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23SECTION 1
ESSAYS ON LITERARY TOPICS
УДК 821.111-3:82.09
Another You/Another I: Alterity as a Focus of Contemporary
British Literature
Evgenia Kislyakova
Volgograd State Social Pedagogical University, Associate Professor 400005, Russia, Volgograd, Lenin avenue, 27: [email protected]
The article renders the literary aspects of alterity as a philosophical category in the textual structures of contemporary British prose. In most general terms alterity denotes the sphere of interrelation between the Self and the Other. Alterity is represented in fiction in different aspects such as racial, ethnical, religious, social and sexual [gender].
Key words: alterity; literary category; the Self; the Other; ethnical, social, gender and individual otherness.
The term alterity has been defined under philosophical scrutiny as a spectrum of notions and ideas, contributing on the whole to the idea of "otherness", strictly being in the sense of the other of two (Latin alter). The concept was established by Emmanuel Levinas in a series of essays, collected under the title Alterity and Transcendence [Levinas 1999].
Nowadays it is widely deployed outside philosophy, having gained use in such seemingly remote disciplines as historical musicology and other humanitarian spheres among which literary criticism is not an exception. Suffice to refer to the studies where alterity is a key concept and a literary category to be employed in textual analysis and interpretation [Половцев 2008].
Speaking in terms of Derrida's viewpoint on the problem, present-day fragmentary man can be "a whole man” only by means of the Other, thus shifting the latter from the periphery to the centre of the social studies. Similar understanding is observed in Bakhtin's works, e.g. 'The Self becomes conscious of oneself and turns into one only after it has revealed itself to the Other, via the Other and by means of the Other, whereas the most important acts that constitute self-consciousness are determined by the relation to the
® Evgenia Kislyakova, 2012
other consciousness (to You). As a result, the Self obtains its consciousness interacting with the Other. The philosopher considers retreat from the Other as the main reason for losing oneself. [Бахтин 1997: 343].
The Other or Constitutive Other as a key concept in modern philosophy opposes the Same. A person's definition of the 'Other' is part of what defines or even constitutes the self (in both a psychological and philosophical sense) and other elements and units of culture. Taking into account the social understanding of the phenomenon by which societies and groups exclude 'Others' whom they want to subordinate or who do not fit into their society, the relatively recent postmodernism tendencies in British literature have submitted the aspect of otherness to radical re-evaluation.
In keeping with the example of imperial Britain, the literature of that time period reflected the general policy of perceiving the other in the light of their weakness and inferiority, thus extenuating the moral responsibility of the stronger self to educate, convert, or civilize depending on the identity of the other. In this respect othering can be done with any racial, ethnic, religious, or geographically-defined category of people. A number of novellas exemplify this point such as Somerset Maugham's 'Rain' and Muriel Spark's 'The Black Madonna'.
On balance, 'contemporary British fiction is keen to explore the cultural representation of geographical spaces, especially in relation to the urban environment and national identity' while 'postmodernism and postcolonialism in fiction have both served to loosen traditional discourses of Englishness' (Bentley 2008: 189). One of the ways to approach the phenomenon of alterity as it is reflected in fiction is to address the postwar literature which is associated with a deep interest in immigrants and exiles [May 2010b]. The problem of immigrants and national identity has been raised on a wider scale than ever before. To a certain degree it is touched upon in such novels as Magpie by Jill Dawson, Nice Work by David Lodge, The History of the World in 10 V2 chapters by Julian Barnes and White Teeth by Zadie Smith, which is in itself considered to be a multi-cultural novel [May 2010a].
