Disgrace

Rating:
Summary: Grace and Fury
Review: "The calm after the storm" is an expression that has always eluded me. Living my entire life in a country visited by seasonal typhoons that cause floods and entire communities ruined, I saw nothing of this calm; rather the furious, precipitous, bone-weary struggle to pick-up shattered lives back and move on. Such muted rage is all over this book.

In the story, after the storm that was the apartheid, Coetze's characters are ravaged individuals trying to pick-up their lives back. In the process they have to struggle, not so much in making sense of the past is as in their immediate needs to calm the confusion of the present, with its new structures and power shifts. What do individuals do when control is taken out of their hands? What if the words that they have become comfortable with suddenly take different meanings?

In yet another book of ironies and unspoken anger, Coetze has created characters that do not beg for symphaty -- or even understanding -- but are full of reasons for both. With much grace in writing, he delineated the new struggles that are occuring in post-apartheid Africa, where compromises mean survival and the forging of new alliances could mean betrayals of own selves. This is a disturbing book, only because the storm is less apparent can be more destructive.

Rating:
Summary: Among the best in my collection
Review: I can't recall many books of this caliber.

Coetzee's economic prose takes on huge post-apartheid atrocities, is abilities are unparalleled to (m)any.

That said, the "Disgrace" of Coetzee's work is numerous: The current events, the life choices of Professor Lurie, his daughter, etc.

When an individual can take madness manifested by man and churn that madness into eye-to-page-and ya ain't leaving the prose- prose ... perhaps genius is among us.

For the only living author to win the Booker Prize twice in a lifetime, and those wondering why or how ... read Coetzee's Disgrace.

Rating:
Summary: Very Thought Provoking
Review: Well written; pertinent and painful subject matter.

Rating:
Summary: A varied and true novel- with strong messages
Review: I am currently studying this novel for English Literature A Level and to be honest, I think almost everyone can find some if not all of the many messages it drives home to be meaningful. I'm not going to give the plot away but if there's one thing the novel did it was question my own opinions about many issues such as male/female relationships, even though I felt my views were fairly unchangeable. The main character, David Lurie is at the start someone I felt wasn't worthy of much respect or sympathy; by the end of the novel, I felt quite differently. If you appreciate books that challenge your thinking, I recommend this book. Note to other A Level students: it's easy to follow (compared to 'Heart of Darkness' by Joseph Conrad, it's like reading a newspaper). However, if you are easily saddened or depressed (although that's not what the novel is about), I wouldn't recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Troubling, and Worth It
Review: I am floored by this book. My eyebrows were knit over every word Coetzee chose with which to tell this tale of David Lurie's disgrace: the puzzle is to decide which of the disgraces present in this narrative is the most poignant, disturbing, redeeming or tragic -- ingrained hostility against integrity, attacks on the spirit, disregard for youth and innocence, violence against humans and animals, impediments of recompense, peace and reconciliation. Not since Updike's "Rabbit" series have I found such an engrossing, unworthy object of my affection as is Professor Lurie; I don't want to meet him, sit next to him at a dinner party or, heaven forbid, attend one of his Wordsworth lectures at the university. But he rode my conscience throughout, a great whipping boy for my self-righteousness and yet a mirror to my own flawed character. He and his co-horts in disgace rapped quietly and insistently on my complacency, on my unexamined privelege of being a well-fed, secure, educated American citizen; brought into bold relief the blessing of being born into a society that has not (recently, at least) institutionalized oppression and as yet has no meaningful way to answer for the wrongs created by that oppression. "An eye for an eye" the scripture goes, and yet in South Africa, if your eye has been taken, going the extra mile to extract the eye from your perpetrator isn't necessary, any eye will do. An amazing effort; is it trite to say that this book has changed my life?

Rating:
Summary: The prerogative to create individual morality
Review: Coetzee cogently demonstrates his extraordinary writing talent in his latest award winning novel, Disgrace. Anyone that can turn a novel comprised of disconcerting characters and their brackish behavior into a contemporary classic has to be truly gifted. Before delving into this work of art, the reader must remind himself that by no means is the author condoning the behavior of any of his characters, he is not suggesting that the matters incorporated in this book are right or wrong, he is simply representing their existence. By no means does the novel subscribe to fairytale romances with picturesque endings, some of the things described are painful and difficult to read. 'Disgrace'is not a novel for anyone that prefers to live by an 'out of site, out of mind' philosophy; but if you are able to overcome how vast cultural differences can be, if you realize even if things you don't know wont hurt you, they still exist, you will find a true literary and cultural jem within these pages. It provides the reader with the simple, yet profound, awareness that while society can inflict consequences, every creature possesses an intrinsic right to live by his own ethics.

