“ No End of History: Evidence from the Contemporary English Novel ” By Del Ivan Janik Twentieth Century Literature 41.2 (Summer 1995): Based on EBSCOhost online journal article Presented by Sarita Chuang

Introduction p.1 According to Baudrillard, Fukuyama, and Jameson, we are at or beyond the “end of history”: there stands before or about us only a perpetual present: a world defined only spatially, no longer in terms of development through time. Literary postmodernism: a product of the “end of history”– “the past as referent has been effaced, time has been textualized, leaving only representations, texts, pseudo-events, images without originals: a spatial, rather than temporal, order of simulacra (David Bennet 262)

Authors and Books Discussed p.1 Possession A. S. Byatt The Remains of the Day Kazuo Ishiguro Flaubert’s Parrot Julian Barnes Hawksmoor, Chatterton, First Light, & English Music Peter Ackroyd Waterland, Shuttlecock, Out of This World, & Ever After Graham Swift

David Lodge ’ s definition of three types of 20th fiction writing p. 2 Modernism with its notion of art as an autonomous activity Antimodernist realism with its insistence on the priority of meaning over language (The Remains of the Day) Postmodernism, which implies that “ whatever meaningful patterns we discern in [fiction] are wholly illusory (5-6, 12) (Flaubert ’ s Parrot) * The works of Ackroyd, Byatt, and Swift seem to transcend Lodge ’ s rubrics.

Possession A. S. Byatt pp. 3-4 a distinction between between proper (positive, life-enhancing) & improper (objectifying, life-denying) attitudes toward the past. Those who seek to possess power, place, property, & the past  villains Those who allow themselves to be possessed by curiosity, the desire for understanding, history, & love are rewarded richly in unexpected ways. The possession by the force of the past enables Roland to rediscover, redefine, and remake himself, and to begin to take possession of his own life. Maud’s transformation is brought about by the revelation of the “end of history” of Ash and LaMotte. Like Roland, she has entered history by recognizing & acknowledging her continuity with others, past and present.

The Remains of the Day Kazuo Ishiguro pp. 4-5 Historical events (secret negotiations over the fate of Europe between the World Wars) Historical figures (Ribbentrop & Oswald Mosley) & fictional figures (Unity Mitford & the Duke of Windsor, the butler Stevens) Stevens is determined to demonstrate that the outstanding characteristic of a great butler is his “dignity”, which he defines by an embodiment of impersonality. (using dignity to dodge true responsibility) Through Stevens, Ishiguro reminds us that public as well as private history is no more than the summing up of such actions & omissions.

Flaubert ’ s Parrot Julian Barnes pp. 5-6 Geoffrey Braithwaite, the narrator: “It is not just the life that we know … It is also the life that was not led” (Barnes 121) The past is radically unknowable, and history, as Possession also demonstrates, is multiple and provisional. Braithwaite’s obsession & pursuit of Flaubert’s history ↔ a diversion from the history of his own marriage

Hawksmoor Peter Ackroyd p.7 The double narrative structure: 18th century architect Nicholas Dyer v.s. 20th century police detective Hawksmoor Ackroyd presents history and its intersections with the present as a series of such Mystery lessons. Byatt’s, Ishiguro’s and Barnes’ characters pursue knowledge of the past intentionally or involuntarily, Hawksmoor finds himself pursued and ultimately overtaken by history.

Peter Ackroyd ’ s Three Other Novels pp. 7-9 Chatterton – portrayal of the multiple intersections of past and present. First Light – continuity: the connectedness of human fear, need, and effort across the centuries. English Music – the idea of being “trapped in time,” defined by one’s limited vision of the past.

Waterland Graham Swift pp Historia: 1. inquiry, investigation, learning 2. a) a narrative of past events, history b) any kind of narrative: account, tale, story. Tom Crick’s attempt to transcend the individual and collective past by telling stories about them. History is a construct, a human creation that intensifies experience  Histrionics (theatrical arts or performances) double ending

Swift ’ s Three Other Novels pp. 10, Shuttlecock – The process of examining one’s relation to the past is shown to be more important than any particular facts one might uncover. Out of This World – To reach an understanding of the moment, one must attempt to understand its context. (involvement & imagination demanded by narrative) Ever After – resembles Possession in its juxtaposition of invented documents from the Victorian era.

Conclusion p.14 At the center of each novel is the nature of the relation of the individual to the past & how the pursuit of order that is implied in the word “history” can mediate that relation. Taken together they refute the notion that “history … is about to end”. Historical truth is hopelessly elusive, yet the process of historical exploration leads to a confrontation with inner reality that may be painful but can also be liberating and transforming.