What do you think?
Rate this book
Foe
La narradora de esta novela es Susan Barton, una mujer que sobrevive a un naufragio y se encuentra en una isla desierta con Robinson Crusoe y su esclavo mudo, Viernes. Es ella quien le lleva la historia del amo y el sirviente al escritor ingl茅s Daniel Defoe, cuya traici贸n literaria ilustra no s贸lo la crueldad y el orgullo del artista, servidor de una verdad superior, sino la viva encarnaci贸n del dilema Viernes-Robinson. Foe es la novela m谩s berve de Coetzee. La reescritura del cl谩sico Robinson Crusoe de Daniel Defoe da voz a una nueva versi贸n de la historia.
160 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1986
264 people are currently reading
7,255 people want to read
About the author
J.M. Coetzee
191听books5,089听followersJ. M. Coetzee is a South African writer, essayist, and translator, widely regarded as one of the most influential authors of contemporary literature. His works, often characterized by their austere prose and profound moral and philosophical depth, explore themes of colonialism, identity, power, and human suffering. Born and raised in South Africa, he later became an Australian citizen and has lived in Adelaide since 2002.
Coetzee鈥檚 breakthrough novel, Waiting for the Barbarians (1980), established him as a major literary voice, while Life & Times of Michael K (1983) won him the first of his two Booker Prizes. His best-known work, Disgrace (1999), a stark and unsettling examination of post-apartheid South Africa, secured his second Booker Prize, making him the first author to win the award twice. His other notable novels include Foe, Age of Iron, The Master of Petersburg, Elizabeth Costello, and The Childhood of Jesus, many of which incorporate allegorical and metafictional elements.
Beyond fiction, Coetzee has written numerous essays and literary critiques, contributing significantly to discussions on literature, ethics, and history. His autobiographical trilogy鈥擝oyhood, Youth, and Summertime鈥攂lends memoir with fiction, offering a fragmented yet insightful reflection on his own life. His literary achievements were recognized with the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2003.
A deeply private individual, Coetzee avoids public life and rarely gives interviews, preferring to let his work speak for itself.
Coetzee鈥檚 breakthrough novel, Waiting for the Barbarians (1980), established him as a major literary voice, while Life & Times of Michael K (1983) won him the first of his two Booker Prizes. His best-known work, Disgrace (1999), a stark and unsettling examination of post-apartheid South Africa, secured his second Booker Prize, making him the first author to win the award twice. His other notable novels include Foe, Age of Iron, The Master of Petersburg, Elizabeth Costello, and The Childhood of Jesus, many of which incorporate allegorical and metafictional elements.
Beyond fiction, Coetzee has written numerous essays and literary critiques, contributing significantly to discussions on literature, ethics, and history. His autobiographical trilogy鈥擝oyhood, Youth, and Summertime鈥攂lends memoir with fiction, offering a fragmented yet insightful reflection on his own life. His literary achievements were recognized with the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2003.
A deeply private individual, Coetzee avoids public life and rarely gives interviews, preferring to let his work speak for itself.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 951 reviews
December 25, 2021
Foe, J.M. Coetzee
Foe is a 1986 novel by South African-born Nobel laureate J. M. Coetzee. Woven around the existing plot of Robinson Crusoe, Foe is written from the perspective of Susan Barton, a castaway who landed on the same island inhabited by "Cruso" and Friday as their adventures were already underway.
Like Robinson Crusoe, it is a frame story, unfolded as Barton's narrative while in England attempting to convince the writer Daniel Foe to help transform her tale into popular fiction. Focused primarily on themes of language and power, the novel was the subject of criticism in South Africa, where it was regarded as politically irrelevant on its release. Coetzee revisited the composition of Robinson Crusoe in 2003 in his Nobel Prize acceptance speech.
Susan Barton is on a quest to find her kidnapped daughter whom she knows has been taken to the New World. She is set adrift during a mutiny on a ship to Lisbon.
When she comes ashore, she finds Friday and Cruso who has grown complacent, content to forget his past and live his life on the island with Friday鈥攖ongueless by what Cruso claims to have been the act of former slave owners鈥攊n attendance. Arriving near the end of their residence, Barton is only on the island for a year before the trio is rescued, but the homesick Cruso does not survive the voyage to England. In England with Friday, Barton attempts to set her adventures on the island to paper, but she feels her efforts lack popular appeal.
She tries to convince novelist Daniel Foe to help with her manuscript, but he does not agree on which of her adventures is interesting. Foe would prefer to set her story of the island as one episode of a, more formulaic, story of a mother looking for her lost daughter, and when he does write on the story she wishes, fabulates about Cruso's adventures rather than relating her facts. Frustrating Barton's efforts further, Foe, who becomes her lover, is preoccupied with debt and has little time or energy to write about anything. Barton's story takes a twist with the return of someone claiming to be her missing daughter.
毓賳賵丕賳賴丕蹖 趩丕倬 卮丿賴 丿乇 丕蹖乇丕賳: 芦丌賯丕蹖 賮賵禄貨 芦丿卮賲賳禄貨 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴: 噩丕賳 賲讴爻賵賱 讴賵鬲爻蹖貨 鬲丕乇蹖禺 賳禺爻鬲蹖賳 禺賵丕賳卮 乇賵夭 亘蹖爻鬲 賵 賳賴賲 賲丕賴 跇丕賳賵蹖賴 爻丕賱2012賲蹖賱丕丿蹖
毓賳賵丕賳: 丌賯丕蹖 賮賵貨 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴: 噩丕賳 賲讴爻賵賱 讴賵鬲爻蹖貨 賲鬲乇噩賲: 丕賱賳丕夭 丕蹖賲丕賳蹖貨 鬲賴乇丕賳貙 丕賲蹖乇讴亘蹖乇貙 爻丕賱1390貙 丿乇151氐貨 卮丕亘讴9789640013908貨 賲賵囟賵毓 丿丕爻鬲丕賳賴丕蹖 賳賵蹖爻賳丿诏丕賳 丕賮乇蹖賯丕蹖蹖 噩賳賵亘蹖 鬲亘丕乇 丕爻鬲乇丕賱蹖丕 - 爻丿賴 20賲
讴鬲丕亘 賳禺爻鬲蹖賳 亘丕乇 亘丕 毓賳賵丕賳: 芦丿卮賲賳禄 賵 亘丕 鬲乇噩賲賴 噩賳丕亘 賵賳丿丕丿 噩賱蹖賱蹖 丿乇 爻丕賱1389貙 丿乇158氐貙 丕賳鬲卮丕乇丕鬲 賳卮乇 趩卮賲賴貙 亘丕 卮丕亘讴9789643629762貨 賲賳鬲卮乇 卮丿賴 丕爻鬲
爻賵夭丕賳 亘丕乇鬲賵賳 夭賳蹖 丕爻鬲貙 讴賴 丿乇 丕賯蹖丕賳賵爻 爻乇诏乇丿丕賳 卮丿賴貨 亘賴 噩夭蹖乇賴 丕蹖 賲蹖乇爻丿貙 讴賴 芦乇丕亘蹖賳爻賵賳 讴乇賵夭賵卅賴禄貙 賵 睾賱丕賲卮 芦賮乇丕蹖 丿蹖 (噩賲毓賴)禄貙 丿乇 丌賳噩丕 夭賳丿诏蹖 賲蹖讴賳賳丿貨 芦爻賵夭丕賳禄貙 丕夭 丕蹖賳 噩夭蹖乇賴貙 亘賴 賴賲乇丕賴 芦賮乇丕蹖 丿蹖禄 賳噩丕鬲 賲蹖蹖丕亘丿貙 賵 爻毓蹖 賲蹖讴賳丿貙 亘賴 蹖丕乇蹖 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 丕蹖 亘賴 賳丕賲 芦丌賯丕蹖 賮賵禄貙 丕夭 賲丕噩乇丕賴丕蹖 丌賳 噩夭蹖乇賴 爻禺賳 亘诏賵蹖丿貨
丕蹖賳 乇賲丕賳貙 丕亘夭丕乇蹖 亘賵丿賴貙 鬲丕 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 蹖 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 芦噩蹖.丕賲 讴賵鬲爻蹖禄貙鈥� 丕毓鬲乇丕囟 禺賵丿 亘乇 丌倬丕乇鬲丕蹖丿 丨丕讴賲 亘乇 讴卮賵乇 禺賵蹖卮 芦丌賮乇蹖賯丕蹖 噩賳賵亘蹖禄 乇丕貙 丕亘乇丕夭 丿丕乇賳丿貙 賵 丕丿亘蹖丕鬲 賳蹖夭 讴丕賱亘丿蹖 鬲丕 亘賴 賵爻蹖賱賴 丌賳貙 亘鬲賵丕賳丿 鬲賳丿蹖 禺卮賲 禺賵蹖卮 乇丕 亘夭丿丕蹖丿貙 賵 丌賳 乇丕 亘賴 诏賵卮 丕爻鬲毓賲丕乇诏乇丕賳 亘乇爻丕賳丿貨 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 芦讴乇賵夭賵卅賴禄貙 丕賷賳亘丕乇 丕夭 夭亘丕賳 蹖讴 夭賳貙 亘丕夭诏賵 賲蹖鈥屫促堌� 夭賳蹖 讴賴 夭賳丿诏蹖 丿乇 噩夭蹖乇賴貙 丕賵 乇丕 賵丕丿丕乇 賲蹖鈥屫池ж藏� 鬲丕 亘丕乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 乇丕 賳蹖夭 亘乇 丿賵卮 亘诏賷乇丿貨 賲爻卅賵賱蹖鬲蹖 乇丕貙 讴賴 芦讴乇賵夭賵卅賴禄貙 夭蹖乇 亘丕乇 丌賳 賳賲蹖鈥屫辟堌� 賵 賯丕丿乇 亘賴 丕賳噩丕賲 丌賳 賳蹖爻鬲貨 芦噩丕賳 賲讴爻賵賱 讴賵鬲爻蹖禄貙 乇賲丕賳鈥屬嗁堎娯� 賵 賲賳鬲賯丿貙 夭丕丿賴 卮丿賴 丿乇 芦丌賮乇蹖賯丕蹖 噩賳賵亘蹖禄貙 亘乇丕蹖 乇賲丕賳鈥屬囏й� 禺賵蹖卮貙 讴賴 亘蹖丕賳诏乇 鬲兀孬蹖乇丕鬲 丕爻鬲毓賲丕乇貙 亘乇 噩賵丕賲毓 亘賵丿賳丿貨 賲賵乇丿 鬲賵噩賴 賯乇丕乇 诏乇賮鬲賳丿貙 賵 丿乇 爻丕賱2003賲蹖賱丕丿蹖 芦噩丕蹖夭賴 賳賵亘賱 丕丿亘蹖丕鬲禄 乇丕 丕夭 丌賳 禺賵丿 讴乇丿賳丿貨
鬲丕乇蹖禺 亘賴賳诏丕賲 乇爻丕賳蹖 15/11/1399賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 03/10/1400賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 丕. 卮乇亘蹖丕賳蹖
Foe is a 1986 novel by South African-born Nobel laureate J. M. Coetzee. Woven around the existing plot of Robinson Crusoe, Foe is written from the perspective of Susan Barton, a castaway who landed on the same island inhabited by "Cruso" and Friday as their adventures were already underway.
Like Robinson Crusoe, it is a frame story, unfolded as Barton's narrative while in England attempting to convince the writer Daniel Foe to help transform her tale into popular fiction. Focused primarily on themes of language and power, the novel was the subject of criticism in South Africa, where it was regarded as politically irrelevant on its release. Coetzee revisited the composition of Robinson Crusoe in 2003 in his Nobel Prize acceptance speech.
Susan Barton is on a quest to find her kidnapped daughter whom she knows has been taken to the New World. She is set adrift during a mutiny on a ship to Lisbon.
When she comes ashore, she finds Friday and Cruso who has grown complacent, content to forget his past and live his life on the island with Friday鈥攖ongueless by what Cruso claims to have been the act of former slave owners鈥攊n attendance. Arriving near the end of their residence, Barton is only on the island for a year before the trio is rescued, but the homesick Cruso does not survive the voyage to England. In England with Friday, Barton attempts to set her adventures on the island to paper, but she feels her efforts lack popular appeal.
She tries to convince novelist Daniel Foe to help with her manuscript, but he does not agree on which of her adventures is interesting. Foe would prefer to set her story of the island as one episode of a, more formulaic, story of a mother looking for her lost daughter, and when he does write on the story she wishes, fabulates about Cruso's adventures rather than relating her facts. Frustrating Barton's efforts further, Foe, who becomes her lover, is preoccupied with debt and has little time or energy to write about anything. Barton's story takes a twist with the return of someone claiming to be her missing daughter.
