Disgrace by J.M. CoetzeeMy review
This is one of those books I got to read while in transit via the subway to & fro my destinations to my other gigs. I've kept this book for over a year now, and thought, and have confirmed that it's actually very readable (I read it in less than 3 days), even with a lot of distractions while on the subway.
I won't detail down the story, as it's obviously giving away its very structure. But reading this book comes with it different levels of experience. It's got a well delineated story to begin with, interesting characters, and a context that makes one think about the conflicting attitudes of people who have undergone the terrible processes of "colonization" as against that of someone coming from a country that "colonizes," and continuing into the views of those who have "colonized," with whom I tend to share my feelings of empathy as the original country where I come from is the Philippines (the farthest country, being in SouthEast Asia, that used to be part of the great colonized-countries of the empire of Spain). I can just imagine how development directions of the Philippines would have been far progressive if it was not given up by the British when it momentarily took possession as a prize of the Philippines after winning a naval war against Spain off Manila Bay during the 18th century. But I'd like to remain grateful for Spain for the heritage that the Philippines has got now, nevertheless.
Yet, reading "Disgrace," makes me to continue thinking about my position. It's not always a comforting thought to be part of a colonized country. Colonizers are basically driven by greed of all forms, and certainly, they're known to be cruel, no matter how you look at it. "Colonizing" has a debasing nature clinging to it. "Disgrace" has that after effect on me, that it has got me thinking about the Philippines, given its experiences of being a colony of Spain, and later on by the USA. But I'd rather focus on the collective gains, rather than the terrible sufferings, which are all recorded anyway, in historical books.
I'm surprised that J.M. Coetzee's "Disgrace" is rather light to read. He's got that compelling writing style that appeals to my tastes of books I'd like to read. The top characters exhibit such levels of passion, raw eroticism. And this is the first book I read about "animal rights" being shoved into my face, so to say, with me getting to appreciate such rights, and getting myself into pondering about my own existence. And I soon got to know that Coetzee's been awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. How excellent that could be!
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