Postirony: The Nonfictional Literature of David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers (Lettre)

What is "postirony"? First and foremost, it is a response to the ironic zeitgeist. Moreover, it is the key to understanding a specific form of literature. The contemporary reader is familiar with and – unfortunately – used to postmodernism's ironic, self-reflexive metafiction. Authors like David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers choose a different path: despite the reign of contemporary irony, they strive to reach the reader on a level beyond, cognitively as well as emotionally – they claim to be sincere and true. Focusing largely on nonfiction by these authors, Lukas Hoffmann explores the means the texts use to achieve something new – a new form of sincerity. What is'postirony'? Foremost, it is a response to the ironic zeitgeist. Moreover, it is the key to understanding a specific form of literature. The contemporary reader is familiar with and - unfortunately - used to postmodernism's ironic, self-reflexive metafiction. Authors like David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers chose a different path: Despite the reign of contemporary irony, they strive to reach the reader on a level beyond, cognitively as well as emotionally - they claim to be sincere and true. Focusing largely on nonfiction by said authors, Lukas Hoffmann explores the means the texts use to achieve something new - namely, a new form of sincerity. What is 'postirony'? Foremost, it is a response to the ironic zeitgeist. Moreover, it is the key to understanding a specific form of literature. The contemporary reader is familiar with and - unfortunately - used to postmodernism's ironic, self-reflexive metafiction. Authors like David Foster Wallace and Dave Eggers chose a different Despite the reign of contemporary irony, they strive to reach the reader on a level beyond, cognitively as well as emotionally - they claim to be sincere and true. Focusing largely on nonfiction by said authors, Lukas Hoffmann explores the means the texts use to achieve something new - namely, a new form of sincerity. Contents Acknowledgements Introduction Postirony – Conceptualizing an Idea Reading the Postironic – Audience, Narrator, and Metalepsis Dave Eggers – Living the Postironic David Foster Wallace – Hope and Despair; The Postironic Condition A Second Generation Emerges Conclusion Works Cited