DISGRACE
Disgrace is a novel set in post- apartheid period in South Africa written by John Maxwell Coetzee. The book was released in 1999 and won the Booker Prize. With this Coetzee became the first writer to have won two Booker Prizes. Coetzee also won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2003.
The book is about a Communications professor at Cape Town Technical University in Cape Town named David Lurie whose affair with his student is discovered at the university. The name of the student is Melanie Isaacs. After the revelation Melanie withdraws from all her classes and a sexual harassment case is filed against Prof. Lurie. After this Lurie leaves Cape Town and goes to live with his lesbian daughter Lucy at Salem, a rural area. At first Lurie finds the rural life slow but soon he gets involved in the work as he volunteers at an animal shelter and helps the farm-hand, Petrus. At the farm Lucy is raped by three Africans who rob the house and also set Lurie on fire. Lucy reports to the police officer the stolen property and her father's assault, but says nothing about the rape. After some time Lurie returns to Cape Town. When Lurie returns to his house in Cape Town, he finds it has been robbed and vandalized. In Cape Town, he finds he is an outcast and the life there has changed a lot. Lurie decides to visit his daughter. On returning, he finds that Lucy gets pregnant from the rape and makes a conscious decision to keep the child. Lucy decides to marry Petrus in exchange for protection. Resigned, Lurie rents a room in Grahmstown to help his daughter at the market once a week and to dedicate himself to the disposal of the dogs' bodies at the shelter.
Disgrace is written in a narrative style known as 'Free indirect discourse' and 'third person limited'. David Lurie's point of view dominates the story. We are given an access not only to Lurie’s spoken words but also to his inner thoughts and unspoken words. The reader becomes intimately familiar with Lurie's desires, passions, and discourse.
“`Are you married?'
`I was. Twice. But now I'm not.' He does not say: Now I make do with what comes my way. He does not
say: Now I make do with whores. Van I offer you a liqueur?'” (pg. 12 in e-book)
Throughout the narrative, Coetzee inserts phrases in Afrikaans, Latin, German, Italian, and French into the text. Lurie tries to rebuild his world with his daughter. Coetzee through his ending leaves the reader to decide whether Lurie has been successful in his attempt and whether he has been able to salvage his relationship with his daughter. Also Coetzee emphasizes on the fact that each human being is equal. Lucy characterizes Lurie, saying, "You behave as if everything I do is part of the story of your life. You are the main character, I am a minor character who doesn't make an appearance until halfway through. Well, contrary to what you think, people are not divided into major and minor. I am not a minor. I have a life of my own, just as important to me as yours is to you, and in my life I am the one who makes the decisions" . Also noticeable in the writing style is the way in which Coetzee treats an event as gruesome as rape which is narrated in a few lines. Although few, yet these lines are convincing. Also, Coetzee portrays his characters in such a way that one can identify with them.The vivid description of college activities and the way in which students behave with their studies make us believe the scenes. They all look like the parts of our day-to-day life.
Nilesh Kanungo
2009ME10601
One thing which comes across while reading the novel, is the slowness of the story and the narration. J.M. Coetzee has tried probably to merge the narrative style with the slow, laid back nature of the South African countryside of Salem. The story follows a particular pattern with nothing much happening for a number of pages and then suddenly taking a sharp twist as in the case of the discovery of the affair between David Lurie and Melanie and the rape of Lucy and their house being robbed.
ReplyDeleteLurie’s disgrace comes when his affair with Melanie is discovered which is reciprocated when his own daughter is raped. Coetzee has shown post- apartheid South Africa in an extremely dark light and has shown the atrocities that took place during that period in a way that actually is spine-chilling. It is no wonder that the novel stands as a mile-stone in post- apartheid literature. Also Coetzee has beautifully touched upon the relationship between father and daughter which is described in a very sensitive light.
Another thing which I would like to add to this discussion is the incredible description of post-apartheid South Africa by J.M. Coetzee. Coetzee describes the period when rape is a common occurrence. Robbery and kidnapping were a way in which the Black community if South Africa took out its revenge on the White community. Racial tensions have been described in a very subtle way by Coetzee. A 2006 poll of "literary luminaries" by The Observer newspaper named it as the "greatest novel of the last 25 years" written in English outside the United States. Also, rural South Africa has been described extremely well by the author and one actually is taken to the scene.
ReplyDeleteAlso one cannot help but notice the narrative style of the novel which is known as “Free Indirect Discourse”. We are given an insight into not only what the characters say but also into their inner thoughts. This is Coetzee’s experiment with writing and language. Also the narrative takes the language and style of the protagonist and takes the form of thoughts of the protagonist just as Lurie would phrase them.