毓賳賵丕賳賴丕蹖 趩丕倬 卮丿賴 丿乇 丕蹖乇丕賳: 芦丌賯丕蹖 賮賵禄貨 芦丿卮賲賳禄貨 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴: 噩丕賳 賲讴爻賵賱 讴賵鬲爻蹖貨 鬲丕乇蹖禺 賳禺爻鬲蹖賳 禺賵丕賳卮 乇賵夭 亘蹖爻鬲 賵 賳賴賲 賲丕賴 跇丕賳賵蹖賴 爻丕賱2012賲蹖賱丕丿蹖
毓賳賵丕賳: 丌賯丕蹖 賮賵貨 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴: 噩丕賳 賲讴爻賵賱 讴賵鬲爻蹖貨 賲鬲乇噩賲: 丕賱賳丕夭 丕蹖賲丕賳蹖貨 鬲賴乇丕賳貙 丕賲蹖乇讴亘蹖乇貙 爻丕賱1390貙 丿乇151氐貨 卮丕亘讴9789640013908貨 賲賵囟賵毓 丿丕爻鬲丕賳賴丕蹖 賳賵蹖爻賳丿诏丕賳 丕賮乇蹖賯丕蹖蹖 噩賳賵亘蹖 鬲亘丕乇 丕爻鬲乇丕賱蹖丕 - 爻丿賴 20賲
讴鬲丕亘 賳禺爻鬲蹖賳 亘丕乇 亘丕 毓賳賵丕賳: 芦丿卮賲賳禄 賵 亘丕 鬲乇噩賲賴 噩賳丕亘 賵賳丿丕丿 噩賱蹖賱蹖 丿乇 爻丕賱1389貙 丿乇158氐貙 丕賳鬲卮丕乇丕鬲 賳卮乇 趩卮賲賴貙 亘丕 卮丕亘讴9789643629762貨 賲賳鬲卮乇 卮丿賴 丕爻鬲
爻賵夭丕賳 亘丕乇鬲賵賳 夭賳蹖 丕爻鬲貙 讴賴 丿乇 丕賯蹖丕賳賵爻 爻乇诏乇丿丕賳 卮丿賴貨 亘賴 噩夭蹖乇賴 丕蹖 賲蹖乇爻丿貙 讴賴 芦乇丕亘蹖賳爻賵賳 讴乇賵夭賵卅賴禄貙 賵 睾賱丕賲卮 芦賮乇丕蹖 丿蹖 (噩賲毓賴)禄貙 丿乇 丌賳噩丕 夭賳丿诏蹖 賲蹖讴賳賳丿貨 芦爻賵夭丕賳禄貙 丕夭 丕蹖賳 噩夭蹖乇賴貙 亘賴 賴賲乇丕賴 芦賮乇丕蹖 丿蹖禄 賳噩丕鬲 賲蹖蹖丕亘丿貙 賵 爻毓蹖 賲蹖讴賳丿貙 亘賴 蹖丕乇蹖 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 丕蹖 亘賴 賳丕賲 芦丌賯丕蹖 賮賵禄貙 丕夭 賲丕噩乇丕賴丕蹖 丌賳 噩夭蹖乇賴 爻禺賳 亘诏賵蹖丿貨
丕蹖賳 乇賲丕賳貙 丕亘夭丕乇蹖 亘賵丿賴貙 鬲丕 賳賵蹖爻賳丿賴 蹖 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 芦噩蹖.丕賲 讴賵鬲爻蹖禄貙鈥� 丕毓鬲乇丕囟 禺賵丿 亘乇 丌倬丕乇鬲丕蹖丿 丨丕讴賲 亘乇 讴卮賵乇 禺賵蹖卮 芦丌賮乇蹖賯丕蹖 噩賳賵亘蹖禄 乇丕貙 丕亘乇丕夭 丿丕乇賳丿貙 賵 丕丿亘蹖丕鬲 賳蹖夭 讴丕賱亘丿蹖 鬲丕 亘賴 賵爻蹖賱賴 丌賳貙 亘鬲賵丕賳丿 鬲賳丿蹖 禺卮賲 禺賵蹖卮 乇丕 亘夭丿丕蹖丿貙 賵 丌賳 乇丕 亘賴 诏賵卮 丕爻鬲毓賲丕乇诏乇丕賳 亘乇爻丕賳丿貨 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 芦讴乇賵夭賵卅賴禄貙 丕賷賳亘丕乇 丕夭 夭亘丕賳 蹖讴 夭賳貙 亘丕夭诏賵 賲蹖鈥屫促堌� 夭賳蹖 讴賴 夭賳丿诏蹖 丿乇 噩夭蹖乇賴貙 丕賵 乇丕 賵丕丿丕乇 賲蹖鈥屫池ж藏� 鬲丕 亘丕乇 丿丕爻鬲丕賳 乇丕 賳蹖夭 亘乇 丿賵卮 亘诏賷乇丿貨 賲爻卅賵賱蹖鬲蹖 乇丕貙 讴賴 芦讴乇賵夭賵卅賴禄貙 夭蹖乇 亘丕乇 丌賳 賳賲蹖鈥屫辟堌� 賵 賯丕丿乇 亘賴 丕賳噩丕賲 丌賳 賳蹖爻鬲貨 芦噩丕賳 賲讴爻賵賱 讴賵鬲爻蹖禄貙 乇賲丕賳鈥屬嗁堎娯� 賵 賲賳鬲賯丿貙 夭丕丿賴 卮丿賴 丿乇 芦丌賮乇蹖賯丕蹖 噩賳賵亘蹖禄貙 亘乇丕蹖 乇賲丕賳鈥屬囏й� 禺賵蹖卮貙 讴賴 亘蹖丕賳诏乇 鬲兀孬蹖乇丕鬲 丕爻鬲毓賲丕乇貙 亘乇 噩賵丕賲毓 亘賵丿賳丿貨 賲賵乇丿 鬲賵噩賴 賯乇丕乇 诏乇賮鬲賳丿貙 賵 丿乇 爻丕賱2003賲蹖賱丕丿蹖 芦噩丕蹖夭賴 賳賵亘賱 丕丿亘蹖丕鬲禄 乇丕 丕夭 丌賳 禺賵丿 讴乇丿賳丿貨
鬲丕乇蹖禺 亘賴賳诏丕賲 乇爻丕賳蹖 15/11/1399賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 03/10/1400賴噩乇蹖 禺賵乇卮蹖丿蹖貨 丕. 卮乇亘蹖丕賳蹖
May 9, 2024
鈥濾ai, pove葯tile mele par s膬 aib膬 mai multe 卯n葲elesuri dec卯t am inten葲ionat鈥� (p.88).
脦苍 Foe, Coetzee rescrie, fire葯te, mitul lui Robinson Crusoe. Au mai f膬cut-o 卯naintea lui 葯i al葲ii, cel mai cunoscut este Michel Tournier.
Personajul care e葯ueaz膬 pe insula pustie (葯i nu prea) este o femeie de isprav膬, Susan Barton. Ea 卯nt卯lne葯te aici doi locuitori mai vechi, pe un anume Cruso, ins taciturn 葯i sc卯rbit de via葲膬, 葯i pe un anume Vineri, un fost sclav cu limba t膬iat膬. Vineri va r膬m卯ne 鈥瀕acuna鈥� de nerezolvat din trama c膬r葲ii. Nici Cruso 葯i nici Vineri nu prea seam膬n膬 cu personajele din romanul lui Daniel Defoe. Muncesc f膬r膬 chef, dispre葲uiesc igiena, nu viseaz膬 la un trai mai bun. Cruso nu mai are chef s膬 p膬r膬seasc膬 insula. S-a obi葯nuit cu singur膬tatea. Nu a葯teapt膬 nimic bun. Vineri pare indiferent. C卯nd insula e abordat膬 de vaporul salvator, peste un an, doar Susan se bucur膬. Cruso moare pe vas, Susan Barton 葯i Vineri ajung la Londra.
Femeia are, a葯adar, o poveste de spus, dar nu se pricepe la scris. 脦苍 consecin葲膬, ia leg膬tura cu un anume domn Foe, prozator urm膬rit insistent de creditori (ca Balzac). 葮i abia aici 卯ncepe cu adev膬rat romanul. Susan 卯葯i poveste葯te 卯nt卯mplarea 卯n lungi scrisori, dar Foe nu d膬 nici un semn. St膬 ascuns de 鈥瀉prozi鈥� (traduce Irina Horea), de port膬rei sau creditori, a葯 corecta eu.
C卯nd, 卯ntr-un final, se re卯nt卯lnesc, prozatorul vrea s膬-i modifice povestea, s膬 o fac膬 mai palpitant膬. Susan 卯葯i revendic膬 dreptul la adev膬rul personal 葯i la vocea-i proprie. Nu accept膬 nici una dintre sugestiile lui Foe. Discu葲ia care urmeaz膬, cam 卯ntortocheat膬, prive葯te chestiuni literare: puterea limbajului, faptul de a fi privat de limbaj (ca Vineri). 脦苍 fond, are voie scriitorul s膬 pun膬 de la el, s膬 卯nfloreasc膬 lucrurile, sau e constr卯ns s膬 respecte strict relatarea 鈥瀉utorului propriu-zis鈥�, a martorului principal? Martorul 卯葯i vrea povestea ne葯tirbit膬. Nici Susan nu-l convinge pe Foe, nici Foe pe Susan. R膬m卯ne s膬 se 卯n葲eleag膬 c卯ndva. 脦苍 final, Susan alege s膬 tr膬iasc膬 卯mpreun膬 cu gentilul domn Foe. Dac膬 n-au murit, probabil c膬 vorbesc 卯n contradictoriu 葯i azi.
Sf卯r葯itul oniric al romanului m-a l膬sat cu ochii 卯n soare.
Susan Barton c膬tre Daniel Foe: 鈥濴a un moment dat, ai propus s膬 umpli mijocul [povestirii mele] n膬scocind canibali 葯i pira葲i. Lucru cu care nu s卯nt de acord, pentru c膬 nu e adev膬rat. Acum vii 葯i zici c膬 reduci insula la un episod 卯n istoria unei femei care 卯葯i caut膬 fiica pierdut膬. Nici cu asta nu s卯nt de acord鈥� (p.133).
March 22, 2024
COMMUNICATION WITH A FELLOW READER
(ABOUT NOTES IN THE MARGIN):
Footprints in the Sand of Time:
Hello. You don't know me. I bought your book online. I don't know your name. I don't even know whether you're dead or alive. You made notations in the margin. I noticed them straight away: some were in pencil, some, later, when I looked, were in pen, although they might have been made by someone else. We started to note similar things and make similar comments. After a while, I started to make fewer comments, because I was content with yours. Either that, or I started to think like you, to walk in your footsteps. I'm a reader like you. You're a reader like me. Reader. Like me. Please. Whoever you are. I don't think there are many of us around. Let me know if you get this message. In the meantime, I'll try to write a review. I hope it's an OK one. I hope we like it.
CRITIQUE (NOTES FROM THE MARGIN):
Friend or Foe?
"Foe" raises fascinating metafictional ideas in a text that is just as economical (157 pages) as it is intellectually and aesthetically stimulating.
It's a postmodern reconstruction of "Robinson Crusoe" that asks questions about empire and colonialism, slavery and dominion, history and fictional narrative, especially its ownership: What is the story about? Whose story or perspective is it? Who is telling the story? Who owns the story that results?
Plantation and Quotation Marks
Coetzee tells his tale in four parts.
The first is wholly contained in quotation marks. It purports to be the perspective of Susan Barton, incidentally a character from a subsequent Daniel Defoe novel ("Roxana"), who in "Foe" ends up on the island with Cruso (sic) and Friday (whose tongue has been cut out by slavers).
The second is largely epistolary, being the letters written by Susan Barton to Foe, trying to get him to write her story for publication. Again, this section is in quotation marks.
The third is an almost Borgesian confrontation between Susan and Foe, which begins, "The staircase was dark and mean." There are no quotation marks around the section.
History and Heritage
The fourth begins with the words, "The staircase is dark and mean." It mimics the beginning of the previous section (but in present tense), there are no quotation marks, however, it's not clear whether the narrator is actually Susan Barton or whether the "author" of this section is the same author as any or all of the previous sections.
It's quite possible that this author is a contemporary writer or reader (i.e., us) who is visiting Defoe's home (complete with heritage plaque). It's as if the narrator is a visitor to the home, narrating their experience in the physical space, as well as their imaginary extrapolation of events that could have taken place here three centuries before.
Dying to Tell the Tale
The bulk of the first three sections explores the power relationship between Cruso and Susan.
Eventually, it becomes clear that she will have to tell (or commission the telling) of his and/or their story. The second option necessitates the involvement of Foe, who de-authenticises the tale, in order to make it more entertaining and commercially successful.
Not only does this dialectic raise issues about control and ownership of the narrative, it dramatises a power struggle between two genders.
Friday on My Mind
Just as Susan recognises her own need and desire to communicate, increasingly, her own perspective comes to focus on the plight of Friday:
"...this is not a place of words鈥his is a place where bodies are their own signs. It is the home of Friday."
