Tension between self-assertiveness and marginality in Coetzee's in the heart of the country and foe

Abstract EN

The paper looks at father/m aster-daughterlservant relationships and traces their reversals in Coetze e.'s In the Heart of the County and Foe to bring out the tension between self-assertiveness and marginality in these two novels.

While the paper sheds light on Coetzees female heroine ' s search for identity and expression of the self through their narratives that challenge the prevalent masculine discourse of power in such a way that they succeed inrcinforcing their self-assertion in the act of writing of their own history.

It also shows that they fail to create a language of true exchange with their servants due to their inheritance of the language of patriarchy and the word s of 'colonial philosophy ' and culture and also the inseparable link between linguistic and colonial oppression.

The paper therefore attributes the creation of the distance between the master and the servant to the oppressive social structures that reinforce the law of apartheid and increase the sense of alienation and loneliness experienced by Magda in particular due to the patriarchal colonia l history that ha s been bequeathed to her.

While the paper explores the numerous factor s that undermine Magda's success in asserting her feminine identity.

it pays close attention to the novel's ending to show that she remains among the "castaways of history" who cannot live outside the given social structures that define her role within its limit s.

Moreover.

the paper explores the close links between Magda and Susan Barton, showing that the latter's reliance on the male author for the construction of her story undermines her claims of self-assertiveness and insistence on being the author of her own story.

The paper also look s at Susan ' s relationship with Friday and sheds light on their mutual victimization .

However, the paper traces the gradual emergence of Friday as a distinct voice that seeks its freedom from the colonizing authority of Susan Foe .

While the paper draws attention to the novel' s consolidation and construction of Friday' s image as the voiceless other by colonial writing, it equally pays attention to the eventual release of his voice to show that Coetzee is sending a message that the history of mute subjection is bound to come to an end.

The paper therefore concludes by confirming the eventual marginalization of Coetzee’s female heroines who cannot extricate themselves fully from patriarchal and colonial domination.

Moreover, it points to Susan's exclusion from the arena of writing for the silenced other, while the path is paved for Friday to speak on behalf of the silenced majority in South Africa.