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Ben's Reviews > Disgrace
Disgrace
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This could have been the most uncomfortable I’ve ever felt while reading a novel. The issues and themes addressed are those that are immersed in the sensitive, pitch-black parts of my insides. And it didn’t relent; not once did it get easier. It was painful to keep going, yet I was gripped and couldn’t stop.
Mining through our darker spirits is not pleasurable. Looking at the world and its sickness, and feeling some of its constant, inherent pain is no easier. But when these merge together, a glorifying truth is present; one we train ourselves to avoid in order to make life easier. But to read Disgrace intently and honestly is to not have a choice in these matters, and the reward is a realness and truth found in very few novels. Your own moral inadequacies are dug up and looked at directly, as is your culture; your race; your generation; your values; your guilts; and your sense of justice. Your way of life gets shaken.
Yet the general state of all life, as a whole, is exposed. Because people are weak and corrupt, life for the individual wavers in many ways. But life itself, with all its beings -- put together with nature, the earth, and all it entails -- is solid and ongoing. Life is still. Life is indifferent. The meat of existence is unbending and immovable. And it goes on.....
Mining through our darker spirits is not pleasurable. Looking at the world and its sickness, and feeling some of its constant, inherent pain is no easier. But when these merge together, a glorifying truth is present; one we train ourselves to avoid in order to make life easier. But to read Disgrace intently and honestly is to not have a choice in these matters, and the reward is a realness and truth found in very few novels. Your own moral inadequacies are dug up and looked at directly, as is your culture; your race; your generation; your values; your guilts; and your sense of justice. Your way of life gets shaken.
Yet the general state of all life, as a whole, is exposed. Because people are weak and corrupt, life for the individual wavers in many ways. But life itself, with all its beings -- put together with nature, the earth, and all it entails -- is solid and ongoing. Life is still. Life is indifferent. The meat of existence is unbending and immovable. And it goes on.....
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Reading Progress
February 16, 2010
– Shelved
May 1, 2010
–
Started Reading
May 1, 2010
– Shelved as:
darkness
May 3, 2010
– Shelved as:
favorites
May 3, 2010
– Shelved as:
good-fiction
May 3, 2010
– Shelved as:
read-in-2010
May 4, 2010
–
Finished Reading
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Matt
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rated it 4 stars
May 01, 2010 05:45PM
Oh man, this book is beautifully written but depressing as hell. Fair warning.
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Good book indeed. I remember the ending felt more like the ending to a short story (in a good way).
Exactly: open ended but poingnant.
The scenes with the dogs are some of the most powerful I've ever read and, I thought, pointed to a partial redemption.
Never before have I felt the cold indifference, the unbearable (for me as an American, in the culture I'm used to) injustices, that are commonplace for those that live in certain areas of the world, as I did here. Fuck.
Great work as usual, Ben. And your thoughts(and my stirred memories of the book) made me add a star...
Awesome, D! Thank you. So much to think about with this one; Coetzee is such a genius.
Caris wrote: "...I remember it sucking like siblings in a Bertrice Small novel."I'm a huge fan of inappropriate comparisons involving B.Small.
I read the first few chapters of this in the bookstore, a few months back, when Coetzee kept showing up on my feed. It's flinch-inducing.
Ben your review was very well relayed. I remember reading it and feeling like my moral was being beat into the ground. My chest was so heavy and I never put my head in my hands so many times to clear my thoughts until I read this book. I never recommend it either for reasons I am unsure. I’ve kept it personal and found myself interrogating integrity of my own and others followed by justifying everything for a good while. I think it is a book that will stick with you for a life time and can be use as a tool for refection. As much as this book rocks your core it is in my opinion a very healthy book. (encourages self-reliance)
Okay, I just ordered a copy of this.
This is one of my favorite books of all time. Nice review, Ben.
Mine too, Michelle. Painful to read yet rewarding, as Ben said.
Thank you! In the few days that've passed since finishing, my respect and admiration for it continue to grow. The nuance, the insight, the power: whoa... still kind of shaken, really.
I always admire the authors who look unflinchingly at what humanity is, and Coetzee is at the top of that list, and this is, perhaps, his finest hour. It's one of those rare moments, too, that give me faith that the Booker Prize isn't always total shite. This book deserved its win, but I am surprised it did. Awesome review, Ben. I may need to read this again this year, just to remind me to love actively everything I have.
Meh.Edit: Oh, but nice review, Ben!
I hated this bloody book. It was beyond depressing for me, and I readily admit that my threshold for painful, gritty, ugly reality in literature is often very low. Sometimes the soul and the writing can transport me to realms of delight; The God of Small Things, for example, is painful and gritty, yet I love it. This one? I'd give it two stars, and you can call me an idiot if you like. At least we agree on The End of the Affair.
Provocative, disturbing, very difficult. A summer church book group project; reading with others dulled the pain therein. Every word, scene, and sentence matters, so the group analysis was indispensable and fascinating.