He has no tongue, therefore he cannot speak. He knows little English, and presumably cannot write. Therefore, apparently, he has no capacity to contribute his version of the story, in other words, a black version of history.
Susan starts to teach Friday how to write in the third section.
As if the issues raised in section four aren't enough, I wondered whether Friday might have "written" the entire novel.
Thus, there is a sense in which the book can be read as a post-colonial work that gives voice not just to non-whites, but simultaneously to women. In any event, just as it subverts the authorial conventions of literature, it subverts the social conventions of white male authoritarianism.
Friday, I'm in Love!
This review might make the novel sound very academic. The truth, however, is that it's exquisitely written. Not one word is surplus or out of place. It consumes our imagination so effectively that we don't need any distraction. However, having achieved its goal, it remains a distraction for the reader. I'm sure the previous reader would agree with me!
Date of Review: January 12, 2016
SOUNDTRACK:
"It is not whoring to entertain other people's stories and return them to the world better dressed." [J.M. Coetzee]
(ABOUT NOTES IN THE MARGIN):
Footprints in the Sand of Time:
Hello. You don't know me. I bought your book online. I don't know your name. I don't even know whether you're dead or alive. You made notations in the margin. I noticed them straight away: some were in pencil, some, later, when I looked, were in pen, although they might have been made by someone else. We started to note similar things and make similar comments. After a while, I started to make fewer comments, because I was content with yours. Either that, or I started to think like you, to walk in your footsteps. I'm a reader like you. You're a reader like me. Reader. Like me. Please. Whoever you are. I don't think there are many of us around. Let me know if you get this message. In the meantime, I'll try to write a review. I hope it's an OK one. I hope we like it.
CRITIQUE (NOTES FROM THE MARGIN):
Friend or Foe?
"Foe" raises fascinating metafictional ideas in a text that is just as economical (157 pages) as it is intellectually and aesthetically stimulating.
It's a postmodern reconstruction of "Robinson Crusoe" that asks questions about empire and colonialism, slavery and dominion, history and fictional narrative, especially its ownership: What is the story about? Whose story or perspective is it? Who is telling the story? Who owns the story that results?
Plantation and Quotation Marks
Coetzee tells his tale in four parts.
The first is wholly contained in quotation marks. It purports to be the perspective of Susan Barton, incidentally a character from a subsequent Daniel Defoe novel ("Roxana"), who in "Foe" ends up on the island with Cruso (sic) and Friday (whose tongue has been cut out by slavers).
The second is largely epistolary, being the letters written by Susan Barton to Foe, trying to get him to write her story for publication. Again, this section is in quotation marks.
The third is an almost Borgesian confrontation between Susan and Foe, which begins, "The staircase was dark and mean." There are no quotation marks around the section.
History and Heritage
The fourth begins with the words, "The staircase is dark and mean." It mimics the beginning of the previous section (but in present tense), there are no quotation marks, however, it's not clear whether the narrator is actually Susan Barton or whether the "author" of this section is the same author as any or all of the previous sections.
It's quite possible that this author is a contemporary writer or reader (i.e., us) who is visiting Defoe's home (complete with heritage plaque). It's as if the narrator is a visitor to the home, narrating their experience in the physical space, as well as their imaginary extrapolation of events that could have taken place here three centuries before.
Dying to Tell the Tale
The bulk of the first three sections explores the power relationship between Cruso and Susan.
Eventually, it becomes clear that she will have to tell (or commission the telling) of his and/or their story. The second option necessitates the involvement of Foe, who de-authenticises the tale, in order to make it more entertaining and commercially successful.
Not only does this dialectic raise issues about control and ownership of the narrative, it dramatises a power struggle between two genders.
Friday on My Mind
Just as Susan recognises her own need and desire to communicate, increasingly, her own perspective comes to focus on the plight of Friday:
"...this is not a place of words鈥his is a place where bodies are their own signs. It is the home of Friday."
He has no tongue, therefore he cannot speak. He knows little English, and presumably cannot write. Therefore, apparently, he has no capacity to contribute his version of the story, in other words, a black version of history.
Susan starts to teach Friday how to write in the third section.
As if the issues raised in section four aren't enough, I wondered whether Friday might have "written" the entire novel.
Thus, there is a sense in which the book can be read as a post-colonial work that gives voice not just to non-whites, but simultaneously to women. In any event, just as it subverts the authorial conventions of literature, it subverts the social conventions of white male authoritarianism.
Friday, I'm in Love!
This review might make the novel sound very academic. The truth, however, is that it's exquisitely written. Not one word is surplus or out of place. It consumes our imagination so effectively that we don't need any distraction. However, having achieved its goal, it remains a distraction for the reader. I'm sure the previous reader would agree with me!
Date of Review: January 12, 2016
SOUNDTRACK:
"It is not whoring to entertain other people's stories and return them to the world better dressed." [J.M. Coetzee]
November 2, 2020
People are extraneous, people are absent... Maestro Coetzee is complicated & this short novella is one of his earlier best... except for the ingloriously vapid ending. Hated it! But all the questions posed by J.M. Coetzee, mainly about fiction vs. Biography, & existential conundrums that arise, create a maudlin cloud... the pathos the reader deserves & also craves.
November 17, 2022
It seems a lifetime ago that I read Robinson Crusoe and I can hardly remember anything from it other than knowing it's obvious storyline of a guy being marooned on an island. I wondered whether or not it would make any difference in regards to reading Foe. In the end it didn't really matter, as I found this messy re-working not that special anyway. Of the four Coetzee novels I've now read, Foe I found to be the weakest. It's a clever idea, giving the classic a deconstructionist turn by adding new characters and including the original author himself, with his disputed reactions and shrewd wisdom, and it's written well enough, but when compared to his extraordinarily convincing novels Waiting for the Barbarians & disgrace then Foe just isn't on the same island, more like stuck on a reef.
The young castaway widow Susan Barton is really central to this parable tale, and not Cruso (Coetzee omits the e from his name), who is an irascible, lazy, imperious man who has little interest in actually trying to escape from the island, with poor old Friday just moping at his side without the ability to talk seeing as he has no tongue, which could be viewed as a social emblem for black South Africans, seeing as Coetzee has used allegorical political material before. After rescue, Cruso snuffs it, and back in England, the main focus is of Susan and Friday's travels and then Foe, and her efforts to persuade him to turn her account of life on the island into an adventure book. He on the other hand is far more interested in Susan's two years spent in Bahia, which was a time of indifference to her. This side-story, then sort of becomes the main story, when the supposed daughter of Susan shows up out of nowhere, and yet she has no recollection of her. But she does in fact have a missing daughter who was abducted and conveyed to the New World. She went looking for her in Brazil before taking a ship to Lisbon and becoming the captain's lover before the sailors mutiny wreaks havoc. I found there to be too much going on in the last third of the novel, like it's pulling in all sorts of directions not knowing where it wants to go. I didn't think much of its ambiguous ending either. I did though like Susan Barton, in the fact that she took on the responsibility of trying to find a safe passage home for Friday, who was completely lost at sea wandering around southern England with her. She could have quite easily just left him in a ditch somewhere. Still, would probably have been better off reading Defoe's classic - that will always stand the test of time, whereas this won't
December 10, 2016
"We must make Friday's silence speak, as well as the silence surrounding Friday."
Daniel Defoe /Daniel Foe's novel Robinson Crusoe was Coetzee's childhood favorite novel. At first, he had thought it was a memoir of the title character. In fact, Foe published the book as an account of a real castaway. The realization that the character was fictional, this intermixing of real and fictional, had a huge impact on him. Besides this novel, Coetzee also visited the Robinson Crusoe in the short story he read as Nobel prize acceptance speech, 'He and His Man'. The theme of which can be summed up in the following quote (from 'Foe'):
"Cruso rescued will be a deep disappointment to the world; the idea of a Cruso on his island is a better thing than the true Cruso tight-lipped and sullen in an alien England."
That is the case here as well. Besides being an adventure novel, Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (I haven't read the book) is a symbol of British Nationalism in its worst form "He is the true prototype of the British colonist. ... The whole Anglo-Saxon spirit in Crusoe: the manly independence, the unconscious cruelty, the persistence, the slow yet efficient intelligence, the sexual apathy, the calculating taciturnity." (James Joyce)
Of course, the ideal of an intellectual living an isolated life in Britain with no or little experience of sea and seamen is going to be nowhere near the actual people who might be cast away. The Crusoe as Coetzee presented him is not adventurous, not at all persistent in his effort to escape, doesn't try to start a civilisation, had no offers from cannibals for him to refuse and thus prove his nationalism, didn't rescue Friday, rather bought him, was pretty happy in living on an island and doesn't make half as good a story.
However, the book is far more than a retelling - we have only talked one-third of the book. The book later goes meta-fictional, creating a new conversation between real and fiction and fills itself with reflections on the art of story-telling:
later fills itself of reflections on the art of story-telling:
'When I reflect on my story I seem to exist only as the one who came, the one who witnessed, the one who longed to be gone: a being without substance, a ghost beside the true body of Cruso. Is that the fate of all storytellers?'
And then the most important theme, the silent ones.
The narrator, for the most part, is Susan Barton. In Coetzee's alternative version, it is Susan who brought Crusoe's story to Foe (who is present as a character), for him to write. A voice that disappeared in Foe's book, just as the female voices usually disappeared from narratives written by men at that time. And she herself lacks the confidence, rather choosing to take the passive position of muse, who must speak through others.
Hers, though, is not the only silenced voice. Another silenced voice is that of Friday. Probably most remarkable feature of the Foe's book was Crusoe's slave Friday whom he named after the day he was found. The lack of a name in itself is symbolic. To drive the point home, Coetzee made Friday's silence physical by making him tongueless. Now, a real tribesman wouldn't probably won't be as submissive as Foe will have us believe, so much that'Man-Friday' the proverbial phrase, is derived from the name of this character, for a perfectly submissive servant but:
"Friday has no command of words and therefore no defense against being re-shaped day by day in
conformity with the desires of others."
Susan, a mother who has lost her daughter, adopts Friday.
"A woman may bear a child she does not want and rear it without loving it, yet be ready to defend it with her life."
In her compassion for Friday, she is able to see through the hypocrisy of Western Colonialism. Were Westerns really trying to civilize people or did they just wanted slaves:
"There are times when benevolence deserts me and I use words only as the shortest way to subject him to my will. At such times I understand why Cruso preferred not to disturb his muteness."
or
"How did he differ from one of the wild Indians whom explorers bring back with them, in a cargo of
parakeets and golden idols and indigo and skins of panthers, to show they have truly been to the Americas?"
And thus, Coetzee starts talking about the conditions of underdogs - women, Africans:
"How dismal a fate it would be to go through life unkissed! Yet if you remain in England, Friday, will that not become your fate? Where are you to meet a woman of your own people? We are not a nation rich in slaves."
Susan frequently compares Friday and at times herself to a dog, not to belittle Friday or herself but:
"Rather I wish to point to how鈥� unnatural a lot it is for a dog or any other creature to be kept from its kind; also to how the impulse of love, which urges us toward our own kind, perishes during
confinement or loses its way."
Coetzee is very particular about animal rights, he has said something similar in 'Disgrace' as well.
Probably, talking about his own literary ambitions, Coetzee say, we must make the underdogs speak, must help them where they need help. Susan wants Friday to be able to speak, feeling the inhumanity and loneliness of the power she will otherwise have on Foe.
But she doesn't have high hopes:
"Nature did not intend me for a teacher, I lack patience."
The Foe of the story though is optimistic:
"The waterskater, that is an insect and dumb, traces the name of God on the surfaces of ponds, or so the Arabians say. None is so deprived that he cannot write."
Note- I haven't read Robinson Crusue, all information about that book I used here is Wiki-sourced.
November 6, 2020
"Usted nunca habr谩 o铆do una historia como la m铆a. Acabo de regresar de lejanas tierras. Naufragu茅 y fui a parar a una isla desierta. Y en ella fui compa帽era de un hombre singular... Se帽or Foe, yo soy la viva imagen de la fortuna. De esa fortuna venturosa que estamos esperando."
Una de las cualidades que caracteriza a J. M. Coetzee es su innata capacidad de reversionar historias, de adaptarlas y darles un nuevo sentido. Este escritor sudafricano, que supo escribir excelente novelas y a煤n lo hace ("Desgracia" es una de sus mejores, a mi entender), puede tambi茅n mutar camale贸nicamente en otros personajes de la literatura en sus libros, tal fue el caso de su otra novela, "El maestro de Petersburgo", en la que se mete en la piel de un desesperado Fi贸dor Dostoievski que vuelve del auto exilio para rastrear el tr谩gico desenlace de lo que le sucedi贸 a su hijo Pavel en San Petersburgo.
