Rossoni, Stefano;
(2023)
A novel for an ageing population? Masculinity and demographic shift in David Lodge's Deaf Sentence (2008).
Literature Compass
, 20
(10-12)
, Article e12755. 10.1111/lic3.12755.
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Abstract
This article examines David Lodge's novel Deaf Sentence (2008), which focuses on the life of Desmond, a retired professor of linguistics. I argue that this text offers a standpoint through which readers can visualise the global phenomenon of population ageing and address the question of global responsibility. I look at Deaf Sentence within the tradition of the Bakhtinian polyphonic novel and through the lens of the campus novel that Lodge discusses in his critical writing. The analysis of dialogism and self‐reflexivity illuminates the reverberations of global ageing on the life of Desmond, situating questions of wellbeing and demography within a narrative perspective. Detailing their struggles with isolation, incontinence and erectile dysfunction, the narration of Desmond and his father growing older sheds light on the limitations of biomedical scripts for older men based on bodily control and sexual performativity. Considering the tension of biomedical discourses and gender expectations informing the cultural construction of ageing in the global North, I contend that Lodge's writing exposes the limits of the neoliberal ideals of self‐sufficiency and individual responsibility at the heart of the notion of successful ageing. Echoing Desmond's self‐reflection, Deaf Sentence offers its reader a standpoint through which to reflect on his problematic participation in the neoliberal, patriarchal regimes that marginalise him. Interpreting the novel as a space for deconstructing the ideal of an autonomous and independent subject postulated by neoliberal discourses, I read Deaf Sentence as an invitation to its readers to embrace their own vulnerability, fostering ethics of care towards themselves and the other.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | A novel for an ageing population? Masculinity and demographic shift in David Lodge's Deaf Sentence (2008) |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1111/lic3.12755 |
| Publisher version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/lic3.12755 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made. © 2023 The Authors. Literature Compass published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd |
| Keywords: | ageing, ethics of care, Lodge, masculinity, responsibility, self-reflexivity, Viagra |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of Arts and Humanities UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of Arts and Humanities > SELCS |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10186151 |
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