, which he once described as expressionless, and now sees Lady Liberty as smiling at him. In effect, the story becomes a triumph of spirit.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780692577097
Publisher:	Stephen Cea
Publication date:	11/13/2015
Pages:	232
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.53(d)

About the Author

Stephen F. Cea was born and raised in New York City. He received a Bachelor of Arts in English and Political Science from St. John's University. He later moved to the suburbs of central New Jersey where he attended Seton Hall Law School. He practiced law for twenty years before deciding to start a new career in the public sector. He has often stated that he quit a quasi-lucrative career as a semi-competent attorney to become an unsuccessful novelist.

Editorial Reviews

2018-08-21

A boy growing up in New York City becomes riven between good and evil in this debut coming-of-age novel.

The story opens with the unnamed narrator as an infant, timid in nature and emotionally attached to his teddy bear. His father is quite the opposite. Recently released from prison and the son of an Italian immigrant prizefighter, he is tender toward his family but has a brutal temper when crossed by others. When the narrator is being bullied at school, a man in a red sweat suit arrives, douses the culprit in gasoline, and threatens to torch him. The narrator suspects that the "red stranger" is connected to his father, and his innocence begins to slowly recede. After developing a proclivity to play truant from high school, the narrator has a chance encounter with his teacher Delbar Pahlavi, who introduces him to the joys of classic literature. The narrator's family moves to New Jersey, where he adapts to suburbia; finds a girl, Alex; and, in time, becomes an attorney. It is at this point in his life that the "red stranger" returns, offering the possibility of great wealth, to be accrued from fixing horse races. The lure of the dark side is devilishly tempting. Cea offers a contemporary take on the classic German Faust legend, in which a demon lures the dissatisfied protagonist into temptation. This is intelligent, weighty writing. When describing his grandfather, the narrator notes: "He wasn't courageous, just fearless. His demeanor was of a quiet confidence. Some people may have mistaken him for complacent. That wasn't it either. He was just satisfied with the way his life turned out, and completely happy." The portrait is followed by a pleasingly serene account of the family making wine together. These tender observations are counterbalanced by searingly pitiless passages, as when the narrator's father urinates on a corpse, commenting: "I told him I was going to piss on his grave. I'm just saving myself the trip." Cea proves expert in celebrating and berating the cult of masculinity in equal measure. On occasion, the author shoehorns in a philosophical debate, such as a protracted conversation between a priest and a physicist regarding Creation. Although engaging, this is somewhat incongruous to the developing narrative. But this proves only a minor distraction from a thoroughly engrossing novel.

Vivid storytelling in a Faustian tale, with a few meanderings.

Kirkus Reviews