In these novels racial and ethnical otherness is rendered in the form of identity clusters, in which some characters are apt to retain
their cultural and national peculiarities, not willing to develop any features of sameness by means of mimesis. For example, such characters can be observed in Magpie (Josh and some other neighbours in the Flanders estate). Others might seem dissatisfied with their ethnical or religious background and seek ways of fitting into the society they have found themselves in:
‘I GIVE YOU A GLORIOUS NAME LIKE MAGID MAHFOOZ MURSHED MUBTASIMIQBAL!' Samad had yelled after Magid when he returned home that evening and whipped up the stairs like a bullet to hide in his room. AND YOU WANT TO BE CALLED MARK SMITH! But it was just a symptom of a far deeper malaise. Magid really wanted to be in some other family. He wanted to own cats and not cockroaches, and he wanted his mother to make the music of the cello, not the sound of the sewing machine; he wanted to have a trellis of flowers growing up one side of the house instead of an ever growing pile of other people's rubbish; he wanted a piano in the hallway in place of the broken door off cousin Kurshed's car; he wanted to go on biking holidays to France, not to day-trips to Blackpool to visit aunties; he wanted the floor of his room to be shiny wood, not the orange and green swirled carpet left over from the restaurant; he wanted his father to be a doctor, not a one-handed waiter; and this month Magid had converted all these desires into a wish to join in with the Harvest Festival like Mark Smith would. Like everybody else would. (Smith White Teeth).
The passage from the novel White Teeth ushers the readers into the fictional world of different ethnic representatives, whose lives appear to be entangled into the complex social structure of today's London. A second-generation immigrant, the son of a former citizen of India, the schoolboy, Magid, finds himself in the classical position of the Other, a foreigner that should be avoided, a derelict. On the one hand, he is almost devoid of any connection with the culture of his ancestors on account of the fact that he was born into an immigrant family. On the other hand, he cannot integrate into British culture and acclimatize in it because his attempts are confronted by his family life routine. As a result, he is a constant target of his parents' reprimands and depressive moods. The
disparity and consequent frustration stand for the problem of alterity in this context.
In some works of fiction the problem of alterity can take a dramatic turn. The short story 'My Son the Fanatic' written by Hanif Kureishi describes the gap between the western and the oriental cultures which is deepened for an immigrant because of his wish to pertain to the British society and the moral obstacles that his Islam-oriented son throws in his way:
You are too implicated in Western civilization ... The Western materialists hate us ... On one occasion, Ali accused Parvez of'grovelling' to the whites; in contrast, he explained, he himself was not 'inferior', there was more to the world than the West, though the West always thought it was best (Kureishi 'My Son the Fanatic').
As a rule, alterity is criticized by contemporary British writers in view of the common opposition 'The West - The East' with the prevailing dominance of the former. In Julian Barnes' novel A History of the World in 10 ¥2 Chapters one of the chapters constructs a narrative around the situation of a terroristic attack in which people of Islamic belief take hostage a large number of passengers on board a cruise-liner. The captured tourists are of different national origins and as one of the main characters, Franklin Hughes, starts negotiating with the terrorist leader, he finds out their appalling intentions: the terrorists are bound to murder the hostages in accordance with their national identity giving preference to the representatives of politically aggressive cultures. The following passage illustrates the paradox of an educated, enlightened person's attempt to tolerate alterity of any kind and a forced necessity to place the Self above the Others:
'Part of Franklin Hughes could not believe he was having this conversation. Another part wanted to say he had always supported the cause of his captors - whatever that cause might be - and by the way the Gaelic on his passport meant that he was a member of the IRA, and for Christ's sake could he please go to his cabin and lie down and forget all about it' (Barnes A History of the World in 10 ¥2 Chapters).
As a progressive thinker, a supporter of humane principles, Franklin is terrified at the plan the terrorists have construed, but personal interests prevail and he is entranced by the fear and desire to remain alive. Franklin's otherness in new circumstances is expressed more explicitly and emotionally that can be traced in such language means as for Christ's sake, etc.
David Lodge also uncovers the subliminal nature of othering that has to be overcome mentally by a learned mind (with the aid of education, self-reflection, etc.) and controlled by the Conscious Judge that can reinforce your behaviour and direct your actions in the 'equality' channel. Nice Work portrays Robyn Penrose who embodies the qualities mentioned above. In the novel she is opposed to the rest as a person who has (at least consciously) developed empathy to the Other ('sensitive to racial minorities' (Lodge 1989:101)).
