Abstract:The research paper focuses on the dystopian reality depicted in Suzanne Collins's the Hunger Games trilogy. I shall primarily discuss the social and political relations established in the post-apocalyptic country -Panem, and how they affect the quotidian life. Crucial here is the clash between two realms comprising the world represented in the novels -dystopian districts and the seemingly utopian Capitol. The juxtaposition of two completely different 'constituents' of the country shapes the mutual relations between the Panem inhabitants -these within the districts, amongst them and between the center and the peripheries.The Hunger Games (2008), Catching Fire (2009 and Mockingjay (2010) consecutively portray the history of dystopian civilization from the entropic reality succeeding after the Dark Days, through a coincidental chain of events initiated during the 74 th Hunger Games, to the ultimate armed conflict bringing hope and the promise of a new beginning. Pivotal in the oppressive world is the concept of the savior in the person of Katniss Everdeen who, initially unconsciously and unintentionally, contributes to igniting the final revolt against the dictatorial regime of President Snow. The aim of the paper is to analyze how the author represents the realm of Panem with regard to the complex relations between the center and the periphery.
This research paper is going to revolve around Paul Auster's urban dystopia entitled In the Country of Last Things. Yet, my claim is that the novel may also be categorised as an American city novel in which a flâneuristic account plays a significant role. The focal point of the paper is going to be the comparison between the Austerian figure of the urban stroller with a traditional one as developed in the 19 th century Paris. Since there have been numerous transformations and reformulations regarding literary representations of the city walker, I shall examine the protagonist Anna Blume in reference to features characteristic of a traditional, 19 th century urban stroller. Some theorists claim that women cannot be regarded as city walkers; nevertheless, the aim of the research paper is to prove that Anna, although a female character, can be considered as a postmodern variation of the flâneur. Auster's fictional world might be compared to Lewis Mumford's "theater of social action" 1 where the inhabitants' quotidian drama is staged. This urban theater functions A fertile ground for city walker's observations, investigations, as well as subsequent artistic productions. A traditional flâneur is characterised as an aimless stroller for whom the very act of the 'inspection' of the crowd is a source of leisure. However, his desire is not only to experience the surroundings, but also to observe the physical construction of the city as well as its social dimension-the people around. Taking into consideration the very specificity of the flâneuristic figure, Anna Blume, despite representing the female part of society, can be regarded as a postmodern urban stroller since her only means of discovering and 'learning' the space is by walking in the city. Hence, the character created by Auster both diverges from the conventional image of the city walker in terms of characteristic features and is consistent with it when the scope of the flâneur's activities is considered.
The primary aim of the article is to examine Paul Auster's metafictional novel -Man in the Dark -in reference to the represented reality and imaginary spaces which play a crucial role in the development of the action. I will be focusing on the diverse levels of the spatio-temporal dimensions of the novel -the primary story and the embedded one -and their mutual relations and interactions. The created worlds shall be analysed in reference to Mikhail Bakhtin's concept of the chronotope. While discussing Man in the Dark, I shall explore the ways in which particular chronotopes affect individuals immersed in them. I will also prove that the text's dominant story, recounted by the protagonist, August Brill, transgresses the spatial and temporal borders of the main character's world, and, consequently, becomes completely separated from what is quotidian, known, and experienceable for him.
Ghosts, the second part of Paul Auster's The New York Trilogy, is generically classified as anti-detective fiction. The dominant setting of the novel, the urban space of New York and the observatory apartment located in it, is endowed with postmodern qualities, which leads to the transformation of the spe cificity of the inve stigation and its de parture from one that is traditional. Whereas, traditionally, in detective fiction the dominant space, be it a locked room or a city, to mention a few, offers the sleuth clues necessary for solving the case, in the postmodern story of detection these clues are disorienting or meaningless. Hence, the primary aim of this article is to examine the interrelation between the dominating chronotope in the novel and the investigation led by the protagonist, Blue. I intend to prove how the surroundings contribute to the replacement of rational and objective judgment of the case with personal engagement. The article also aims at providing an overview of the transformations of urban space in detective fiction, which functions as the introduction to a further discussion.
In his novel set entirely in a dystopian environment, In the Country of Last Things, Paul Auster portrays a disturbing vision of urban space where pervasive processes of disintegration and destabilisation profoundly determine the relations inside it. In this study the semiotic space of this unnamed city will be examined on the basis of the opposition between dominant dystopian space and impermanent sanctuaries located within the urban realm. The defining division of space has its reflection in the practical realisation of the concept of solidarity. The city is inhabited by society for whom moral codes and higher values can be considered relics of the past. Consequently, genuine solidarity has been replaced by what Sally Scholz calls 'parasitical solidarity'. Temporary refuges, on the other hand, serve as the last anchorages of humanity trying to resist detrimental impacts from outside and to preserve natural gestures of solidarity. KeywordsAuster, dystopia, sanctuary, solidarity, urban space 86 Beyond Philology 15/3 Utracona, przedefiniowana czy zachowana? Manifestacje solidarności w Kraju rzeczy ostatnich Paula Austera Abstrakt W swojej powieści W kraju rzeczy ostatnich, której akcja całościowo rozgrywa się w dystopijnym otoczeniu, Paul Auster ukazuje niepokojącą wizję przestrzeni miejskiej, gdzie wszechobecne procesy dezintegracji i destabilizacji całkowicie warunkują relacje tam panujące. Przestrzeń semiotyczna tego bliżej nieokreślonego miasta będzie analizowana w oparciu o kontrast pomiędzy dominującym, dystopijnym otoczeniem i nietrwałymi miejscami o charakterze sanktuarium usytuowanymi wewnątrz miejskiego uniwersum. Definiujący podział przestrzeni ma swoje odzwierciedlenie w praktycznej realizacji konceptu solidarności. Miasto zamieszkiwane jest przez społeczeństwo, dla którego kodeksy moralne i wyższe wartości wydają się być reliktami przeszłości. W skutek tego autentyczna solidarność została zastąpiona przez to, co Sally Scholz określa mianem "solidarności pasożytniczej". Tymczasowe azyle, natomiast, służą jako ostatnie ostoje cywilizacji, które za wszelką cenę starają się stawiać opór niekorzystnym wpływom zewnętrznym, oraz zachować naturalne oznaki solidarności. Słowa kluczoweAuster, dystopia, azyl, solidarność, przestrzeń miejska "There is no stability without solidarity and no solidarity without stability". (Jose Manuel Barroso)
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