J. M. Coetzee

by Dominic Head

Overview

J. M. Coetzee's work addresses some of the key critical issues of our time: the relationship between postmodernism and postcolonialism, the role of history in the novel, and, repeatedly, how the author can combine a political consciousness with a commitment to the novel as a work of fiction. In this study, which may be used both as an introduction and by those already familiar with Coetzee's work, Dominic Head shows how Coetzee's engagement with the problems facing the postcolonial writer is always enriched by his awareness of a wider literary tradition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521482325
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	01/29/1998
Series:	Cambridge Studies in African and Caribbean Literature , #6
Pages:	212
Product dimensions:	5.75(w) x 8.82(h) x 0.79(d)

Table of Contents

Preface; List of abbreviations; Chronology; 1. The writer's place: Coetzee and postcolonial literature; 2. Writing violence: Dusklands; 3. The wrong kind of love: In the Heart of the Country; 4. An ethical awakening: Waiting for the Barbarians; 5. Gardening as resistance: Life and Times of Michael K; 6. The maze of doubting: Foe; 7. A true confession: Age of Iron; 8. Producing the demon: The Master of Petersburg; Notes; Bibliography; Index.

Editorial Reviews

"Head has written a study that is both intellectually challenging and accessible to nonspecialist readers. All general and academic collections." Choice

"Dominic Head is a reliable and astute reader of a difficult novelist...." David Coad, World Literature Today

From the Publisher