Alterity viewed from the perspective of national diversities may bring up the problem of ignorance of other cultures, which is often revealed in a humorous or ironical way by British authors. Suffice to recall Akira Sakazaki's innocent questioning of Ronald Frobisher, the fictitious author of the fictitious novel Could Try Harder in David Lodge's Small World:
"Bugger me, but I feel like some faggots tonight.”
Does Ernie mean that he feels a sudden desire for homosexual intercourse? If so, why does he mention this to his wife? (Lodge Small World).
Or another piece from the same novel in which Professor Swallow makes a number of communicative mistakes in the context of Turkish culture on the strength of his unawareness:
Then we went to Anitkabir to lay a wreath on Ataturk's tomb <...> Mr. Custer thought it would be a nice gesture. And a funny thing happened <...> Perhaps I should not have told Professor Swallow that it was a capital offence to show disrespect to the memory of Ataturk <...> I said it as a kind of joke. However, he seemed to be very worried by the information <...> Anyway, Mr. Custer told him, "Don't worry, just do exactly what I do.” So we march down the concourse,
Mr. Custer in front carrying the wreath, and Professor
Swallow and I following in step, under the eyes of the soldiers <...> And then Mr. Custer had the misfortune to trip over a paving stone that was sticking up and? Being impeded by the wreath, he fell on to his hands and knees. Before I could stop him, Professor Swallow flung himself to the ground and lay prostrate like a Muslim at prayer. (Lodge Small World).
Transformations in your own ethnic identity can result in the process of othering some features peculiar to the culture you are implicated in. The outcome of such a process is likely to be painful, since the Self has to undergo 'stereotype-breaking' with the following condemnation of its own cultural / national peculiarities. The passage from The Closed Circle by Jonathan Coe quoted below provides a suitable example:
Now, there's another thing I've noticed about this country, Miriam, in the few days I've been home. You can take the temperature of a nation from the way it drives a car, and something has changed in Britain in the last few years. Remember I've been in Italy, the homeland of aggressive drivers. I'm used to that. I'm used to being cut up and overtaken on blind corners and sworn at <...> if I'm going too slowly. I can handle it. It's not serious, for one thing. But something similar has started to happen here - only it's not that similar really, there's an important difference: here, they really seem to mean it (Coe The Closed Circle).
The emotionally-coloured context interprets a current situation on the European roads, in Italy and Britain, in particular. The main character Claire criticizes drivers' behaviour: at first she contrasts the aggressive Italian way of driving with the one she has once experienced in her mother country, where driving norms and traditions are supposed to be a good example. It allows Claire to draw some negative judgements concerning the other country and its drivers [the homeland of aggressive drivers). However, on returning home Claire is astonished to discover even greater aggression and anger in the British manner of driving which is the cause of her re-assesssment of her initial attitude to her culture in
the aspect considered. The British driving style is compared with an ailing body through such metaphorical expressions as take the temperature of a nation, and this image of disorder is strengthened by the comparative structure only it's not that similar really, there's an important difference: here, they really seem to mean it. Thus in the analysed passage othering is aimed at the character's own culture. The concept of 'otherness' is also integral to the comprehending of a person, as people construct roles for themselves in relation to an 'other' as part of a process of reaction that is not necessarily related to stigmatization or condemnation. Othering helps distinguish between home and away, the uncertain or certain.
‘Two thousand,' he said, wonderingly, sighing and puffing on his cheeks. 'I never thought I'd live to see it.'
Sheila Trotter went into the kitchen to put the kettle on for some tea.
'I don't know,' she muttered as she left, talking to no-one in particular. 'It doesn't feel any different to me.'
Benjamin returned to his computer, and discovered that, so far, his files were unaffected, and the calendar had clicked over to 01-01-2000 <...> he remember that, almost thirty years ago, he used to do his homework at this same table, in this same house, with his parents sitting on the same furniture in front of the television <...>
He took the mug of tea from his mother's outstretched hand and thought, No, you are right. It doesn't feel any different. (Coe The Closed Circle
The repetition of the word the same as opposed to the other intensifies the idea of familiarity with the surroundings, helping the author to express the atmosphere of home, stability and security, although it might seem to be a kind of bland and soporific safety here.
