Restabilising Storytelling in the Female Historical London Novel at the Millennium
This chapter focuses on a discussion of millennial London fiction which reimagines key moments of British history. Bernardine Evaristo’s Soul Tourists (2005), Andrea Levy’s Small Island (2004) and Sarah Waters’s The Night Watch (2006) are examined, novels
- PDF / 2,128,681 Bytes
- 279 Pages / 433.75 x 612.28 pts Page_size
- 62 Downloads / 157 Views
London Fiction at the Millennium
Claire Allen
London Fiction at the Millennium Beyond Postmodernism
Claire Allen Humanities University of Northampton Northampton, UK
ISBN 978-3-030-48885-7 ISBN 978-3-030-48886-4 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-48886-4 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Cover illustrations © Kevin George / Alamy Stock Photo, Image ID: AM6238 This Palgrave Macmillan imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG. The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
For Mom and Dad, thank you for everything
Preface
This book is concerned with an analysis of London fiction at the millennium (leading up to and beyond the year 2000). It examines texts that can in some way be regarded as occupying a space beyond postmodernism. It explores how a selection of contemporary London novels can be considered as “second-wave” or “post-postmodern” considering their borrowing more from mainstream and classical genres as opposed to formally experimental avant-garde techniques. This investigation is conducted with a specific focus on writings about London in order to investigate how novelists utilise the cultural capital of London as a consistent metaphor in their texts as part of what can be read as an attempt to relocate the marginalised, subjugated or underrepresented character within the culturally dominant. The texts considered here are read in terms of post-p ostmodern discourse, critically evaluating how this selection of writers at the millennium is appropriating and adapting mainstream writing styles and genres such as realism, the historical novel and the bildungsroman, as well as characterisations such as that of the heroi
Data Loading...