De manera fehaciente, Coetzee nos sumerge en el submundo de los nihilistas del siglo XIX en la Rusia zarista a punto tal que nos es dif铆cil discernir si la novela est谩 escrita en ese siglo o m谩s de cien a帽os despu茅s.
En el caso de esta, nos volvemos a encontrar con la misma sensaci贸n de que estamos en la 茅poca en que los barcos eran las maquinarias m谩s avanzadas de su 茅poca, en el siglo XVIII, cuando las grandes potencias como Inglaterra, Francia, Espa帽a Estados Unidos o Portugal surcaban los mares en busca de tierras para conquistar.
De todas estas traves铆as, surgi贸 una novela eterna que se llam贸 "La vida y las extra帽as y sorprendentes aventuras de Robinson Crusoe", escrita por el gran Daniel Defoe en 1719, cuyo verdadero apellido era Foe y de ah铆 el nombre de la novela de Coetzee.
Robinson Crusoe, el inolvidable marinero se transforma en el m谩s emblem谩tico n谩ufrago de la literatura y que iniciar铆a una saga de nombres que continuar铆an su estirpe: Arthur Gordon Pym, creado por Edgar Allan Poe, Alejandro Velasco, un n谩ufrago real llevado a la literatura por Gabriel Garc铆a M谩rquez y Henry Preston Standish, surgido de la pluma de un escritor desconocido, H. C. Lewis que escribe una novela tambi茅n ejemplar al respecto.
De hecho el mismo Robinson volver谩 a surcar los mares y volver谩 a su amada isla en "Nuevas aventuras de Robinson Crusoe" para deleitar a los lectores que quer铆an leer m谩s de sus traves铆as.
Volviendo a Coetzee, este autor se encarga de escribir una precuela, o sea, la historia de una mujer, Susan Barton, quien, buscando a su hija al salir de Brasil en un barco, tambi茅n naufraga luego de un mot铆n en el mismo y por obra del azar y el destino termina siendo arrojada por las aguas en la misma isla de Robinson Crusoe quien ya est谩 viviendo el 煤ltimo tramo de sus veinte a帽os de n谩ufrago en la isla junto a su fiel compa帽ero, Viernes.
Lo que m谩s atrae de esta novela, que es la segunda y m谩s corta de Coetzee es que la readaptaci贸n de la novela de Defoe no tergiversa lo que ya le铆mos en ella, sino que lo transforma en una historia que conecta tanto a los personajes como a su autor real, o sea que la experiencia que Susan le narra a Defoe ser谩 el germen inicial de lo que posteriormente el autor escriba para transofmarla en "Robinson Crusoe".
Naturalmente, no todos los temas que Defoe toca en "Robinson Crusoe" est谩n en esta novela, pero s铆 se hace hincapi茅 en dos. Por un lado, se discurre largamente acerca de la esclavitud como cr铆tica y no como fin y por el otro, se desarrolla la cuesti贸n del canibalismo.
Tambi茅n es estudiado en forma intensiva el personaje de Viernes, quien en esta novela es mudo (su lengua ha sido cortada o por quienes lo ten铆an de esclavo o por el mismo Robinson, pero nunca lo sabemos y tampoco recuerdo este detalle en la novela original).
El caso de Viernes oficia a modo de enorme inc贸gnita en toda la novela. Su mutismo acrecienta el misterio en el lector.
Es sabido que Daniel Defoe debi贸 incluir el tema del canibalismo en la trama de su novela inicial, ya que tem铆a que el inter茅s del lector decayera, y s贸lo hab铆a una manera de mantenerlo atento: con la llegada de can铆bales a la isla y adem谩s con una aventura posterior que incluye piratas y un cruento enfrentamiento.
Otro punto destacable de "Foe" es c贸mo est谩 narrada ya que el autor la divide en solo cuatro cap铆tulos: el primero cuenta de c贸mo Susan lleg贸 a la isla y conoce a Crusoe (aunque en la novela se apellida Cruso, sin la e; luego, entre el segundo y tercer cap铆tulo leemos las cartas que Susan le env铆a al autor y en otros apartados, nos encontramos con el diario que ella escribe y que forma parte de sus intentos por lograr primero encontrar a Defoe y luego que este cuente su historia a partir de una novela.
Las charlas, planteos y discusiones acerca de c贸mo dar a conocer la historia conforma el grueso del tercer cap铆tulo en el que las diferencias entre Susan y Defoe salen a la luz.
El cap铆tulo final es lo m谩s desconcertante del libro y realmente no entend铆 el modo que Coetzee eligi贸 para cerrar la novela. Tal vez alg煤n lector que haya le铆do "Foe" me ayude a esclarecerlo.
De todos modos, eso no cambia mi percepci贸n ni el gusto que me dio leer "Foe". Y sigo reafirmando que J. M. Coetzee es uno de los escritores m谩s interesantes que he le铆do. Seguramente seguir茅 leyendo m谩s de 茅l.
Una de las cualidades que caracteriza a J. M. Coetzee es su innata capacidad de reversionar historias, de adaptarlas y darles un nuevo sentido. Este escritor sudafricano, que supo escribir excelente novelas y a煤n lo hace ("Desgracia" es una de sus mejores, a mi entender), puede tambi茅n mutar camale贸nicamente en otros personajes de la literatura en sus libros, tal fue el caso de su otra novela, "El maestro de Petersburgo", en la que se mete en la piel de un desesperado Fi贸dor Dostoievski que vuelve del auto exilio para rastrear el tr谩gico desenlace de lo que le sucedi贸 a su hijo Pavel en San Petersburgo.
De manera fehaciente, Coetzee nos sumerge en el submundo de los nihilistas del siglo XIX en la Rusia zarista a punto tal que nos es dif铆cil discernir si la novela est谩 escrita en ese siglo o m谩s de cien a帽os despu茅s.
En el caso de esta, nos volvemos a encontrar con la misma sensaci贸n de que estamos en la 茅poca en que los barcos eran las maquinarias m谩s avanzadas de su 茅poca, en el siglo XVIII, cuando las grandes potencias como Inglaterra, Francia, Espa帽a Estados Unidos o Portugal surcaban los mares en busca de tierras para conquistar.
De todas estas traves铆as, surgi贸 una novela eterna que se llam贸 "La vida y las extra帽as y sorprendentes aventuras de Robinson Crusoe", escrita por el gran Daniel Defoe en 1719, cuyo verdadero apellido era Foe y de ah铆 el nombre de la novela de Coetzee.
Robinson Crusoe, el inolvidable marinero se transforma en el m谩s emblem谩tico n谩ufrago de la literatura y que iniciar铆a una saga de nombres que continuar铆an su estirpe: Arthur Gordon Pym, creado por Edgar Allan Poe, Alejandro Velasco, un n谩ufrago real llevado a la literatura por Gabriel Garc铆a M谩rquez y Henry Preston Standish, surgido de la pluma de un escritor desconocido, H. C. Lewis que escribe una novela tambi茅n ejemplar al respecto.
De hecho el mismo Robinson volver谩 a surcar los mares y volver谩 a su amada isla en "Nuevas aventuras de Robinson Crusoe" para deleitar a los lectores que quer铆an leer m谩s de sus traves铆as.
Volviendo a Coetzee, este autor se encarga de escribir una precuela, o sea, la historia de una mujer, Susan Barton, quien, buscando a su hija al salir de Brasil en un barco, tambi茅n naufraga luego de un mot铆n en el mismo y por obra del azar y el destino termina siendo arrojada por las aguas en la misma isla de Robinson Crusoe quien ya est谩 viviendo el 煤ltimo tramo de sus veinte a帽os de n谩ufrago en la isla junto a su fiel compa帽ero, Viernes.
Lo que m谩s atrae de esta novela, que es la segunda y m谩s corta de Coetzee es que la readaptaci贸n de la novela de Defoe no tergiversa lo que ya le铆mos en ella, sino que lo transforma en una historia que conecta tanto a los personajes como a su autor real, o sea que la experiencia que Susan le narra a Defoe ser谩 el germen inicial de lo que posteriormente el autor escriba para transofmarla en "Robinson Crusoe".
Naturalmente, no todos los temas que Defoe toca en "Robinson Crusoe" est谩n en esta novela, pero s铆 se hace hincapi茅 en dos. Por un lado, se discurre largamente acerca de la esclavitud como cr铆tica y no como fin y por el otro, se desarrolla la cuesti贸n del canibalismo.
Tambi茅n es estudiado en forma intensiva el personaje de Viernes, quien en esta novela es mudo (su lengua ha sido cortada o por quienes lo ten铆an de esclavo o por el mismo Robinson, pero nunca lo sabemos y tampoco recuerdo este detalle en la novela original).
El caso de Viernes oficia a modo de enorme inc贸gnita en toda la novela. Su mutismo acrecienta el misterio en el lector.
Es sabido que Daniel Defoe debi贸 incluir el tema del canibalismo en la trama de su novela inicial, ya que tem铆a que el inter茅s del lector decayera, y s贸lo hab铆a una manera de mantenerlo atento: con la llegada de can铆bales a la isla y adem谩s con una aventura posterior que incluye piratas y un cruento enfrentamiento.
Otro punto destacable de "Foe" es c贸mo est谩 narrada ya que el autor la divide en solo cuatro cap铆tulos: el primero cuenta de c贸mo Susan lleg贸 a la isla y conoce a Crusoe (aunque en la novela se apellida Cruso, sin la e; luego, entre el segundo y tercer cap铆tulo leemos las cartas que Susan le env铆a al autor y en otros apartados, nos encontramos con el diario que ella escribe y que forma parte de sus intentos por lograr primero encontrar a Defoe y luego que este cuente su historia a partir de una novela.
Las charlas, planteos y discusiones acerca de c贸mo dar a conocer la historia conforma el grueso del tercer cap铆tulo en el que las diferencias entre Susan y Defoe salen a la luz.
El cap铆tulo final es lo m谩s desconcertante del libro y realmente no entend铆 el modo que Coetzee eligi贸 para cerrar la novela. Tal vez alg煤n lector que haya le铆do "Foe" me ayude a esclarecerlo.
De todos modos, eso no cambia mi percepci贸n ni el gusto que me dio leer "Foe". Y sigo reafirmando que J. M. Coetzee es uno de los escritores m谩s interesantes que he le铆do. Seguramente seguir茅 leyendo m谩s de 茅l.
January 14, 2016
This book is sheer poetry. The language, the pacing, the images - a feast for the mind!
As I see it Coetzee is the most important writer of our times. It is almost ridiculous to praise his style, as the way he formulates the questions and ideas of his writing is so perfectly self-contained and self-explanatory. Unaffected simplicity and clarity translate into utmost sophistication.
At the centre of his work lies the idea of compassion: for animals, for the ones left behind by society, for the crippled, for the ridiculous, for the invisible. A light is cast upon them in his writing by most naturally granting them the position of visible characters - no slick tricks, no handy word games. One of the most humbling of Coetzee's gifts.
I will keep coming back to this book, just like I do with all of Coetzee's books, in hope to prevent myself from forgetting their questions and at the same time to grant myself relief though his unparalleled art of conveying them.
As I see it Coetzee is the most important writer of our times. It is almost ridiculous to praise his style, as the way he formulates the questions and ideas of his writing is so perfectly self-contained and self-explanatory. Unaffected simplicity and clarity translate into utmost sophistication.
At the centre of his work lies the idea of compassion: for animals, for the ones left behind by society, for the crippled, for the ridiculous, for the invisible. A light is cast upon them in his writing by most naturally granting them the position of visible characters - no slick tricks, no handy word games. One of the most humbling of Coetzee's gifts.
I will keep coming back to this book, just like I do with all of Coetzee's books, in hope to prevent myself from forgetting their questions and at the same time to grant myself relief though his unparalleled art of conveying them.
November 20, 2014
In , Susan Barton is set adrift in a rowboat after a mutiny on a ship sailing from South America to Lisbon. She lands on an island where Cruso and Friday had been cast away years ago. In Coetzee's retelling of the Robinson Crusoe tale, Cruso is content with his simple life on the island. Friday has been transformed from a Caribbean to a black African whose tongue had been cut out by slave owners. The three castaways are rescued after Susan has spent one year on the island, but Cruso dies on his way back to Europe.
Susan wants to write their story so she contacts the author Daniel Foe to turn her narration into a book. But Foe wants to tell a different story about Susan than the one she thinks is important. Susan is also disturbed about Friday's lack of a voice. Although Friday has been liberated from slavery, he cannot ever really be free with no voice. The theme seems to be that the oppressed and disadvantaged have been silenced, and lost the authorship of their own stories.
was writing in 1986 in South Africa where communication problems and cultural differences existed between the black Africans and white colonialists. The original Crusoe story was a fictional autobiography and adventure story with 17th Century ideas about colonialism, gender, and slavery. Coetzee has updated the tale by adding a woman narrator, an African servant, and a 20th Century outlook.
