Abstract
In his novel set entirely in a dystopian environment, In the Country of Last Things, Paul Auster portrays a disturbing vision of urban space where pervasive processes of disintegration and destabilisation profoundly determine the relations inside it. In this study the semiotic space of this unnamed city will be examined on the basis of the opposition between dominant dystopian space and impermanent sanctuaries located within the urban realm. The defining division of space has its reflection in the practical realisation of the concept of solidarity. The city is inhabited by society for whom moral codes and higher values can be considered relics of the past. Consequently, genuine solidarity has been replaced by what Sally Scholz calls ‘parasitical solidarity’. Temporary refuges, on the other hand, serve as the last anchorages of humanity trying to resist detrimental impacts from outside and to preserve natural gestures of solidarity.
Highlights
One of the most fundamental understandings of solidarity, provided by Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, emphasises its central idea of “support by one person or group of peopleKula: Lost, redefined, or preserved...for another because they share feelings, opinions, aims, etc.” (Hornby 2010: 1468)
Scholz points out that solidarity cannot be regarded as a homogeneous conception referring solely to the practical realisation of convictions and ideological standpoints commonly held amongst members of particular groups
The city constructed by Auster is irreversibly damaged by unidentified blasts, which turns the whole space into a literal wasteland
Summary
One of the most fundamental understandings of solidarity, provided by Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, emphasises its central idea of “support by one person or group of people. Scholz points out that solidarity cannot be regarded as a homogeneous conception referring solely to the practical realisation of convictions and ideological standpoints commonly held amongst members of particular groups She discerns that “more often than not, the understanding of solidarity is blurred as scholars use it to discuss external identity, shared experience, shared consciousness, and political resistance separately and simultaneously” (Scholz 2008: 3). Solidarity may be understood as unity maintained in a particular community, which creates a sense of shared identity, and as harmony, mutual support, and the pursuit of a common goal In such forms, it is a fairly attractive concept to be explored in dystopian narratives where one out of protagonists’ many challenges is the struggle for survival in unfavourable conditions. The principal aim of this article is to examine the spatial dimension of the novel with the main focus on the blurring opposition between the dystopian city and ephemeral refuges within it, in reference to the notion of solidarity
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