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The Quest for Identity and its Literary Representation through Metanarrative and Metafictional Elements in Kate Atkinson's Emotionally Weird and Human Croquet

2010; Routledge; Volume: 91; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/00138381003647624

1744-4217

Sandra Meyer,

Latin American Literature Analysis

Abstract This essay concerns itself with Kate Atkinson's use of the literary techniques of metafiction and metanarrative to emphasise the characters' loss and struggle for identity, focusing on two novels. It also stresses the thematic and narratological analogies and parallels between the different writings, drawing on recent trends within the field of research on identity. The essay addresses the relationship between fiction and reality and to what degree literary texts question ideas of identity. Notes 1This essay offers an outline of the topic; my (forthcoming) dissertation “Making the Imagination Real—The Representation and Construction of Identities in Kate Atkinson's Writing” treats the subject in greater depth. 2For the distinction between metafiction and metanarrative see, for instance, Nünning, 11–58. See also Fludernik, 1–39. 3For reasons of space, this essay primarily focuses on two of Kate Atkinson's novels, Human Croquet and Emotionally Weird. However, the findings within these two novels are so characteristic for all of Atkinson's writing that they can be regarded as representative with regard to both form and content. 4In an interview, Atkinson clearly states how much she dislikes being pigeonholed as a writer of magical realist fiction: “People like to put you in a box because then it is easier to market you, to read you, to know what they are getting. [ … ] the [box] I resent more than anything is magical realism, which is a particular bête noir of mine, because it is always used in a slightly pejorative way. A bit like ‘women's fiction’—if someone uses it there's an undercurrent there. And I just have to say ‘define magical realism,’ because fiction is fiction—it is not real. It's as if there is some kind of uber-realism that serious novelists will write, but if you write magical realism you are going into the land of fantasy and, of course, that's not quite kosher” (Atkinson, “Rescue Operation,” n.p.). Nevertheless, there are a number of incidents, particularly in the novel Human Croquet which one could easily classify as magical realist. She may dislike it, but literary scholars following the definitions of magical realism by, for instance, Wendy B. Faris or Maggie Ann Bowers, would classify certain episodes within Atkinson's writing as magical realist. For a definition of the term see, for instance, Faris, “Scheherazade's Children,” 163–90. See also Faris, Ordinary Enchantments; Bowers. 6 EW, 25. References to Atkinson's fiction will be abbreviated as follows: Emotionally Weird: EW; Human Croquet: HC. 5Though metafiction and metanarrative are by no means unique to Atkinson's work, their conspicuous use demands a closer look at the effects and functions of these techniques. 7Said, 272, emphasis in the original. 8White, 7. 12 EW, 25 f., emphasis in the original. This quotation also contains an allusion to Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre. 9This is of course the original meaning of the Latin word textus. 10See Iser, 18–21. 11For the sake of clarification it should be mentioned that whenever Nora says something during the telling of a story, this is indicated by ∼. 13The idea of writing being comparable to cooking is not a new image. It also appears for instance in Fielding, 29–33, when the narrator tells the reader that he has “in the following work, adhered closely to one of the highest principles of the best cook which the present age [ … ] hath produced” (31). 14Of course these intersected pieces of writing play a major role in the novel and are thus not independent of it. 15 EW, 59f., different font in the original. 16Ibid., 111, different font in the original. 17Ibid.,127, different font in the original. 18Ibid., 164, different font in the original. 