Susan wants to write their story so she contacts the author Daniel Foe to turn her narration into a book. But Foe wants to tell a different story about Susan than the one she thinks is important. Susan is also disturbed about Friday's lack of a voice. Although Friday has been liberated from slavery, he cannot ever really be free with no voice. The theme seems to be that the oppressed and disadvantaged have been silenced, and lost the authorship of their own stories.
was writing in 1986 in South Africa where communication problems and cultural differences existed between the black Africans and white colonialists. The original Crusoe story was a fictional autobiography and adventure story with 17th Century ideas about colonialism, gender, and slavery. Coetzee has updated the tale by adding a woman narrator, an African servant, and a 20th Century outlook.
October 9, 2007
In recent readings of Coetzee's Defoe-pastiche, I have become facinated with the figure of Friday's "empty" mouth. Obviously the open-O, the unvoiced scream, the signs arranged on the beach as evidence of Friday's voice as it is both silenced and withheld, speaks to the trope of subaltern. That said, I believe Coetzee is more interested in our assumption that Friday is without a speech organ, tongue-less. Recall that the only evidence of this tonguelessness comes from the travel narrative that Crusoe gives where he imagines Friday's suffering at the hands of slave-traders and other "savages", as well, in each instance of Susan's quest to see the "stub", the remains, she turns away from what she imagines will be too physical and too evocative fleshy remnants. What does it mean that we fill in the gap in the gape? Friday is tongueless because we agree to the imagining protocol that names him as such?
November 15, 2018
Fancy being driven to pictures.
When I read a novel, I'm looking for this:
and this:
with big hints along the way like:
and this:
I thought I was doing fine with this Coetzee I found in Leiden recently. There's a woman and she is on a desert island for a while and then she's rescued and she's bogged down with Man Friday and Daniel Defoe's in it writing her story and I thought I got it. But I couldn't help feeling now and again like:
and trying to figure it all out made things worse.
Frankly, in the end, I felt like I was in the middle of xkcd's google map directions (goodreads has made a hash of this, please go link: to see it:
I don't know, Mr Coetzee. I really don't know. I wish when I'd got to the lake and saw the trouble ahead, I'd just turned back. I'm going to have a lie down and a nice cup of tea now. That's if I'm still alive, if I was real. Perhaps the book has the answer to that.
When I read a novel, I'm looking for this:
and this:
with big hints along the way like:
and this:
I thought I was doing fine with this Coetzee I found in Leiden recently. There's a woman and she is on a desert island for a while and then she's rescued and she's bogged down with Man Friday and Daniel Defoe's in it writing her story and I thought I got it. But I couldn't help feeling now and again like:
and trying to figure it all out made things worse.
Frankly, in the end, I felt like I was in the middle of xkcd's google map directions (goodreads has made a hash of this, please go link: to see it:
I don't know, Mr Coetzee. I really don't know. I wish when I'd got to the lake and saw the trouble ahead, I'd just turned back. I'm going to have a lie down and a nice cup of tea now. That's if I'm still alive, if I was real. Perhaps the book has the answer to that.
February 9, 2015
Foe reminds me more of Robert Coover's multilayered, metafictional Spanking the Maid than of Robinson Crusoe. That book was about spanking, and this book is about getting ravished. But what's it really about, you ask, and I'm like ugh, isn't "multilayered and metafictional" enough? Fine, god. I'll mark serious spoilers but we'll discuss general plot points, so heads up.
On the first layer: Susan Barton is marooned on an island already inhabited by two other castaways. When she is rescued, she tries to sell her story. There are mysteries: one of the other castaways is mute. Supposedly his tongue was cut out, but she fails to verify this. Who cut out his tongue? Or did anyone? And who is the woman who shows up claiming to be her long-lost daughter?
Below that, it's about Daniel Defoe's 1719 classic Robinson Crusoe: the other two castaways are Cruso [sic] and Friday. The author she attempts to sell her story to is Foe [sic] himself. So this is metafiction, and here's another mystery: why didn't Barton herself make it into Foe's novel?
And below that, it's about the process of storytelling: whose stories are heard and whose are silenced and which truth gets told. Coetzee pretends that [De]foe wrote his books from life, but changed them to make them more entertaining. The version he eventually published has virtually nothing to do with its inspiration.
(Several of Defoe's other characters also show up here to help make the point. And it's true, actually, although not in the way Coetzee presents it: Defoe was inspired by the story of castaway )
Coetzee is South African, and he wrote Foe in the 80s, at the height of the controversy over a soon-to-die apartheid. When he presents Friday as mysteriously mute - the only character unable to tell his own story - he's talking about his country. He that "South African literature is a literature in bondage. It is a less than fully human literature." That's what Friday represents, this less than fully human literature.
So the third level answers the questions of the first two.
Honestly, I think the book descends a little into wankery starting around Part III, 3/4 of the way through the book. It stops creating story and starts talking about it, and it's a bit on the tedious side. But it's done enough by that point to earn a little wanking; it's a very good book. Multilayered! And metafictional.
On the first layer: Susan Barton is marooned on an island already inhabited by two other castaways. When she is rescued, she tries to sell her story. There are mysteries: one of the other castaways is mute. Supposedly his tongue was cut out, but she fails to verify this. Who cut out his tongue? Or did anyone? And who is the woman who shows up claiming to be her long-lost daughter?
Below that, it's about Daniel Defoe's 1719 classic Robinson Crusoe: the other two castaways are Cruso [sic] and Friday. The author she attempts to sell her story to is Foe [sic] himself. So this is metafiction, and here's another mystery: why didn't Barton herself make it into Foe's novel?
And below that, it's about the process of storytelling: whose stories are heard and whose are silenced and which truth gets told. Coetzee pretends that [De]foe wrote his books from life, but changed them to make them more entertaining. The version he eventually published has virtually nothing to do with its inspiration.
(Several of Defoe's other characters also show up here to help make the point. And it's true, actually, although not in the way Coetzee presents it: Defoe was inspired by the story of castaway )
Coetzee is South African, and he wrote Foe in the 80s, at the height of the controversy over a soon-to-die apartheid. When he presents Friday as mysteriously mute - the only character unable to tell his own story - he's talking about his country. He that "South African literature is a literature in bondage. It is a less than fully human literature." That's what Friday represents, this less than fully human literature.
So the third level answers the questions of the first two.
Honestly, I think the book descends a little into wankery starting around Part III, 3/4 of the way through the book. It stops creating story and starts talking about it, and it's a bit on the tedious side. But it's done enough by that point to earn a little wanking; it's a very good book. Multilayered! And metafictional.
September 22, 2020
Kucijev "Fo", koji je prvi put objavljen 1986. godine, nudi nam jedan novi pogled na dobro poznatu pri膷u o Defou i Robinzonu Krusou. Ta se novina ogleda u uvo膽enju novih likova, kao i preplitanju tekstualnih i vantekstualnih svjetova. 艩ta to konkretno zna膷i? Kuci u pri膷u uvodi i lik Suzan Barton, koja, nakon 拧to izbija pobuna na brodu na kojem se nalazi, biva ostavljena usred mora, a potom zavr拧ava na pustom (ili ne ba拧 tako pustom) ostrvu, gdje sre膰e Robinzona i Petka. Ne, ova knjiga nije zami拧ljena kao prepri膷avanje istih ili sli膷nih avantura i doga膽aja sa ne拧to pro拧irenom postavkom likova, 拧to postaje jasno ve膰 u trenutku kada se pri膷a, nedugo nakon samog po膷etka, izmje拧ta s ostrva u London, gdje Suzan dolazi do Danijela Foa, koji treba da zapravo uzme njenu pri膷u i uobli膷i je u jedno valjano djelo. Jo拧 je dosta tu nekih sitnijih i krupnijih doga膽aja koji se smjenjuju i vi拧e ili manje jasno usmjeravaju djelovanje junaka, ali jedna od glavnih tema koja je obra膽ena na stranicama ove knjige jeste pitanje mo膰i rije膷i, tj. govora, odnosno pravo i sloboda da se osoba kao jedinka izra啪ava, a shodno tome i gubitak istog prava. Odnos izme膽u Suzan, Foa, Petka i Robinzona, tako, postaje gusto isprepletena mre啪a odnosa povla拧膰enih i pot膷injenih, privilegovanih i onih koji su li拧eni svega, pa i mogu膰nosti da sopstvenim govorom posvjedo膷e o svojoj sudbini, a u slu膷aju da to na neki na膷in i u膷ine, onda da budu saslu拧ani na odgovaraju膰i na膷in. Idejno, knjiga je fenomenalna, ali zaista. Pravi je primjer toga kako se dobro poznati knji啪evni predlo啪ak mo啪e uzeti kao obrazac za neke univerzalne pri膷e ispri膷ane na novi, a opet upe膷atljiv i specifi膷an na膷in. S druge strane, ovo jeste roman o govoru i rije膷ima i iskazivanju, ali je u njemu i mnogo toga fragmentarnog i neizgovorenog i konfuznog. I sve vi拧e i vi拧e 拧to se pri膷a bli啪i kraju. Da, mozak jasno govori da to ima i te kako smisla kad se uzme u obzir tema koja je u sr啪i romana, ali u啪itak samog 膷itanja nekako ostaje u drugom planu zbog te konfuznosti koja se samo poja膷ava i poja膷ava.
December 29, 2015
It is difficult to describe. The quality of the writing is great, the characters are good and sometimes the book grips you.
There are even moments that reminded me of Animal Man by Grant Morrison, but when I finished the book it was.. And???
It could be a **, it could be a ****... Let's rate it with a ***.
Finally, I have to say that the character of Susan Barton is probably one of the most powerful female characters that I have met.
There are even moments that reminded me of Animal Man by Grant Morrison, but when I finished the book it was.. And???
It could be a **, it could be a ****... Let's rate it with a ***.
Finally, I have to say that the character of Susan Barton is probably one of the most powerful female characters that I have met.
December 25, 2013
Easily one of the worst books I have ever read. Simplistic, pseudo-intellectual mental masturbation. Awful.
December 9, 2011
I read this a long time ago and have only just got round to thinking about a review now. Now is me sitting in front a netbook with a large glass of red wine, the work phone switched off (praise all your gods, it is the weekend) and a pile of salted cashew nuts to hand. You could cast me adrift on a desert island now, with no hope of redemption and as long as I could take the wine and the nuts (I'll leave the works phone, thanks) then I probably wouldn't utter so much as a squeak of protest.
Turns out that leaving it a while to review this book was probably a tactical faux pas on my part because it has not left enough of an impression to allow the memories of salient points ( a fellow goodreader pointed out today that book amnesia is frequently the benchmark of a bad book), witty lines and poetic description to come flooding back. Give me an hour, more wine and I'll probably fill in the blanks with some kind of skewed version of Coetzee's sequel/ parallel to Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (recently read and reviewed), but I'll try to finish writing before it gets to that sloppy point.
In lieu of being able to offer any new startling observations on this text I have just read two excellent reviews:
Chris Holmes'
and Brian's review
both which are worth reading with or without the wine.
Coetzee tackles the story of Robinson Crusoe and his castaway years by adding into the mix, a female companion who has returned to England and brought with her the story of her life on an island with the now deceased Cruso and the man Friday. The story she tells is very different to that of the Crusoe we know from popular publication. Does this make it any less true? I suppose the point is that communication, or if you are Friday, lack thereof, is constantly open to interpretation. Is what we say actually interpreted by those who hear it in the way we mean it? Probably not. The faceless communications of today (text, Tweet, blog and even goodreads) leave a lot of scope for misinterpretation and error. With Cruso I guess the question is, how much of his-story is in this case her story?
Turns out that leaving it a while to review this book was probably a tactical faux pas on my part because it has not left enough of an impression to allow the memories of salient points ( a fellow goodreader pointed out today that book amnesia is frequently the benchmark of a bad book), witty lines and poetic description to come flooding back. Give me an hour, more wine and I'll probably fill in the blanks with some kind of skewed version of Coetzee's sequel/ parallel to Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe (recently read and reviewed), but I'll try to finish writing before it gets to that sloppy point.
In lieu of being able to offer any new startling observations on this text I have just read two excellent reviews:
Chris Holmes'
and Brian's review
both which are worth reading with or without the wine.
Coetzee tackles the story of Robinson Crusoe and his castaway years by adding into the mix, a female companion who has returned to England and brought with her the story of her life on an island with the now deceased Cruso and the man Friday. The story she tells is very different to that of the Crusoe we know from popular publication. Does this make it any less true? I suppose the point is that communication, or if you are Friday, lack thereof, is constantly open to interpretation. Is what we say actually interpreted by those who hear it in the way we mean it? Probably not. The faceless communications of today (text, Tweet, blog and even goodreads) leave a lot of scope for misinterpretation and error. With Cruso I guess the question is, how much of his-story is in this case her story?
