Disgrace
Disgrace - J.M.Coetzee
Set in contemporary South Africa, this is the story of an academic, his disgraceful fall from a position of respect, and how a major trauma affects him.
Brief Synopsis:
- David Lurie is a professor specialising in romantic poetry (he has a particular affection for Byron and his womanising ways)
- He has a brief affair with a student which turns bad, and is subsequently forced to resign from his position.
- He travels to his daughters small farm holding and tries to lie low.
- Lurie slowly adjusts to farm life and volunteers at an animal shelter.
- While here they are robbed and his daughter is raped by men known to her black neighbour Petrus.
- The remainder of the book deals with how this traumatic event affects him and his relationships, and how he finally realises that his own world view is not all pervasive.
There are many themes touched on in this book: the dangers of acting on impulse ("servant of Eros"), the struggles of a new South Africa, the ability for a human being to adjust to their circumstances and individuality being chief among them. Important to note that there is no great resolution in the end. The themes may be obvious, but the answers are not.