The Logic of the Looking Glass: Representations of Time and Temporality in Agaat and High Low In-between
Abstract
This article explores representations of time and temporality in two contemporary South African novels in order to examine the salience of the Derridian contretemps in relation to contemporary South African society. As defined by Jacques Derrida, the contretemps is an experience of time and space that is essentially “out of joint” and is often used to represent anomie in a particular context. My close reading of Imraan Coovadia’s High Low In-between (2009) and Marlene van Niekerk’s Agaat (2006) thus reveals how the contretemps are employed to not only provide a sense of time gone awry, but also to outline how these narratives explore the contretemps as a potentially ‘new’ temporal modality for contemporary South Africa.
Opsomming
Hierdie artikel verken voorstellings van tyd en tydelikheid in twee eietydse Suid-Afrikaanse romans ten einde ondersoek in te stel na die voorkoms van die Derridiaanse contretemps met betrekking tot die eietydse Suid-Afrikaanse same-lewing. Die contretemps, soos gedefinieer deur Jacques Derrida, is ’n ervaring van tyd en ruimte wat wesenlik “uit die plek / gedislokeer” is en wat dikwels gebruik word om anomie in ’n bepaalde konteks voor te stel. My diepte-lesing van Imraan Coovadia se High Low In-between (2009) en Marlene Van Niekerk se Agaat (2006) toon dus aan hoe die contretemps gebruik word om nie net ’n gevoel van tyds-verwringing daar te stel nie, maar ook om aan te toon hoe hierdie narratiewe die contretemps ondersoek as ’n potensieel "nuwe" tydsmodaliteit vir die hedendaagse Suid-Afrika.
Metrics
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2015 JLS/TLW
![Creative Commons License](http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-sa/4.0/88x31.png)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.