The category of alterity does not necessarily focus on ethnicity only. Apart from race and national identity it has historically been defined to include different subcategories such as gender, class, sexuality, culture, religion, type of intelligence, etc. First we construct some group as Other. Next we project onto it those qualities we reject, fear, or disown in ourselves. Then we assign
qualities to variable human individuals on the basis of their inclusion in this constructed Alterity. Once we take this step in our construction of Alterity, then we have also created prejudice and stereotyping. The problem of prejudice and stereotyping is raised in most contemporary British novels. Presumably, this problem is manifested by means of alienation or abjection that gets reflected in fiction disclosing such problems as class distinction, ethics of communication, social morality, tolerance, etc. Most prominently these issues are moulded in the sense structures of the novels About A Boy by Nick Hornby, Nice Work by David Lodge, The Sea House by Esther Freud, The Taxi Driver's Daughter by Julia Darling. The lastly mentioned novel reveals the problem of alienation not only inside an urban community but also within a family which brings forth some nuances to the understanding of alterity and complicates the relation between the Self and the Other. The outcome can be total or partial devastation of the Self as in the example with Caris and her mother.
The conception of alterity may often entail differences embedded in the term gender. Michael Warner argues that the modern system of sex and gender would not be possible without a disposition to interpret the difference between genders as the difference between self and Other <...> having a sexual object of the opposite gender is taken to be the normal and paradigmatic form of an interest in the Other or, more generally, others [Warner 1990:191]. One of the key points Robyn Penrose tries to articulate in Nice Work is the male-dominated culture. Her sane feminist opinions sound in unison with Simone De Beauvoir's ideas who refers to Hegel's master-slave dialectic as analogous, in many respects, to the relationship of man and woman [De Beauvoir 1949].
Trying to understand who you are, to construct your personal identity you have to be able to abstract yourself from the common and ordinary and it is acutely felt in the situations where you are transported to new surroundings. This means is employed in the novels The Sea House by Esther Freud, The Taxi Driver's Daughter by Julia Darling, Changing Places, Out of the Shelter, Paradise News by David Lodge. These novels uncover the mystery of self perception, of forming and accepting another I.
References
• Bentley N. Contemporary British Fiction: Edinburgh Critical Guides. -Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2008.
• De Beauvoir, Simone. The Second Sex. - New York:Vintage 1989 (originally published in France inl949.]
• Levinas E. Alterity and Transcendence. (Trans. Michael B. Smith] -Columbia University Press, 1999.
• May W. On the Multi-Cultural Novel, Zadie Smith, and Literary Origin // Footpath: A Journal of Contemporary British Literature in Russian Universities. Number 3. January - June 2010. - Perm: Perm State University, 2010a.-P. 18-24.
• May W. Postwar Literature 1950 to 1990. York Press, 2010b.
• Warner M. Homo-Narcissism; or, Heterosexuality. Engendering Men. Eds. Boone and Cadden. - London UK: Routledge, 1990.
• Бахтин, M.M. Собрание сочинений: В 5 т. Т. 5. Работы 1940-х -начала 1960-х годов / М.М. Бахтин. - М.: Русские словари, 1997.
• Половцев Д.О. Проблема инаковости в творчестве Э.М. Форстера-. Дис. ... канд. филол. наук. - Минск, 2008.
Другой Я/ Другой Ты: инакость как отправная точка современной Британской литературы
Евгения Кислякова
Волгоградский государственный социальный педагогический университет, доцент 400005, Россия. Волгоград, пр. Ленина, 27; [email protected].
В статье рассматриваются различные аспекты инакости как общенаучной категории с позиции литературоведения, в частности, особенности ее реализации в современной британской литературе. Будучи категорией, определяющей отношения в рамках оппозиции «Я -Другой», инакость анализируется в британской прозе как имплицитная и эксплицитная категория, представленная на различных уровнях реализации оппозиции «Я — Другой»: межэтническое, религиозное, социальное, гендерное, межличностное взаимодействия.
Ключевые слова: инакость; категория литературоведения; Я;
Другой; этническая, социальная, гендерная и межличностная инакость.
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