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'This essay argues that Patrick White's commitment to transcendentalism does not involve a dismissal or rejection of corporeality as critics in the past have maintained, but rather focuses on the dissolution of discursive subjectivity. It contends that White's writing in fact advances the ontological, ethical and metaphysical imperative of accepting the body, prioritizing moments of 'transcendence' that may be viewed productively as characters' engulfment within the material world. In its focus on physicality, White's fiction emphasizes dualism in order to problematize it, and even at times to subvert it. Crucial to this aspect of his fiction is his tendency to create characters exhibiting opposing attitudes towards the flesh. This essay explores the manifestation of these opposing attitudes within White's writing. Ultimately, it argues for a reading of White that is sensitive to the strong theme of corporeality in evidence throughout the oeuvre. It suggests that White's attention to the body assists in his rejection of hubris, repudiation, repression and abjection and promotes a human possibility defined by humility, simplicity, compassion and love.' (Author's abstract)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Last amended 18 Apr 2013 13:24:57
https://openjournals.library.sydney.edu.au/index.php/JASAL/article/view/9829/9717
Resuscitating the Body : Corporeality in the Fiction of Patrick White
JASAL
Subjects:
- The Aunt's Story 1948 single work novel
- Flaws in the Glass : A Self-Portrait 1981 single work autobiography
- Memoirs of Many in One 1986 single work novel
- The Twyborn Affair 1979 single work novel
- Voss : A Novel 1957 single work novel
- The Eye of the Storm 1973 single work novel
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