Victims and the postmodern narrative, or, doing violence to the body : an ethic of reading and writing

Victims and the Postmodern Narrative suggests that reading and writing about literature are ways to gain an ethical understanding of how we live in the world. Narrative is, in fact, the most creatively challenging place to locate ethical discourse. Furthermore, postmodern narrative is an important way to reveal and discuss who are society's victims, inviting the reader to become one with them. A close reading of fiction by Toni Morrison, Patrick Suskind, D. M. Thomas, Ian McEwan and J. M. Coetzee reveals a violence imposed on gender, race and the body-politic, suggesting that violence is the critical issue for exploring ethics in a postmodern context. Such violence is not new to the postmodern world, but merely reflects Western culture's religious traditions, as the author demonstrates through a reading of stories from the Hebrew Bible and the Christian New Testament. Finally, Mark Ledbetter suggests that narrative can reverse the course of victimisation against those who suffer merely because they are of an other gender, race, religion or political persuasion from those who have power in our society. Narrative has the ability to call those of us who read and write it to confession, and in confession there is hope for change. Front Matter....Pages n1-xiv Doing Violence to the Body: an Ethic of Reading and Writing....Pages 1-21 Through the Eyes of a Child: Looking for Victims in Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye ....Pages 22-36 An Apocalypse of Race and Gender: Body Violence and Forming Identity in Toni Morrison’s Beloved ....Pages 37-55 The Body Human: Violating the Self and Violating the Other, or Reading the Silenced Narrative — Patrick Süskind’s Perfume ....Pages 56-71 The Body Human and the Body Community: Getting the Story Write/Right in D. M. Thomas’s The White Hotel ....Pages 72-87 The Games Body-Politics Plays: a Rhetoric of Secrecy in Ian McEwan’s The Innocent ....Pages 88-103 Desiring Language and the Language of Desire: Consummating Body-Politics in J. M. Coetzee’s The Age of Iron ....Pages 104-119 (Re)telling the Old, Old Story....Pages 120-140 Concluding an Ethic of Reading and Writing: Literary Criticism as Confession....Pages 141-151 Back Matter....Pages 152-159 Doing Violence To The Body: An Ethic Of Reading And Writing -- Through The Eyes Of A Child: Looking For Victims In Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye -- An Apocalypse Of Race And Gender: Body Violenece And Forming Identity In Toni Morrison's Beloved -- The Body Human: Violating The Self And Violating The Other, Or Reading The Silenced Narrative, Patrick Suskind's Perfume -- The Body Human And The Body Community: Getting The Story Write/right In D.m. Thomas's The White Hotel -- The Games Body-politics Plays: A Rhetoric Of Secrecy In Ian Mcewan's The Innocent -- Desiring Language And The Language Of Desire: Consummating Body-politics In J.m. Coetzee's The Age Of Iron -- (re)telling The Old, Old Story -- Concluding An Ethic Of Reading And Writing: Literary Criticism As Confession. Mark Ledbetter. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 152-157) And Index.