Brink's Heterotopia Writing In Devil's Valley

André Brink is one of the greatest writers in South Africa,playing an important role in its social progress.He contributes more than twenty works throughout his writing career as long as four decades.His writing style is changeable,but his humanistic concern penetrates through his works,fully embodying his consciousness of writers' responsibility.Published in 1998,Devil's Valley was his first novel after the apartheid,which is about the journey of Flip Lochner into the Devil's Valley,a heterotopia.Depending on the theory of heterotopia,via analyzing the soul character and others related to him,this thesis aims to explore the heterotopias in Devil's Valley and reveal Brink's inquiry into the truth of history.Outwardly,Devil's Valley depicts the strange journey of Flip Lochner into the Devil's Valley,which reflects the mainstream society's indifference and exclusion towards the heterotopic Other,including people of color and women,in South Africa.In fact,Brink composes various forms of heterotopia through the bizarre stories of Flip Lochner with the heterotopias of individuals,community,and ideology,exhibiting in the modern society the trauma caused by apartheid left in the nation.Brink's heterotopia writing is his deep reflection on the truth of history.From his perspective,only by facing the past directly and embracing differences,can alienation be eliminated and harmonious coexistence be achieved.This thesis is separated into five parts.Chapter One is a brief introduction to AndréBrink's lifetime and major works,the plot summary of Devil's Valley,literature review at home and abroad,heterotopia theory,the research significance and layout of the thesis.The next three chapters are the main body of the thesis,researching the heterotopias in Devil's Valley from the aspects of individual,community,and ideology.Chapter Two analyzes the major characters' heterogeneous body spaces from the angles of the broken family,immortality and the mark of the Devil.Chapter Three is an analysis of the heterotopic spaces the Devil's Valley constitutes,such as heterotopias of compensation,heterotopias of opening and closing,heterochronies,heterotopias of juxtaposition,etc.from the perspectives of the living state of the residents,the isolationand exclusion of the Devil's Valley and the blurred boundary between fantasy and reality.The analysis of the heterotopias of patriarchy,racial discrimination and assorted beliefs in ideology are the main content of Chapter Four.Chapter Five is the conclusion.Through the heterotopic interpretation of Devil's Valley,this thesis probes into Brink's intention of creating this work,namely,to inquire about the truth of history and face the social trauma directly from the depiction of the marginalized and the Other.