A Post-colonial Interrogation On Cultural Identity In J.M. Coetzee's Boyhood, Youth And Summertime

John Maxwell Coetzee's three autobiographical novels:Boyhood,Youth,and Summertime record the protagonist John Coetzee's representative experiences and feelings in his childhood,youth and adulthood.Being a white African,John experiences cultural alienation among the black and colored people and exists in a rootless state in South Africa,so one theme running through the three books is John's quest for self-identity.Through textual analysis of the three books based on the theories of Edward Said and Homi Bhabha,the thesis aims for the discussion of the protagonist's identity issue.As the descendant of European colonizers,John sees the people of the colony as"the Other" and feels no sense of belonging in Africa.He identifies himself with the white culture,and aspires to go to England to become a genuine white.This paper takes Edward Said's opinion on "the Other" to analyze John's consciousness of Eurocentrism.Besides,the thesis also explores the historical reasons for John's deep-seated hatred for his own people:the Boers.John's existence in South Africa is marginalized because he identifies himself neither with the Africans nor with the Boers.He aspires to move to a white society and becomes a real white man.In the white world of London,however,John becomes the Other and experiences the further loss of identity.The paper analyzes John's hybrid identity by resorting to Homi Baba's theories on "hybridity" and "the Third Space",which deconstructs Western cultural hegemony.Coetzee's writings show his concern for the existence of marginalized and displaced people,the concern that sheds some light on our understanding of Coetzee's reexamination about his own identity as a Diasporic writer.