March 17, 2009
J.M. Coetzee's 1986 novel FOE is a retelling of ROBINSON CRUSOE that uses Daniel Defoe's well-known story as a basis for a bitter commentary on colonialism. To really get anything out of Coetzee's novel, you'll need to read ROBINSON CRUSOE first. The Penguin Popular Classics edition is an inexpensive way to read that important work.
As FOE opens, we are introduced to Susan Barton, an Englishwoman returning from Brazil who is set adrift on the seas by mutineers. She washes up on an island populated by Robinson Crusoe and his servant Friday. Yet, these are not the same characters we've encountered before. Unlike the clever protagonist of Defoe's novel, "Cruso" is a dull old man, complacent with his miserable existence on the island, not wanting rescue and making no effort to better his living condition. Friday is not a the Brazilian cannibal that Defoe portrayed, but a horribly mutilated African slave. When the trio is finally rescued, Cruso soon dies, but Barton and Friday return to England. There Barton encounters Mr. Foe and narrates her story to him, only to find that he is not interested in the remarkable truth of her experiences, but instead bends the story to his own preconceptions.
Coetzee's main message seems to be that Europeans have robbed colonized peoples of their own history. By supressing any report they might make of their past, and forbidding them from speaking now for themselves, the colonizers have reduced the natives to the very savages Europeans claimed they were from the beginning. Towards the end of the novel, Coetzee turns things even more postmodernism, showing how difficult it is to create a "true" narrative.
If I had to compare Coetzee's writing here to anyone else, I'd say that the dialogue reminds me of Harold Pinter, and the enigmatic dream or dream-like sequences towards the end are reminiscent of Gene Wolfe. The novel is only around 150 pages long and can be tranquilly read over the span of a few hours. I found the narrative style somewhat grating, thus my review of four stars, but nonetheless I found this a remarkable and extremely thought-provoking book, and I recommend it.
As FOE opens, we are introduced to Susan Barton, an Englishwoman returning from Brazil who is set adrift on the seas by mutineers. She washes up on an island populated by Robinson Crusoe and his servant Friday. Yet, these are not the same characters we've encountered before. Unlike the clever protagonist of Defoe's novel, "Cruso" is a dull old man, complacent with his miserable existence on the island, not wanting rescue and making no effort to better his living condition. Friday is not a the Brazilian cannibal that Defoe portrayed, but a horribly mutilated African slave. When the trio is finally rescued, Cruso soon dies, but Barton and Friday return to England. There Barton encounters Mr. Foe and narrates her story to him, only to find that he is not interested in the remarkable truth of her experiences, but instead bends the story to his own preconceptions.
Coetzee's main message seems to be that Europeans have robbed colonized peoples of their own history. By supressing any report they might make of their past, and forbidding them from speaking now for themselves, the colonizers have reduced the natives to the very savages Europeans claimed they were from the beginning. Towards the end of the novel, Coetzee turns things even more postmodernism, showing how difficult it is to create a "true" narrative.
If I had to compare Coetzee's writing here to anyone else, I'd say that the dialogue reminds me of Harold Pinter, and the enigmatic dream or dream-like sequences towards the end are reminiscent of Gene Wolfe. The novel is only around 150 pages long and can be tranquilly read over the span of a few hours. I found the narrative style somewhat grating, thus my review of four stars, but nonetheless I found this a remarkable and extremely thought-provoking book, and I recommend it.
May 23, 2010
It's not hard to see what drew Coetzee to the Cruso myth. Stranded on an austere patch of land with only a black servant to keep you company: reminds me an awful lot of the author's native South Africa. The long first section of the book, in which Susan Barton washes ashore on Cruso's island, is a tour-de-force, one of the best sustained pieces of writing Coetzee's ever done. But the shift to England, where Susan enlists Daniel Defoe to write her story, comes along with endless ruminations on the interplay between between fact and fiction--questions over who is truly birthing the story and, god help us, the role of the muse--and the thing gets rather tiresome. Coetzee has this in common with Italo Calvino: he's an elegant, world-class writer who nonetheless could get diverted by meta-fictional games that, I'm sorry, are a little beneath him.
Meanwhile, the author's refusal to resolve intriguing questions he's set up--such as the true identity of a girl who claims to be Susan's long-lost daughter--strikes me as needlessly tight-assed. I'm all for subtlety, but this book keeps too many secrets to itself. The way Susan leads the girl into a forest and leaves her there could have had the uncanny force of a Hawthorne story (think of something like "Roger Malvin's Burial"); instead, it simply seems unfinished.
Still, the settings are beautifully wrought, and in Friday's plight Coetzee shows us how slavery scrapes hollow not only the slave but the master: late in the book, Susan tries to put Friday back on a boat to Africa, but there is nowhere for him to go--his Africa is long gone. This is a noble failure of a book if ever there was one.
For those interested in cover art: the cover painting is by John Collier, whose art appears on all the Penguin editions of Coetzee's books, and is a haunting piece of work.
Meanwhile, the author's refusal to resolve intriguing questions he's set up--such as the true identity of a girl who claims to be Susan's long-lost daughter--strikes me as needlessly tight-assed. I'm all for subtlety, but this book keeps too many secrets to itself. The way Susan leads the girl into a forest and leaves her there could have had the uncanny force of a Hawthorne story (think of something like "Roger Malvin's Burial"); instead, it simply seems unfinished.
Still, the settings are beautifully wrought, and in Friday's plight Coetzee shows us how slavery scrapes hollow not only the slave but the master: late in the book, Susan tries to put Friday back on a boat to Africa, but there is nowhere for him to go--his Africa is long gone. This is a noble failure of a book if ever there was one.
For those interested in cover art: the cover painting is by John Collier, whose art appears on all the Penguin editions of Coetzee's books, and is a haunting piece of work.
March 5, 2020
This completes my detoxification of Robinson Crusoe. Foe is Coetzee鈥檚 elegant, imaginative examination of Defoe鈥檚 classic. Its not a retelling or a sequel - it recreates a new dish from the same ingredients. Crusoe (Cruso here) dies early on & Coetzee introduces a woman character as the lead and Defoe himself (under his 鈥榬eal鈥� name, Foe). The cleverest conceit of all is that Friday鈥檚 role is greatly expanded, but as in the original, he remains completely mute. Coetzee makes this muteness speak volumes. Post-modern and post-colonial, Foe is also a meditation on story-telling and the life (as opposed to the death, cf Barthes) of the author.
July 28, 2014
I keep wanting to like Coetzee, but I just can't get past my irritation at his characters' voices and the opaque symbolism scattered throughout. This is my second venture into one of his novels (the first being "Disgrace") and while I'm interested in the themes he explores, I can't get past the pretensions of his prose to actually be engaged by his writing.
August 21, 2016
In the spirit of Foe, a story about this book... I bought this book at a recent $5 A Bag book sale at the library. Having walked away with 4 bags of books, it seemed like a pretty successful sale in and of itself. However, fate intervenes (dun dun DUN) and, picking it up to read tonight, I see a very familiar name scrawled in the front cover, a date/locale, and a seal imprinted on the title page. None other than the name of my favorite teacher back in high school and the date of my graduation. A favorite teacher that has since passed away but is sorely missed. Coincidence might be the invention of the storyteller here, but it's a coincidence I'm very happy about.
The book itself was interesting, both as a reinvention of Crusoe and a stand-alone. I was almost expecting a The Yellow Wallpaper twist to come into play. Definitely worth the read.
The book itself was interesting, both as a reinvention of Crusoe and a stand-alone. I was almost expecting a The Yellow Wallpaper twist to come into play. Definitely worth the read.
October 1, 2023
鈥濬o鈥� je jedna od meni najdra啪ih Kucijevih knjiga, i najdra啪ih knjiga uop拧te. 膶italac koji se po prvi put sre膰e sa delom velikog maga, mo啪e u njoj prona膰i iscrtanu mapu, ili 拧ifrarnik za prepoznavanje velikog broja tema kojima 膰e se ovaj autor baviti u svem svom stvarala拧tvu. Ono 拧to je tu meni najva啪nije, i gde se Kuci kao pisac/mislilac i ja kao 膷italac/zbunjenik/nepomirenik-sa-nepoznanicama najvi拧e dodirujemo jeste problem bezglasnosti, odnosno va啪nosti glasa koji neko nema (recimo, bezglasne 啪ivotinje), ili mu je nasilno oduzet (na rasnoj ili rodnoj osnovi), ili se pravimo da ne postoji glas koji bi se mo啪da mogao razumeti. Kuci dolazi iz ju啪noafri膷kog podneblja 拧to nu啪no name膰e propitivanje odnosa izme膽u crnaca i belaca. On je belac, no njegova propitavanja ne daju jednostavne i o膷ekivane odgovore (拧to ga beskrajno uzdi啪e u mojim o膷ima), jer jednostavni odgovori na komplikovana pitanja uvek zna膷e rezove, bolne i diskrimini拧u膰e. Ono 拧to je njegova mo啪da osnovna 鈥瀖isija鈥� (iako sam sigurna da on sam ne bi pristao da mu se pri拧iva postojanje neke misije) upravo je davanje glasa svim subjektima odre膽enih odnosa, ili slikanje situacija u kojima bezglasna bi膰a ostaju zarobljena i zaboravljena, uni啪ena, silovana, kremirana, zlostavljana, nasilno obezjezi膷ena, ili se ono 拧to imaju da ka啪u izvr膰e iz raznih razloga tako 拧to se u komunikaciju ume拧a odre膽eni posrednik.
Knjiga 鈥濬o鈥� (neobi膷nog imena, no 鈥� rastuma膷i膰emo ga tokom pa啪ljivog 膷itanja) kao osnovu uzima poznatu radnju: brodolom, no ovoga puta ne samo brodolom mu拧karca, Krusoa, ve膰 i 啪ene (naknadno pristigle saputnice, koja je tu mo啪da samo da pravi dodatnu zbrku, ili ipak zato 拧to je potrebno i njoj podariti glas). Po拧to ve膰 od prvog pasusa prime膰ujemo navodnike, jasno je da narator ove pri膷e nekome (ne 膷itaocu, ve膰 nekom posredniku) pri膷a ili ispisuje svoju pustolovinu. Narator(ka) je Suzan Barton, junakinja jednog drugog Defoovog romana, koja se Kucijevom majstorijom povezuje sa mnogo poznatijom Robinsonovom pustolovinom. Ona je bila na brodu nakon neuspele potrage za 膰erkom u Brazilu, odakle se otisnula sa sumnjivom posadom i zavr拧ila, posle pobune, u 膷amcu sa svojim mrtvim ljubavnikom 鈥� kapetanom broda. Odustav拧i od veslanja, kliznula je u more i plivaju膰i, potpomognuta talasima, stigla do ostrva.
Ono 拧to opisuje kao 啪ivot na ostrvu razlikuje se u velikoj meri od opisa koji nam je dao Defo. Svi smo voleli Robinsona 鈥� ali, je li ta avantura verodostojna? To je jedno od pitanja koje Kuci nenametljivo postavlja, a mo啪e biti klju膷no za razumevanje ove knjige. Suzan Barton zati膷e mrzovoljnog starca koji ne pi拧e dnevnik, koji provodi vreme prave膰i terase pogodne da se jednog dana na njima zaseje neko seme, samo 拧to semena nema a pitanje je i da li 膰e ikad iko sa semenom do膰i na njegovo ostrvo. Ipak, njegov trud mo啪da nije ni拧ta besmisleniji od bilo koje druge ljudske aktivnosti (pogotovo ako se svaki ljudski 啪ivot shvati kao ostrvo, 拧to bi obezvredilo sva na拧a nastojanja, a jo拧 vi拧e ako se svaki 啪ivot shvati kao mogu膰nost da se ostrva pove啪u i da se nekom ne拧to ostavi i nakon smrti). Sa njim je i Petko, njegov sluga, poslu拧ni crnac koji ne govori, jer mu je, avaj, odse膷en jezik. (Suzan nikad ne saznaje ko je to u膷inio, trgovci robljem ili...?) Robinson odbija bilo kakvu mogu膰nost da osavremeni i拧ta dok 啪ivi na ostrvu, tako da o拧tro odgovara na sva pitanja junakinje (ona ovde mo啪e biti shva膰ena 膷ak i kao neka vrsta Eve, pa bi i njena nagovaranja da preduzmu ne拧to mogla biti svojevrsna 啪elja da se ubere plod sa drveta saznanja). Naravno, Robinson, kao mu拧karac i belac 鈥� gospodar je i tog ostrva i njegovih stanovnika: crnca i 啪ene.
On, ipak, nije zdrav, i tokom jednog od nastupa njegove bolesti 鈥� iznenada dolazi spasila膷ki brod. Robinson umire na putu ka Engleskoj, dok 啪ena i crnac ostaju prepu拧teni sebi. Sebi i jo拧 nekom: piscu.