The novel opens with the late mid-life crisis of a semi-washed up college professor who has yet to become what he wants to be when he grows up. The aforesaid, David Lurie is not willing to heed to his advanced years; he does not want to accept that he is no longer the Cassanova he once was, all hisyears as a successful lethario have gotten him nothing except two ex-wives and a daughter that he barley knows, he has not yet admitted that he has wasted his profession teaching communications (when his true passion was romantic languages), even the two books he has published have been pathetically unsuccessful. In a final fleeting frenzy looking for love in all the wrong places, David rebukes passes from women his own age, fruitlessly attempts to propagate a relationship from the prostitute he visits weekly, then selfishly seduces one of the young students in his class. Eventually, his brow-raising behavior is revealed to his peers and the girl's father, who demands retribution. The bricolage morality committee at the University gives David an easy way out, expecting a public explanation and apology. The headfast professor sees this as a ploy to embarrass him and to relinquish the sordid details of his self-entitled love affair, asserting that man has a right to a private life that need not be justified to the outside world, David demands punishment without explanation. His stubborn behavior(which no one can understand),costs him his job. David retreats to his daughter's farm in the extremely rural regions of post-apartheid South Africa. There he plans to ruminate and compose an opera depicting the later years of Byron's scandalous love life. The daughter, Lucy, a lesbian and former hippy, pursues the country life on her small plot. In order to obtain the minimal expenses of her simplistic life, she cultivates and sells fruits and flowers along with boarding dogs in her backyard kennel (the dogs also serve as her means of protection). A single woman living alone and providing for herself is extremely uncommon in this part of South Africa, and homosexuality is nearly unheard of , but despite these obstacles, Lucy is determined to independently make her way. At first she does quite well and develops an amazing affinity to the majestic qualities of country life and a kinship with the souls of the animals everywhere. Strangely, Lucy seems to believe that she must atone for the sins that her ancestral generations committed against land and animals. She attempts to persuade her city-loving father into embracing the simple, splendorous lifestyle she has found; and although he makes some concessions, he doesn't fully embellish the opportunity as she has. Soon after his arrival, father and daughter are attacked by three young black boys that disgrace David physically and Lucy sexually; taking from each their most prized attributes. Because of Lucy's quiescent response to the offence, David becomes frustrated and ironically attempts to persuade her to explain her rationale and pursue justice more vigorously. She does not give in, really, and neither does he, really. What they both learn, is that the morality of right and wrong is subjective to opinion.

Disgrace is not your typical novel, if you are looking for light, mindless entertainment- you wont be happy with this selection. It is not the story of a father and his daughter, there isn't a lot of character development. Coetzee uses the characters in order to portray a bigger picture, it is a parable of sorts. After reading this novel, I am constantly reminded of the old prayer "Grant me the serenity to accept the things I can not change, change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference." Disgrace is a powerful portrayal of everyone's individual quest to obtain that wisdom.

Rating:
Summary: Conflicted
Review: After reading Disgrace, I find myself having conflicting feelings. Coetzee's novel is engrossing and well written. The prose is sparse and lends itself to the story's environment. However, I expected more from the characters. Not so much a happy ending, as much as a greater evolution in their choices, their motivations, their lives.

The story focuses on David Lurie, a communications professor in Cape Town. After an affair with a student leaves him jobless and shunned by his community, he retreats to the rural farm of his daughter. Here he hopes to reconnect and rebuild the last important relationship of his life. A horrific tragedy occurs while David is on the farm resulting in an even great distance between father and daughter.

While tragedy and circumstance can yeild a multitude of varying reactions, I struggled with David and daughter Lucy's choices. They seemed trapped by and resigned to what lay before them. I was eager to find a sense of hope by the novel's end, but was instead struck by its emptiness. While the book is good, it is not uplifting and not for everyone.

Rating:
Summary: Frailty & Redemption
Review: I read this book for two reasons, (i) I had previously read 'The Life and Times of Michael K' by the same author and found it stark but humane and (ii) because 'Disgrace' won the Booker Prize. I wasn't dissapointed; JM Coetzee writes clearly, simply and insightfully; no frills no wastage. The book challenges male readers, like me, to evaluate their attiude to women, their sexuality, their indivuality and autonomy of purpose and outlook. Our response to the 'hero's treatment of women as lovers, as sexual prey, as daughters, as lesbians, as people, is thought-provoking and challenging, if ultimately open and non-directive. Issues of racial, sexual and physical violence (against humans and animals) are highlighted and examined without obvious resolution. What might be a bleak book is never dispairing in that it portrays humankind's immense capacity (albeit faltering) to cope both with life's, sometimes cruel, vissitudes and the inherent weakness of our human nature.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent, thought provoking read!
Review: Disgrace, is well-written and rich in symbolism; each of the characters have their own element of disgrace. Never before had I read a book with such interest and did not like the main character, David, but what is most attractive about David, is he is truly human. He has conflicts, urges, and a desire for truth in others, without being able to find truth in himself. The South African setting provoked me to open my atlas and look up the towns mentioned in the book. As a reader, I had to have a sense of place for where these fictional disgraces happened.

Rating:
Summary: a great story for our times!!
Review: At first, I was repulsed by the idea of a college professor having an affair with one of his students. Here is a man with age and experience, taking emotional advantage of a young girl who trusts him. He was, in my eye, a pig. No lower form of life on the planet.

But Coetzee's hero, is just that, a fallen hero. Rather than try to destroy he woman who loves him, to save his reputation, and career, he takes responsibility, (something rarely seen in today's world), and does not deny the charge or lie about it in court.

This small act becomes his ticket out of the accedemic world, but it is also his first step towards redemption and renewal. Jung once said that the midpoint in life is a time for the intergration of the self...something an affair with the young student prevents, (it means he is ego diffused or stuck on his own greatness).

Coetzee's hero could have stood up against the truth and fought. In honoring truth, he honored himself, and by the end of the novel, can look himself in the mirror as a true man.

There is a saying, often told, that a man only owns one thing in this world, from the moment he is born, till the last gasp of air escapes his lips. That is his word. Without his word, a man is nothing, even if he has a PhD, a family, a career. Nothing can break a man more than breaking his word, and nothing comes of nothing that is not true.