Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Animal Narratology |
| Editors | Joela Jacobs |
| Place of Publication | Basel |
| Publisher | MDPI AG |
| Pages | 307-319 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| ISBN (electronic) | 978-3-03928-349-1 |
| ISBN (print) | 978-3-03928-348-4 |
| Publication status | Published - 2020 |
Abstract
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Animal Narratology. ed. / Joela Jacobs. Basel: MDPI AG, 2020. p. 307-319.
Research output: Chapter in book/report/conference proceeding › Contribution to book/anthology › Research › peer review
}
TY - CHAP
T1 - An Animal-Centered Perspective on Colonial Oppression
T2 - Animal Representations and the Narrating Ox in Uwe Timm’s Morenga (1978)
AU - Röhrs, Steffen
N1 - Printed Edition of the Special Issue Published in Humanities
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - As a result of its topic and its narrative style, Uwe Timm’s novel Morenga (1978) marks an important step in the development of postcolonial German literature. The main theme of the book is the bloody suppression of the Herero and Nama uprisings through the German army in South-West Africa at the beginning of the 20th century. With recourse to historical and fictional documents and by using different narrative perspectives, the text achieves a plurality of voices and thereby destabilizes a one-dimensional view on colonialism. The present article discusses the functions of the nonhuman animals appearing in Morenga. It is assumed that the animal representations are an essential part of the plot and underscore the criticism of colonial rule in a narrative manner too. The novel contains several descriptions of suffering animals and links them to the harm of the Herero and the Nama in order to point out the ruthlessness of the colonists. Moreover, the book features a story-telling ox, which initiates a reflection process about possible ways of narrating colonial history. The talking ox adds a specific animal-centered perspective on colonial oppression and raises questions about emancipation, self-determination, and the agency of the nonhuman ‘other’.
AB - As a result of its topic and its narrative style, Uwe Timm’s novel Morenga (1978) marks an important step in the development of postcolonial German literature. The main theme of the book is the bloody suppression of the Herero and Nama uprisings through the German army in South-West Africa at the beginning of the 20th century. With recourse to historical and fictional documents and by using different narrative perspectives, the text achieves a plurality of voices and thereby destabilizes a one-dimensional view on colonialism. The present article discusses the functions of the nonhuman animals appearing in Morenga. It is assumed that the animal representations are an essential part of the plot and underscore the criticism of colonial rule in a narrative manner too. The novel contains several descriptions of suffering animals and links them to the harm of the Herero and the Nama in order to point out the ruthlessness of the colonists. Moreover, the book features a story-telling ox, which initiates a reflection process about possible ways of narrating colonial history. The talking ox adds a specific animal-centered perspective on colonial oppression and raises questions about emancipation, self-determination, and the agency of the nonhuman ‘other’.
KW - Uwe Timm
KW - Morenga
KW - African history
KW - colonialism
KW - postcolonial German literature
KW - animal narratology
KW - speaking animals
KW - multi-perspective narration
KW - animal agency
UR - https://doi.org/10.3390/books978-3-03928-349-1
M3 - Contribution to book/anthology
SN - 978-3-03928-348-4
SP - 307
EP - 319
BT - Animal Narratology
A2 - Jacobs, Joela
PB - MDPI AG
CY - Basel
ER -