Suzan Barton poku拧ava da ispri膷a (i proda!) svoju pustolovinu izvesnom Fou (to je, mo啪da Danijel De Fo, pisan namerno tako da ovo Fo bude odvojeno, i da nas podse膰a na pitanje 鈥濬riend or foe?鈥�). Njemu se 膷ini da tu pustolovinu treba malo nafilovati. 膶ini mu se da njena istina nije toliko va啪na (kao istina pri膷e, istina teksta, umetni膷ka istina 鈥� ili mo啪da samo kao zanimljivost koja se mo啪e bolje prodati?). U tom rascepu nastaju najva啪nije diskusije koje Kuci pokre膰e ovim nevelikim romanom. U delovima teksta koje Suzan Barton neve拧to ispisuje trude膰i se da ih nekako prosledi piscu nalazi se njen stvarni 啪ivot (da li?) ili bar ono 拧to ona smatra istinom svog 啪ivota. Je li pisac prijatelj ili neprijatelj ako njenu pri膷u koristi kao objekat da bi izmislio neku drugu? Ko je tu stvaran, a ko nestvaran? Ne samo da ono 拧to je njoj va啪no pretvara u manje va啪nu epizodu jedne 拧ire pri膷e o kojoj ona ne 啪eli da govori, ve膰 joj pridru啪uje la啪nu 膰erku i njenu dadilju (stvaraju膰i tako konfuziju iz koje nam postaje nejasno ko je 啪iv a ko lik u pri膷i, nisu li sve te 啪ene samo figurice u njegovoj igri). Za sve to vreme, Petko je uz njih kao izvestan teret (ili su ONI NJEMU teret), bez jezika, nalaze膰i svoje na膷ine da izrazi odre膽ene emocije, ili da se igra, da sprovodi svoje rituale, i da pokazuje da je ne samo ljudsko bi膰e, nego da ono 拧to on ima da ka啪e 膷eka da bude re膷eno, makar ispod povr拧ine, me膽u olupinama, me膽u mrtvim robovima i morskim travama, zajedno sa krakenom 鈥� svojevsnim 鈥瀙upkom sveta鈥� koji negde u dubini jednako pla拧i, posmatra i guta sve 膷emu do膽e vreme da bude progutano. Petkova pri膷a bi膰e ispri膷ana, mo啪da kao bujica, mo啪da kao udarac krakenovog kraka. Mo啪da je na膷in da pisac prestane da bude neprijatelj upravo u tome 鈥� da 拧to po拧tenije traga za glasom onih kojima je (nasilno ili ne) glas oduzet ili falsifikovan. Pisac je i sam neko ko pisanjem poku拧ava da podari sebi glas (koji mo啪da nije na拧ao kroz neki druga膷iji kanal, kroz uobi膷ajenu govornu komunikaciju), sa 啪eljom da bude istinit ili bar dovoljno 膷ujan. I o tome govore neke sporadi膷no razbacane re膷enice u raznim Kucijevim romanima, u kojima glavni junaci 膷esto lutaju nekim svojim bespu膰ima kao da je svima njima odse膷en jezik. Na kraju krajeva, ko se od nas nije bar nekad ose膰ao kao da mu je jezik i拧膷upan? Jezik mo啪da nije srce, a bog mo啪da nije stvorio prvo re膷, nego ne拧to 拧to se ne mora izgovoriti da bi bilo 膷ujno. Mo啪da se istina i va啪nost bi膰a mo啪e na drugi na膷in iskazati 鈥� ali onda je ono 拧to je svima nama potrebno: neko 膷ulo koje 膰e biti sposobno da 膷uje sve varijante iskazivanja kojima se slu啪i sve 拧to je 啪ivo. Recimo da je to sasvim dovoljno da iska啪e 拧ta bi mogla biti (膷ak i neosve拧膰ena i nepriznata) misija jednog pisca kakav je ovaj veliki 膷arobnjak. Velika preporuka za 膷itanje 鈥� pogotovo publici koja razume i podr啪ava potrebu da literatura osim zanimljivosti, pustolovine i romantike progovori i nemu拧tim glasovima nasilno u膰utkanih i gurnutih pod pla拧t nevidljivosti.
Knjiga 鈥濬o鈥� (neobi膷nog imena, no 鈥� rastuma膷i膰emo ga tokom pa啪ljivog 膷itanja) kao osnovu uzima poznatu radnju: brodolom, no ovoga puta ne samo brodolom mu拧karca, Krusoa, ve膰 i 啪ene (naknadno pristigle saputnice, koja je tu mo啪da samo da pravi dodatnu zbrku, ili ipak zato 拧to je potrebno i njoj podariti glas). Po拧to ve膰 od prvog pasusa prime膰ujemo navodnike, jasno je da narator ove pri膷e nekome (ne 膷itaocu, ve膰 nekom posredniku) pri膷a ili ispisuje svoju pustolovinu. Narator(ka) je Suzan Barton, junakinja jednog drugog Defoovog romana, koja se Kucijevom majstorijom povezuje sa mnogo poznatijom Robinsonovom pustolovinom. Ona je bila na brodu nakon neuspele potrage za 膰erkom u Brazilu, odakle se otisnula sa sumnjivom posadom i zavr拧ila, posle pobune, u 膷amcu sa svojim mrtvim ljubavnikom 鈥� kapetanom broda. Odustav拧i od veslanja, kliznula je u more i plivaju膰i, potpomognuta talasima, stigla do ostrva.
Ono 拧to opisuje kao 啪ivot na ostrvu razlikuje se u velikoj meri od opisa koji nam je dao Defo. Svi smo voleli Robinsona 鈥� ali, je li ta avantura verodostojna? To je jedno od pitanja koje Kuci nenametljivo postavlja, a mo啪e biti klju膷no za razumevanje ove knjige. Suzan Barton zati膷e mrzovoljnog starca koji ne pi拧e dnevnik, koji provodi vreme prave膰i terase pogodne da se jednog dana na njima zaseje neko seme, samo 拧to semena nema a pitanje je i da li 膰e ikad iko sa semenom do膰i na njegovo ostrvo. Ipak, njegov trud mo啪da nije ni拧ta besmisleniji od bilo koje druge ljudske aktivnosti (pogotovo ako se svaki ljudski 啪ivot shvati kao ostrvo, 拧to bi obezvredilo sva na拧a nastojanja, a jo拧 vi拧e ako se svaki 啪ivot shvati kao mogu膰nost da se ostrva pove啪u i da se nekom ne拧to ostavi i nakon smrti). Sa njim je i Petko, njegov sluga, poslu拧ni crnac koji ne govori, jer mu je, avaj, odse膷en jezik. (Suzan nikad ne saznaje ko je to u膷inio, trgovci robljem ili...?) Robinson odbija bilo kakvu mogu膰nost da osavremeni i拧ta dok 啪ivi na ostrvu, tako da o拧tro odgovara na sva pitanja junakinje (ona ovde mo啪e biti shva膰ena 膷ak i kao neka vrsta Eve, pa bi i njena nagovaranja da preduzmu ne拧to mogla biti svojevrsna 啪elja da se ubere plod sa drveta saznanja). Naravno, Robinson, kao mu拧karac i belac 鈥� gospodar je i tog ostrva i njegovih stanovnika: crnca i 啪ene.
On, ipak, nije zdrav, i tokom jednog od nastupa njegove bolesti 鈥� iznenada dolazi spasila膷ki brod. Robinson umire na putu ka Engleskoj, dok 啪ena i crnac ostaju prepu拧teni sebi. Sebi i jo拧 nekom: piscu.
Suzan Barton poku拧ava da ispri膷a (i proda!) svoju pustolovinu izvesnom Fou (to je, mo啪da Danijel De Fo, pisan namerno tako da ovo Fo bude odvojeno, i da nas podse膰a na pitanje 鈥濬riend or foe?鈥�). Njemu se 膷ini da tu pustolovinu treba malo nafilovati. 膶ini mu se da njena istina nije toliko va啪na (kao istina pri膷e, istina teksta, umetni膷ka istina 鈥� ili mo啪da samo kao zanimljivost koja se mo啪e bolje prodati?). U tom rascepu nastaju najva啪nije diskusije koje Kuci pokre膰e ovim nevelikim romanom. U delovima teksta koje Suzan Barton neve拧to ispisuje trude膰i se da ih nekako prosledi piscu nalazi se njen stvarni 啪ivot (da li?) ili bar ono 拧to ona smatra istinom svog 啪ivota. Je li pisac prijatelj ili neprijatelj ako njenu pri膷u koristi kao objekat da bi izmislio neku drugu? Ko je tu stvaran, a ko nestvaran? Ne samo da ono 拧to je njoj va啪no pretvara u manje va啪nu epizodu jedne 拧ire pri膷e o kojoj ona ne 啪eli da govori, ve膰 joj pridru啪uje la啪nu 膰erku i njenu dadilju (stvaraju膰i tako konfuziju iz koje nam postaje nejasno ko je 啪iv a ko lik u pri膷i, nisu li sve te 啪ene samo figurice u njegovoj igri). Za sve to vreme, Petko je uz njih kao izvestan teret (ili su ONI NJEMU teret), bez jezika, nalaze膰i svoje na膷ine da izrazi odre膽ene emocije, ili da se igra, da sprovodi svoje rituale, i da pokazuje da je ne samo ljudsko bi膰e, nego da ono 拧to on ima da ka啪e 膷eka da bude re膷eno, makar ispod povr拧ine, me膽u olupinama, me膽u mrtvim robovima i morskim travama, zajedno sa krakenom 鈥� svojevsnim 鈥瀙upkom sveta鈥� koji negde u dubini jednako pla拧i, posmatra i guta sve 膷emu do膽e vreme da bude progutano. Petkova pri膷a bi膰e ispri膷ana, mo啪da kao bujica, mo啪da kao udarac krakenovog kraka. Mo啪da je na膷in da pisac prestane da bude neprijatelj upravo u tome 鈥� da 拧to po拧tenije traga za glasom onih kojima je (nasilno ili ne) glas oduzet ili falsifikovan. Pisac je i sam neko ko pisanjem poku拧ava da podari sebi glas (koji mo啪da nije na拧ao kroz neki druga膷iji kanal, kroz uobi膷ajenu govornu komunikaciju), sa 啪eljom da bude istinit ili bar dovoljno 膷ujan. I o tome govore neke sporadi膷no razbacane re膷enice u raznim Kucijevim romanima, u kojima glavni junaci 膷esto lutaju nekim svojim bespu膰ima kao da je svima njima odse膷en jezik. Na kraju krajeva, ko se od nas nije bar nekad ose膰ao kao da mu je jezik i拧膷upan? Jezik mo啪da nije srce, a bog mo啪da nije stvorio prvo re膷, nego ne拧to 拧to se ne mora izgovoriti da bi bilo 膷ujno. Mo啪da se istina i va啪nost bi膰a mo啪e na drugi na膷in iskazati 鈥� ali onda je ono 拧to je svima nama potrebno: neko 膷ulo koje 膰e biti sposobno da 膷uje sve varijante iskazivanja kojima se slu啪i sve 拧to je 啪ivo. Recimo da je to sasvim dovoljno da iska啪e 拧ta bi mogla biti (膷ak i neosve拧膰ena i nepriznata) misija jednog pisca kakav je ovaj veliki 膷arobnjak. Velika preporuka za 膷itanje 鈥� pogotovo publici koja razume i podr啪ava potrebu da literatura osim zanimljivosti, pustolovine i romantike progovori i nemu拧tim glasovima nasilno u膰utkanih i gurnutih pod pla拧t nevidljivosti.
March 18, 2020
Atmospheric and thought-provoking, but ultimately too reticent to be either satisfying or fully engaging.
Foe is a consciously literary novel. The first section is exquisitely rendered, but as soon as the metafiction really kicks in, I found it obtrusive. The exploration of the blurred lines between fiction and reality, power and language, Friday鈥檚 story and the notion of double consciousness (and of being a stranger everywhere, even his own homeland, were he to return) is fascinating 鈥� it鈥檚 a shame the narrative descends into the pretentious, only to drown in its own artifice. (That ending, though?!)
I disliked the way Coetzee depicted women here. Quite frankly, I wanted to throttle Susan for her subservience, whining and bizarre decisions. Perhaps the worst, however, was the visitations of the muse. (Ugh.) It is interesting that Coetzee chose to introduce a woman into the narrative, but it becomes clear fairly early on that it is only so she can serve the functions traditionally assigned to females; procreation, inspiration, being disbelieved/exploited/dismissed. It gives a pretty unambiguous idea of what a woman鈥檚 purpose is perceived to be.
Disappointing, but certainly an improvement on the original.
Foe is a consciously literary novel. The first section is exquisitely rendered, but as soon as the metafiction really kicks in, I found it obtrusive. The exploration of the blurred lines between fiction and reality, power and language, Friday鈥檚 story and the notion of double consciousness (and of being a stranger everywhere, even his own homeland, were he to return) is fascinating 鈥� it鈥檚 a shame the narrative descends into the pretentious, only to drown in its own artifice. (That ending, though?!)
