Scottish postmodernism

Scottish Postmodern Fiction - Spring 2005

Is there a peculiarly Scottish postmodernism?

These 4 novels seem to insist both on their particularity as Scottish texts (whether in their topography, their language quirks, or their (postcolonial) political obsessions with independence and separate identity), as well as on their postmodern qualities (whether in their non-linear story-telling, genre mixing, use of historiographic metafictional techniques, or their obsession with the break-down of grand narratives of religion and science). Thus they form part of a hitherto little discussed canon of Scottish postmodern fiction which this course will examine in the light of literary history as well as in the light of postmodern and postcolonial poetics - with a view to defining the Scottish particularism in this body of texts.

Authors	Work	Sessions	Secondary literature	Notes
Iain Banks	The Crow Road (1992) - quotes	3/2: Ch. 1-10 10/2: Ch. 11 - end	Speak for Scotland Iain Banks and the Fiction Factory (copy)	Session 1 Session 2
Andrew Crumey	Mr. Mee (2000) - Rouseau's Confessions as intertext	17/2: Ch. 1-7 24/2: Ch 8 - end	Mr. Mee reviews Interview with Crumey	Session 3 Session 4
Christopher Brookmyre	Quite Ugly One Morning (1996) - Influences on Brookmyre	3/3: Ch. 1-17 10/3: Ch. 18 - end	Pulp Fiction Brookmyre interview	Session 5 Session 6
Alasdair Gray	Poor Things (1992)	31/3: Ch. 1-13 7/4 : Ch. 14 - end	Bell, book, and candle Bella and the Beast (copy)	Session 7 Session 8


Iain Banks	Andrew Crumey	Chris Brookmyre (+ a site with some additional info)	Alasdair Gray (+ an unofficial Alasdair Gray site)