A review by thecrematedwizard
Foe by J.M. Coetzee

3.0

An exploration of the power (and disillusionment) of authorship, and the impact of perspective upon reality. Coetzee highlights in particular the binaries of author/scriptor, voice/voiceless and experience/intellect, where in this instance, the author function takes precedence over the reader's interpretation; the 'real' author of Susan's story - Susan herself - is obscured underneath the power imbalance of author/scriptor in the world of literary storytelling. Foe, I would say, is a fundamentally important revelation of the distortion of the reality of a story when it comes to penning said story - so much so that even the author can begin to lose sight of the authentic when faced with different appealing aspects of cultural discourse. Foe is essentially the illustration of the struggle of subjectivity through specific narration; it draws particular attention to the blanks or silences that activate our wandering viewpoint, while enabling us to question the validity of each character's perception of a singular event. Overall, a provoking and engaging read. I recommend it to those particularly interested in the idea of authorship and the parallels we see throughout the complex and critical design of 'literature'.