Stream of Consciousness as Vehicle for Postmodernist Examination of Perception

In his 1974 collection of two short stories, titled Dusklands, and his 1977 novel In the Heart of the Country, J. M. Coetzee writes in a stream-of-consciousness narrative mode as a way to explore the psyches of his characters and their distorted ways of perceiving the world. As a result of this narrative style, which puts the reader inside the mind of the protagonists in each novel, the reliability of the narrators comes into question when gaps in the narrators’ thinking patterns indicates that their perceptions may be unsound. In this way, Coetzee plays with the idea of reality and consciousness, inferring that perception is untrustworthy because it is subjectively filtered through the thoughts and feelings of the observer. In other words, Coetzee takes a postmodernist look at reality, questioning whether there is one “reality” or whether reality is simply an individual construct based on perception.

In “The Narrative of Jacobus Coetzee,” the second story in Dusklands, the narrator’s reliability falters when in one paragraph he indicates that the Hottentot he is traveling with has died: “[he] went to his death bearing the blanket roll and all the food” (94) and in the next paragraph, he continues the narrative as if the Hottentot were still alive: “The crossing took all of an hour, for we had to probe the bottom before each step…” (94). This break in reality instantly causes the reader to question the narrator’s sanity and the reliability of the rest of the story.

Similarly, in the novel In the Heart of the Country, Magda’s narrative account centers on the death of her father -- how she murdered him, how she buried him and how her life changed after his death. But, seventeen pages from the end of the novel, the narrative shifts and Magda’s thoughts read: “Perhaps I have been mistaken all the time, perhaps my father is not dead after all” (122). From this point forward in the novel, Magda’s narration and the events that transpire are written as if her father is alive. This once again calls into question Magda’s reliability as a narrator and her sanity, leaving the reader to wonder whether the narration up to this point has been merely a series of fantasies or whether the ending is the fantasy and the rest of the novel the truth. Either way, Coetzee’s purpose has been achieved – the lines between reality and fantasy have been blurred. The reader can no longer tell what is truth and what is fiction. In this way, Coetzee’s stream-of-consciousness narrative style is the perfect conduit through which to contemplate the concept of “reality” and the role of individual perception and fantasy in the formation of subjective "truth."

Another way Coetzee achieves this blurring of reality is through the use of repetition – both of events and words. Several times in the novel, Magda contemplates a series of seemingly plausible versions of real scenarios without telling the reader which one is in fact the true occurrence. In Section 236 of the novel, for example, Magda contemplates three explanations for Hendrik’s refusal to return home. In the first scenario, Magda thinks: “Perhaps they did not shoot them out of hand” (122). In the second, she says: “Perhaps they did indeed bring Hendrik back to the farm, to confront me, and I have forgotten” (122) and in the final scenario Magda says: “Perhaps I have been mistaken all the time, perhaps my father is not dead after all” (122). Coetzee’s use of repeated accounts of events here indicates that Magda’s mind is not operating on the level of reality, but on the level of fantasy. The repetition of the word “perhaps” furthers this explanation for her thoughts since the word itself is used to indicate uncertainty. But, does this mean she is mad? Or, like everyone, is she engaging in daydreams as a way to pass the time or create a more pleasurable reality? These are the questions that arise from Coetzee's stream-of-consciousness narrative mode. This narrative style also once again calls into question the authenticity of the story being told and of the sanity of the narrator herself.

One final way that Coetzee plays with reality is through his examination of time. Magda says at one point that she cannot remember what happened the day before: “A day must have intervened here … perhaps I spent it asleep” (79). Once again, her lack of touch with a sense of real time indicates that her way of thinking may be unstable. On the other hand, perhaps the monotony of her life on the farm has merely made the days blend together so that one day seems like the next and no day is particularly memorable. Either way, once again, a “true” explanation of reality is not discernible because Coetzee does not offer it.

Coetzee’s stream of consciousness narrative style calls into question not just Magda and Jacobus’ perception of reality but reality for all of humanity, encouraging readers to contemplate questions such as: Is there any truth to our perceptions or are our perceptions tainted by our consciousness? Or, is there ever really one reality or is it dependent upon the eyes of the beholder? Only by taking his narration inside the minds of his protagonists can Coetzee examine these kinds of postmodernist philosophical questions from such an intimate angle. Ultimately therefore, Coetzee achieves with his stream-of-consciousness narrative form, a richer forum for thought and speculation, thereby raising reader consciousness to a higher level – if indeed “consciousness” really exists.

Works Cited

Coetzee, J.M. Dusklands. New York: Penguin Books, 1974. Print.

---. In the Heart of the Country. United States: Penguin Books, 1982. Print.