J.M. Coetzee and the ethics of power : unsettling complicity, complacency, and confession / Emanuela Tegla.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Tegla, Emanuela, author.

Series:

Cross/cultures ; Volume 185.

Cross/Cultures, 0924-1426 ; Volume 185

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Power (Philosophy).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (291 p.)

Place of Publication:

Leiden, Netherlands ; Boston, Massachusetts : Brill, 2015.

Summary:

“For I was not, as I liked to believe, the indulgent pleasure-loving opposite of the cold rigid Colonel. I was the lie that Empire tells itself when times are easy, he the truth that Empire tells when harsh winds blow.” Thus the Magistrate confesses in Coetzee’s 1980 novel Waiting for the Barbarians . The present study looks closely into the unsettling effects Coetzee’s novels have on the reader and explores the interconnectedness between stylistic choices and moral insights. Its overall aim is to disclose the effectiveness of Coetzee’s narrative strategies to prompt the reader to engage in self-questioning and radical revisions of personal and social moral assumptions. “This is an original and ground-breaking study of Coetzee’s work. Dr Tegla’s insightful close-readings highlight the ways in which Coetzee fictionalizes a variety of moral dilemmas. In particular, she shows how he turns narrative into an instrument for moral discernment. Her narratological approach advances our understanding of his achievements, and I can state without reservation that this book will be referred to as a landmark in Coetzee criticism.” — Richard Bradford, Research Professor and Senior Distinguished Research Fellow, University of Ulster

Contents:

Preliminary Material

Introduction

From Duty to Moral Choice: Waiting for the Barbarians

Facile Goodness and Shame: Age of Iron

Sloth and Moral Integrity: Life and Times of Michael K

Ideals, Sex, and Violence: Disgrace

Conclusion: The Moral Dimension of Resisting Narrative Closure

Works Cited

Index.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

90-04-30844-X

OCLC:

925390943

Publisher Number:

10.1163/9789004308442 DOI