1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910453549003321

Autore

Kawakami Akane

Titolo

A self-conscious art [[electronic resource] ] : Patrick Modiano's postmodern fictions / / Akane Kawakami

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Liverpool, : Liverpool University Press, 2000

ISBN

1-78138-837-7

1-84631-402-X

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (176 p.)

Collana

Modern French writers ; ; 5

Disciplina

843.914

843/.914

Soggetti

French fiction - 20th century - History and criticism

Postmodernism (Literature)

Electronic books.

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references (p. 153-162) and index.

Nota di contenuto

Title Page; Table of Contents; Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1: Degree Zero Voices: The Empty Narrator; 2: Disorderly Narratives: The Order of Narration; 3: Unreal Stories: The 'effet d'irreel'; 4: Being Serious: Modiano's Use of History; 5: Being Playful: Parody and Disappointment; 6: Being Popular: The Modiano Novel; Notes to Introduction; Bibliography; Index

Sommario/riassunto

A Self-Conscious Art is the first full-length study in English to attempt to deal with the formal complexities of Modiano's work, by reading 'against the grain' of his self-professed ingenuousness. A detailed examination of his narratives shows the deeply postmodern nature of his writing. Parodying precursors such as Proust or the nouveau romanciers, his narratives are built around a profound lack of faith in the ability of writing to retrieve the past through memory, and this failure is acknowledged in the discreet playfulness that characterises his novels. This book is a timely introduction