Three Heterotopias:A Study Of Storytelling In Generation X

Douglas Coupland's novel Generation X(1991)focuses on the oral storytelling among the narrator Andy and his friends.In the process of such storytelling three heterotopias are formed,namely the geographical heterotopia,the discursive heterotopia,and the spiritual heterotopia.This thesis,by drawing eclectically on the theory of “heterotopia”,the method of “discourse analysis”,the notion of “paratext”,and the concept of “dramaturgy”,is intended to explore the characteristics and connotations of each of the heterotopias.Firstly,the novel's main setting Palm Springs,as a geographical heterotopia,exhibits anti-capitalist ethos and apocalyptic tones by spatially differentiating from the bourgeois urban environment and temporarily resisting the stereotypical scenarios of the American West since the nineteenth century.Secondly,the storytelling itself is a discursive heterotopia which inherits the heterogeneity of an oral literary form named the American “tall tale”,and stylistically innovates it to deepen the characters' dissatisfaction with mass media popular in America in the late twentieth century.Lastly,the fictional characters experience emotional comfort and spiritual fulfilment when sharing stories,hence the construction of a spiritual heterotopia contrary to the then mainstream culture in America.They end up adopting an itinerant lifestyle to sustain their spiritual heterogeneity.In conclusion,the novel presents the American Generation Xers' resistance to all-pervasive capitalism as well as their endless drifting in quest of the unknown,during which they have incorporated storytelling into their own lifestyle and turned their own experiences into worthwhile tales.