Mere Mortals Book Reviews

Mere Mortals Book Reviews


Disgrace (J. M. Coetzee) - Book Review

February 13, 2021

Disgrace: the loss reputation/respect as the result of a dishonourable action. J. M. Coetzee is a Nobel Prize winner and also was awarded the Booker Prize for 'Disgrace', a fictional story of a disgraced professor in post-apartheid South Africa. The books touches upon many themes such as: sexual misconduct, growing old, race relations, creating art, rape and animal rights. However the two principal themes are about desire and disgrace.

I summarised the book as follows. "Be prepared for an uncomfortable read that while beautifully written contains graphic details of a gang rape scene, an old man fornicating with a young girl and euthanisation of helpless dogs. It is quite confronting yet also is a necessary reminder of the bad things that can happen in life and how one can perhaps mentally prepare for them. A relatively short book that while not pleasant, is quite gripping."

I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out!

Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro, general plot and themes
(3:30) - Sexual desire
(10:11) - Disgrace: the loss of reputation
(19:17) - Personal observations
(22:44) - Summary of the book
(23:17) - Pragmatic takeaway: the gift of fear

Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/Support the show