YEREVAN, Armenia — The American University of Armenia (AUA) is pleased to announce a recent publication by Dr. Rachit Anand, assistant professor in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Dr. Anand’s article, titled “Coetzee and his Man,” was published in English in Africa, a peer-reviewed academic journal based at Rhodes University that focuses on English-language literature and criticism from the African continent.
The article originated as a paper for a conference at the University of Western Cape, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the South African novelist J.M. Coetzee’s first novel, Dusklands. Although Dr. Anand was unable to attend the conference in person due to travel restrictions, his paper was circulated among the participants by the organizers, Dr. Hermann Wittenberg and Dr. Carrol Clarkson. Later, several papers from the conference were selected for publication in this year’s dual issue of English in Africa.
The paper argues that the innovations in Coetzee’s fiction should not be reduced to “postmodern” experimentation. Instead, they must be understood in relation to the political implications of the English novel’s form under apartheid in 1970s South Africa. During research at the Harry Ransom Center in the summer of 2024, Dr. Anand found archival documents from Coetzee’s time as a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin that supports this argument. “These materials demonstrate that Coetzee had been exploring the political ramifications of ‘form’ in his public writing, as well as in his doctoral dissertation on stylostatistics,” he explained.
“This article makes two essential contributions to Coetzee studies and postcolonial literary studies more broadly,” noted Dr. Anand, further elaborating, “First, it introduces fresh archival material that has not been studied before, revealing the extent of Coetzee’s engagement with the politics of the Vietnam War in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s. Secondly, it prompts scholars working in the field to not only consider the ethical ramifications of the form of Coetzee’s fiction but also to read it as part of a larger political project. The substance of the argument lies in the fact that wars such as the one in Vietnam are imbricated with the idea of ‘totality’ that underpins imperialism supported by Western modes of representation.”
Founded in 1991, the American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia, affiliated with the University of California, and accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission in the United States. AUA provides local and international students with Western-style education through top-quality undergraduate and graduate degree and certificate programs, promotes research and innovation, encourages civic engagement and community service, and fosters democratic values.