I disliked the way Coetzee depicted women here. Quite frankly, I wanted to throttle Susan for her subservience, whining and bizarre decisions. Perhaps the worst, however, was the visitations of the muse. (Ugh.) It is interesting that Coetzee chose to introduce a woman into the narrative, but it becomes clear fairly early on that it is only so she can serve the functions traditionally assigned to females; procreation, inspiration, being disbelieved/exploited/dismissed. It gives a pretty unambiguous idea of what a woman鈥檚 purpose is perceived to be.
Disappointing, but certainly an improvement on the original.
August 2, 2020
A tricky story of narrative power and silence.
Susan Barton is the third, unknown castaway on Crusoe's island, and her account is quite different, both from Cruso's as rendered here, and from the eventual novel that Daniel Defoe will pen. None of these narratives, as far as I can tell, have much basis in history. Defoe seems to have been inspired by the story of marooned sailor Alexander Selkirk, but his story does not mirror any of the fictional counterparts.
Meanwhile, Friday has been changed from an obedient indigenous man who is reinvented as an English servant into a mutilated African slave of unknowable origins, whose endless, unbreakable silence is the heart of this book. Returned to England, Susan and Friday seek out the celebrated but perpetually bankrupt writer Foe, and attempt to have their story told.
This is a slippery, cerebral book -- sometimes more cerebral than entertaining, but occasionally it shifts into moments of being startlingly, vibrantly alive. It confirms Coetzee as one of my favourite writers who I never seek out but who never fails to impress when he falls into my lap.
Susan Barton is the third, unknown castaway on Crusoe's island, and her account is quite different, both from Cruso's as rendered here, and from the eventual novel that Daniel Defoe will pen. None of these narratives, as far as I can tell, have much basis in history. Defoe seems to have been inspired by the story of marooned sailor Alexander Selkirk, but his story does not mirror any of the fictional counterparts.
Meanwhile, Friday has been changed from an obedient indigenous man who is reinvented as an English servant into a mutilated African slave of unknowable origins, whose endless, unbreakable silence is the heart of this book. Returned to England, Susan and Friday seek out the celebrated but perpetually bankrupt writer Foe, and attempt to have their story told.
This is a slippery, cerebral book -- sometimes more cerebral than entertaining, but occasionally it shifts into moments of being startlingly, vibrantly alive. It confirms Coetzee as one of my favourite writers who I never seek out but who never fails to impress when he falls into my lap.
February 17, 2017
O perspectiv膬 interesant膬 asupra romanului Robinson Crusoe narat膬 de o femeie naufragiat膬 pe aceea葯i insul膬. Mult膬 critic膬 social膬, fragmente epistolare, final deschis - exist膬, p芒n膬 la urm膬, destule elemente care s膬 motiveze lectura, dar parc膬 ar lipsi ceva.
October 1, 2016
鬲乇噩賲賴鈥� 賷 賵賳丿丕丿 噩賱賷賱賷 趩賳丿丕賳 丿賱趩爻亘 賳亘賵丿 賵 丿賷诏乇 丕賷賳賰賴 乇賲丕賳 亘賷卮 丕夭 丕賳丿丕夭賴 丿乇賵賳诏乇丕 賵 倬乇 丕爻鬲毓丕乇賴 丕爻鬲 賵 亘賴 诏賲丕賳賲 禺賵丕賳賳丿賴 賷 丕賳诏賱賷爻賷 夭亘丕賳 亘爻賷丕乇 丕夭卮 賱匕鬲 禺賵丕賴丿 亘乇丿 鬲丕 禺賵丕賳賳丿賴 賷 鬲乇噩賲賴 賴丕賷 丿賲 丿爻鬲賷 禺賵丕賳 賽 倬丕乇爻賷
August 16, 2019
鈥淨uando rifletto sulla mia storia, mi pare di esistere solo come colei che 猫 giunta, colei che 猫 stata testimone, colei che anelava ad andarsene: un essere senza consistenza, un fantasma accanto al corpo vero di Cruso. 脠 dunque questo il destino di chi narra storie?鈥�
Non Crusoe, ma Susan Barton, naufragata nell鈥檌sola pi霉 celebre della letteratura, che testimonia la testardaggine e la musoneria di Cruso, il naufrago per eccellenza, che per貌 non possiede nemmeno una delle qualit脿 tanto decantate da Defoe, simboli dell鈥檌ntraprendenza, del buonsenso borghese e dell鈥檕ttimismo di un鈥檈poca.
Ma Coetzee riscrive la storia con una lucida consapevolezza postcolonialista e in un鈥檕ttica postmoderna.
Perci貌 il libro 猫 difficile, a tratti astruso, di certo meditativo, filosofico e metaletterario.
Una donna ha bisogno di un uomo (lo scrittore Foe, decurtato del prefisso nobiliare) per trasformare la sua storia in scrittura e farne un prodotto appetibile per un mercato di lettori avidi di ingredienti stimolanti e colpi di scena esagerati. Niente di tutto questo invece: c鈥櫭� la storia di una donna che tenta invano di comunicare con uomo chiuso in se stesso e insieme la storia di uno schiavo nero (Venerd矛) a cui 猫 stata mozzata la lingua: muto, mutilato e reietto si esprime in un linguaggio di gesti e di musica, solipsistico e incomprensibile al mondo.
Al centro del discorso il mistero della scrittura narrativa, strumento ambiguo e potente, falsificazione necessaria per dare voce a uno stralcio di verit脿. O forse soltanto al suo fantasma.
鈥� Dimenticavo che siete uno scrittore e dunque sapete quante parole si possono succhiare da un festino di cannibali, e quanto poche da una donna in cerca di un riparo dal vento.鈥�
July 13, 2019
JUNE 2019 - reread
In FOE we witness an author who cheats the cards before our eyes with his innate ability to retell stories, adapt them and give them new meaning. Coetzee challenged one of the most widely published books in history, Daniel DeFoe鈥檚 鈥淭he Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe鈥� by transforming the famed author DeFoe into an antagonist Foe, Crusoe into Cruso (without the e), included a castaway woman, Susan Barton (based on the heroine of DeFoe鈥檚 ROXANA) and a mute slave named Friday. Socially constrained by being female in the 18th century, Barton sought Foe, a male author, to chronicle her year on the island with Cruso. Barton and Foe disagree on the nature of writing with Foe pushing for fabrications to give 鈥榮ubstance鈥� to Barton鈥檚 dull tale.
This is my second time reading Foe and I was drawn to Friday鈥檚 character. I appreciated how Coetzee was able to restore agency to Friday鈥檚 silence by making both Foe and Barton unable to identify with Friday and at the same time Coetzee chose not to be the one to give Friday a voice because it was not his place as a white South African - considering that Foe was published when apartheid, an era marked by silence, was still ongoing.
The words story/stories is used a total of 137 in this 156 page book and true/truth/truly is used 97 times. Coetzee does not only want us to think about the art of storytelling but he also forces the reader to ask questions than to provide us with answers: who has the authorial control for telling stories? does silence mean there are no stories to be told? how does language misinform? what is the relationship between language and self? can silence be a form of resistance to oppressive power? what memories do we rely on for truth? how are authors influenced by their personal circumstances and culture in the writing of stories? And maybe the greatest gift this little miracle of a book gives us is the encouragement to question history itself. FOE is both a middle finger to postcolonial narratives and a really enjoyable lecture in creative writing.
Mar 2018
It鈥檚 taken me a while to pen down my thoughts on this brilliant retelling of Daniel Defoe鈥檚 鈥楻obinson Crusoe鈥� mostly because Coetzee packed in so much in such a slim book that I鈥檓 still mulling over the subtleties. Is it a homage to Defoe, considered as the 鈥榝ather of fiction鈥� or is it a parody to the classical tale of colonialism and imperialism? I鈥檓 swinging towards the latter. Coetzee deliberately opposed Defoe鈥檚 hero with a heroine and included Daniel Foe as the antagonist who took Susan Barton鈥檚 story and wrote her out of it - effectively reducing her to a muse and giving life to the famous story of Robinson Crusoe. It made me question who鈥檚 narrative I could trust, Defoe鈥檚 or Coetzee. And it also made me question what liberties an author can take. The writing is exquisite, the characters dream like and it鈥檚 overall a very clever book. The pettiness in me was howling at how Coetzee stripped off Defoe鈥檚 nobility by eliminating the prefix 鈥楧e鈥� in his antagonist鈥檚 name 馃槀. I鈥檓 not a big fan of retellings but I鈥檓 digging the idea of authors responding to each other and carrying on the dialogue centuries later. This is a masterpiece.
In FOE we witness an author who cheats the cards before our eyes with his innate ability to retell stories, adapt them and give them new meaning. Coetzee challenged one of the most widely published books in history, Daniel DeFoe鈥檚 鈥淭he Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe鈥� by transforming the famed author DeFoe into an antagonist Foe, Crusoe into Cruso (without the e), included a castaway woman, Susan Barton (based on the heroine of DeFoe鈥檚 ROXANA) and a mute slave named Friday. Socially constrained by being female in the 18th century, Barton sought Foe, a male author, to chronicle her year on the island with Cruso. Barton and Foe disagree on the nature of writing with Foe pushing for fabrications to give 鈥榮ubstance鈥� to Barton鈥檚 dull tale.
This is my second time reading Foe and I was drawn to Friday鈥檚 character. I appreciated how Coetzee was able to restore agency to Friday鈥檚 silence by making both Foe and Barton unable to identify with Friday and at the same time Coetzee chose not to be the one to give Friday a voice because it was not his place as a white South African - considering that Foe was published when apartheid, an era marked by silence, was still ongoing.
The words story/stories is used a total of 137 in this 156 page book and true/truth/truly is used 97 times. Coetzee does not only want us to think about the art of storytelling but he also forces the reader to ask questions than to provide us with answers: who has the authorial control for telling stories? does silence mean there are no stories to be told? how does language misinform? what is the relationship between language and self? can silence be a form of resistance to oppressive power? what memories do we rely on for truth? how are authors influenced by their personal circumstances and culture in the writing of stories? And maybe the greatest gift this little miracle of a book gives us is the encouragement to question history itself. FOE is both a middle finger to postcolonial narratives and a really enjoyable lecture in creative writing.
Mar 2018
It鈥檚 taken me a while to pen down my thoughts on this brilliant retelling of Daniel Defoe鈥檚 鈥楻obinson Crusoe鈥� mostly because Coetzee packed in so much in such a slim book that I鈥檓 still mulling over the subtleties. Is it a homage to Defoe, considered as the 鈥榝ather of fiction鈥� or is it a parody to the classical tale of colonialism and imperialism? I鈥檓 swinging towards the latter. Coetzee deliberately opposed Defoe鈥檚 hero with a heroine and included Daniel Foe as the antagonist who took Susan Barton鈥檚 story and wrote her out of it - effectively reducing her to a muse and giving life to the famous story of Robinson Crusoe. It made me question who鈥檚 narrative I could trust, Defoe鈥檚 or Coetzee. And it also made me question what liberties an author can take. The writing is exquisite, the characters dream like and it鈥檚 overall a very clever book. The pettiness in me was howling at how Coetzee stripped off Defoe鈥檚 nobility by eliminating the prefix 鈥楧e鈥� in his antagonist鈥檚 name 馃槀. I鈥檓 not a big fan of retellings but I鈥檓 digging the idea of authors responding to each other and carrying on the dialogue centuries later. This is a masterpiece.
October 11, 2012
This review will overflow with clich茅. Such is the sum of my experience. Fox is a meditation on silence. Coetzee explores the natural aspects of such. The sea and wilderness yield no ready wisdom. Such doesn鈥檛 communicate in our jejune terms.
There is also an algebra of silence by design. It is a poetry of omissions. It is the fruit of doubt and a coveted rank of humility. The narrative currents of our lives are larded with the silence, we adorn them with caprice and detail. Coetzee intervenes into what understand as a novelistic tradition, a landmark to judge our way. He ruminates and consider alternatives. This disorients and we may grow uneasy. As matters coalesce, he neglects close, only a hum and the whisper of the surf remain.
There is also an algebra of silence by design. It is a poetry of omissions. It is the fruit of doubt and a coveted rank of humility. The narrative currents of our lives are larded with the silence, we adorn them with caprice and detail. Coetzee intervenes into what understand as a novelistic tradition, a landmark to judge our way. He ruminates and consider alternatives. This disorients and we may grow uneasy. As matters coalesce, he neglects close, only a hum and the whisper of the surf remain.
May 1, 2008
Ugh. I really was enthralled with the idea of this novel, but obviously I'm not post-modern enough to enjoy this sort of book. Coetzee's narrator really irritated me and I absolutely did not buy her POV as being a woman's. Some male authors can do a credible female narrator, but I think this Nobel laureate should stay inside his own gender!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 951 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.