21Kriz and Slunecko, eds., 9f. My translation of: „Die Gesprächspsychotherapie behandelt gestörte Selbstregulationsprozesse, die durch Inkongruenzen ausgelöst oder aufrecht erhalten werden und zur Ausbildung von krankheitswertigen Symptomen und inadäquaten Verhaltensmustern führen. Inkongruenzen … entstehen durch einen jeweils spezifischen Mangel in der Übereinstimmung von Prozessen der organismischen Erfahrung und der Selbstwahrnehmung sowie von verinnerlichten Werten und dem Selbstkonzept. … Das allgemeine Behandlungsziel einer Gesprächspsychotherapie besteht in der Linderung bzw. Aufhebung der Symptomatik infolge einer Reduktion bzw. Aufhebung von Inkongruenzen.“ 19Ricœur, Time, 3:247. 20Ibid., 1:74. 22Bischkopf and Greenberg, 114. My translation of: „Veränderung erfolgt nicht, indem bisher verleugnete Gefühle zugelassen werden, sondern durch eine neue Qualität des Symbolisierumgsprozesses, der weniger rigide und starr ist, sondern immer differenzierter und flexibler im jeweiligen Moment entsteht. … Man konstruiert sich quasi kontinuierlich von Moment zu Moment selbst und entdeckt auf diesem Wege, wer man ist … ; d.h. Prozesse des Erlebens und Symbolisierens sind miteinander verschränkt, beinflussen sich gegenseitig und führen zu einer beständig neuen Konfiguration des Selbst.“ This is of course highly reminiscent of Paul Ricœur and the idea of mimesis. 23 EW, 251, 259. 24Ibid., 398. 25The same is of course true for Isobel in Human Croquet. She also tries to reconstruct her past as well as a picture of her mother. In doing so, she hopes to achieve a stable identity and coherence. This is apparent in all the different versions of the past she delineates. Just as Effie finally feels that Nora really is her mother, Isobel finally feels at ease with the idea that she will never see her mother again, but that she will always be part of herself. See HC, 375. 26For detailed studies on the relationship between memory and identity see Aleida Assmann; Erll, Gymnich, and Nünning, eds.; Erll and Nünning, eds.; Oesterle, ed.; Jan Assmann. 27 EW, 180, different font in the original. The first sentence is part of a story one of Effie's fellow students writes in the creative writing class. Effie inserts all these stories into her own narrative. Each of these stories is represented in a different font. 28Ibid., 186. 29Ibid., 251. 31 EW, 205. 30For detailed studies on postmodern storytelling and ist deconstruction see, for instance, Waugh; Hutcheon; Currie; Tabbi. 32As already demonstrated in this essay. 33 EW, 330, emphasis in the original. 34Ibid., 34, 92 (on p. 92 the “it” is left out. Apart from that, the sentences are the same.). Interestingly enough, this sentence is later alluded to again during one of Nora's interruptions. See EW, 365. 35 HC, 13. 36Ibid., 156. 37The sentence mentioned in EW goes a bit further than the one in HC as it not only refers to the problem or non-existence of objective perception, but also alludes to feelings of paranoia. It becomes clear in the course of EW that paranoia might be a result of the problem and awareness concerning the impossibility of objective perception. 38Ibid., 296. 39Ibid., 298. 40Ibid., 224. 41For constructivism see, for instance, von Ameln. 42 EW, 285. 43See Bischkopf and Greenberg, 114. 47Von Ameln, 42, emphasis and brackets in the original. My translation of:“ Die Konstruktbildung und—revision geht nach Kelly in zwei Konstruktionskreisläufen vonstatten. Im C-P-C-Cycle betrachtet das Individuum alle verfügbaren Handlungsstrategien (circumspection=Umsicht), wählt die (augenscheinlich) beste Strategie aus (preemption=Vorausblick), und überprüft schließlich in der gegebenen Situation die Richtigkeit seiner Auswahl (control=Kontrolle). Fällt die Prüfung positiv aus, wird das Konstruktsystem stabilisiert. Wenn dagegen mit den verfügbaren Strategien die Realität nicht zu bewältigen war, findet eine Revision und Weiterentwicklung des Konstruktsystems statt … ”. 44In HC, Isobel experiences the same day four times over. It is always Christmas and the day always ends with her boyfriend Malcolm dying. The episode alluded to here in detail is the last version of Christmas Isobel experiences. 45Reliving seems to be the more appropriate term here as Isobel is not willingly rewriting her story like Effie. 46 HC, 300.