Rating - 3.8 stars
A very compelling read, that I just started past midnight and completed by the end of the day. Set in post-apartheid South Africa, the story is tinged with racism, sexism, masochism and what not? Three stars only for the writing style.
Coetzee slowly grows his ideas and perceptions upon our unsuspecting minds from the beginning. He implants an idea of how manipulative this seemingly scholarly person is, and makes us dislike him, and then the attack happens and after that we eventually start pitying Lurie. We start differentiating between what he did to Melanie, and what happened to Lucy, and he doesn't seem to be that bad, the urge to pity him grows even stronger.
We start thinking that the man suffered a lot for whatever crime he committed or accused of having committed. Melanie's family is in fact so accommodating and forgiving, God bless. And Petrus offers to marry Lucy, forget about the attack, It's all settled.
Lucy feels it a disgrace that the attack is proof of her being considered an outsider even after living there for a considerable time. By staying there even after foregoing her rights over her farm and giving birth to 'a son, their own' whom she eventually might end up loving, she assumes she'll redeem her disgrace. But it eventually ends up like the attack did not matter at all, of course all the while glorifying how a female in spite of being a victim chooses to ignore the attack.
Through Lucy's decision which we cannot fathom, the rage towards the natives grows exponentially, we become more unforgiving towards that sick native kid, Petrus who we feel is trying to use Lucy and her situation for the property, while softening our stand on Lurie.
So, it all eventually revolves around a man who can do any thing and then redeem it by sleeping with a less attractive woman (not a bad punishment or is it?) or by allowing a dog (that he eventually is going to help in killing) to lick his fingers, by having a lunch with the victim's family (very accommodative actually, teetotalers who don't mind serving him the wine he brings).
Yes, this is a tale that grows on you, that makes you think, which is great no doubt. The thoughts that occurred during the first 30% was not the same at 60% and it was a complete U-turn at 100%. After completing the book my thoughts were totally spiked up with all the remorse and redemption angle. His thoughts on Melanie's sister, Bev were totally sick, more so because he was supposedly feeling remorseful then.
As an after thought and after lots of thoughts on the tale and rewriting my review, I still end up with the same 3 stars and same emotions and feelings. In a way this is how the book has succeeded. Byron and Wordsworth make a brief appearance trying to give David a scholar/thinker value. Both these poets I adore and it was very tiring to overlook Byron's personal fallacies(?). Regarding the philosophical musings or tones in the book... in J.M. Coetzee's own words,
When all else fails, philosophize.
A very compelling read, that I just started past midnight and completed by the end of the day. Set in post-apartheid South Africa, the story is tinged with racism, sexism, masochism and what not? Three stars only for the writing style.
Coetzee slowly grows his ideas and perceptions upon our unsuspecting minds from the beginning. He implants an idea of how manipulative this seemingly scholarly person is, and makes us dislike him, and then the attack happens and after that we eventually start pitying Lurie. We start differentiating between what he did to Melanie, and what happened to Lucy, and he doesn't seem to be that bad, the urge to pity him grows even stronger.
We start thinking that the man suffered a lot for whatever crime he committed or accused of having committed. Melanie's family is in fact so accommodating and forgiving, God bless. And Petrus offers to marry Lucy, forget about the attack, It's all settled.
Lucy feels it a disgrace that the attack is proof of her being considered an outsider even after living there for a considerable time. By staying there even after foregoing her rights over her farm and giving birth to 'a son, their own' whom she eventually might end up loving, she assumes she'll redeem her disgrace. But it eventually ends up like the attack did not matter at all, of course all the while glorifying how a female in spite of being a victim chooses to ignore the attack.
Through Lucy's decision which we cannot fathom, the rage towards the natives grows exponentially, we become more unforgiving towards that sick native kid, Petrus who we feel is trying to use Lucy and her situation for the property, while softening our stand on Lurie.
So, it all eventually revolves around a man who can do any thing and then redeem it by sleeping with a less attractive woman (not a bad punishment or is it?) or by allowing a dog (that he eventually is going to help in killing) to lick his fingers, by having a lunch with the victim's family (very accommodative actually, teetotalers who don't mind serving him the wine he brings).
Yes, this is a tale that grows on you, that makes you think, which is great no doubt. The thoughts that occurred during the first 30% was not the same at 60% and it was a complete U-turn at 100%. After completing the book my thoughts were totally spiked up with all the remorse and redemption angle. His thoughts on Melanie's sister, Bev were totally sick, more so because he was supposedly feeling remorseful then.
As an after thought and after lots of thoughts on the tale and rewriting my review, I still end up with the same 3 stars and same emotions and feelings. In a way this is how the book has succeeded. Byron and Wordsworth make a brief appearance trying to give David a scholar/thinker value. Both these poets I adore and it was very tiring to overlook Byron's personal fallacies(?). Regarding the philosophical musings or tones in the book... in J.M. Coetzee's own words,
When all else fails, philosophize.
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