Deon Meyer Dead Before Dying - Essay Example

?One of the most profound levels of importance with which literary analysis seeks to grapple is with regards to drawing inference and meanings from the texts which are analyzed. Oftentimes, these meanings are subliminal and or indirect. Other times, the level of directness is so obvious that the reader cannot help but notice whatever meanings or understandings the author seeks to engage him/her with. Whereas it cannot be argued that Death Before Dying should be understood as a pinnacle achievement of literature, it nonetheless engages the reader in several levels of understanding concerning violence and its role within the culture and expectations of Africa. Within such an understanding, the following analysis will seek to perform a literary analysis upon Death Before Dying as a means of highlighting and underscoring the level of prejudice and implied expectations that the author conveys within this particular book.1 Within such an understanding, the following literary analysis will be contingent upon how an expectation for violence is created in the mind of the reader, how this expectation of violence ultimately coalesces into a reinforcement of stereotypes and prejudices for the continent of Africa, and how the story itself serves as something of a microcosm for helping the reader to “understand” Africa and the unique experiences played out within this “dark continent” in a more actionable way. Firstly, it must be understood that the story itself presents the reader with a level of expected violence. What is meant by this is that the author leverages a the stereotypes that exist within the mind of the reader as a means of releasing himself from some of the “dirty work” of expounding upon the unique and or nuanced realities that exist within Africa and South Africa specifically.2 While this may be seen as somewhat critical of the writing style or level of accomplishment that the author is able to bring to bear, this is not what is specifically intended.3 Rather, within any story or presentation of fact, it is necessary for the author to realize from what vantage point the reader will ultimately approach such an understanding.4 If the author seeks to convey a realization that concerns a given locale or culture without the reader ever having been there, he/she will most likely leverage a prior level of understanding and/or stereotypes that are somewhat universal and exist in the minds of the majority of readers. By utilizing such a tactic, it is possible for the author to convey deep shades of meaning in only a few words.5 Such is very much the case in the novel in question. Rather than spending the first half of the book describing the cultural elements and unique levels of understanding that help to define violence within Africa, the author instead leverages this expectation of violence as a means of cementing the existing prejudices that are evident with regards to Africa.6 Although this is not the author’s main criteria, it nonetheless functions as a powerful means of securing a vivid and profound image in the mind of the reader and reinforcing that image as the storyline progresses.7 Though it might seem as somewhat silly for the reader to expect a simple novel as a possible opportunity to become further informed concerning the realities that define life and understandings of violence within Africa, the ultimate fact of the matter is that this form of media is precisely the type of information that serves to either crush or reinforce existing stereotypes within the minds of the reader.8 As such, the author begins the novel with a terse presentation of the current state of South Africa. From the very opening lines, the reader can infer that something of a powerful expectation for violence is instilled not only within the main characters but also within the media and general population of the nation as well. As a means of even further reinforcing such an understanding, the author tacitly alludes to violence serving the media and the populace as something of a means of interest. Although this is not directly stated, such an explanation of the role and cultural reality that violence plays within the society is helpful in understanding the way in which further exhibitions of violence will be presented and come to be expected; not only by the media and society but by the police officers who work to solve the crimes in question.9 As a means of underscoring this, the author alludes to the fact that although concurrent crimes of importance are taking place, inclusive of a spate of bank robberies, the serial murders by the supposed killer are far more intriguing to everyone involved.10 Although this helps to make an interesting story line, it has a lot to say not only about society as a whole but about the extent to which violence is reinforced as an expected and even intriguing aspect of African society that the reader can readily integrate an understanding of. 11 One could argue that the role of violence in the work is somehow separate from the story of Africa and/or South Africa. However, the fact of the matter is that rather than a mere crime drama being played out in print, it is not the policemen’s response to the violence that helps to encapsulate the way in which society understands or reacts to it; rather, it is society that most closely reacts along the same lines as do the policemen.12 The public is intrigued and momentarily interested by the horror and sheer brutality and lack of reason; yet, at the same time, the author describes a populace that has somehow become numbed to the nearly incessant violence that threatens to swallow an otherwise “normal” society.13 Whereas the previous levels of analysis that have been performed indicate a one dimensional approach to Africa and a presentation of an expectedly violent world, it is unique that the society that the author describes is so seemingly captivated by it.14 More than revealing a level of acceptance or non-acceptance for violence within African society, the level of interest that society, and by extension the news media, has in the murders that are taking place helps to underscore a culture that is somehow morbidly fascinated and desirous of the affliction that has been defined.15 Yet, to the author’s credit, it cannot be said that the entire novel only helps to elaborate upon the broken nature of African society or the view of violence that exists within such a society.16 Rather than falling prey to the pitfall of defining violence within Africa as primarily motivated by uncivilized and violent peoples, Africans, the author instead seeks to reveal a more realistic image that attributes violence and murder to the sophisticated and wealthy alongside the poor and rather uncouth.17 Such an approach, although not necessarily useful after the heavy use of stereotypes and over-simplifications that have gone before, help the reader to come to an appreciation for the fact that although Africa may indeed to a violent place filled with a culture that is somehow inconsiderate of the needs of others or of life itself, it is nonetheless still a reflection of global society and a reflection of how the selfish needs and intents of individuals translate into violent action; regardless of what the color of their skin might be.18 Further, the reader is led to the understanding that violence within South Africa serves as something of a systemic rot that can affect any and all individuals; regardless of class, race or nation or origin.19 Though it is not outside of the norm for a police detective to become slowly mired in depression and thoughts of suicide, the author presents the reader early on with the character of Joubert who, still suffering from the emotional trauma of his wife’s death as well as the hardship of working abysmally depressing and dark murder cases day in and day out, contemplates suicide as a means of effecting a release from the hardship he has grown all to accustomed to20. Even though the analyst could posit that a police detective being burned out and seeking suicide as a potential release from the emotional hardship and pain that his/her job provides them is not unique, the way in which this is presented near the very beginning of the novel helps to reinforce in the mind of the reader the fact that the current level of violence and culture of Africa is so horrendous that even suicide seems as a potentially acceptable action for averting further hardship that would necessarily be caused by either working or living in such a society/culture.21 Interestingly, the author includes something of a clear object lesson with regards to the way in which the prevalence of violence and hardship can be reduced in South Africa. Rather than merely stating that this violence is a way of life that must be accepted, the author alludes to the fact that a troubled history and racist past is the main responsible reason for why violence within South Africa and the culture is so widely accepted and practiced to such a detrimental scale.22 Such a justification, although partially correct, is then leveraged as a plot motivator as it provides the author with a means of promoting change at nearly each and every juncture of the story.23 The main characters are forced out of their comfort zones by a new commanding officer who insists on a new way of doing things, different approaches are used for finding the responsible perpetrator(s), and a newfound sense of disgust and estrangement is provided to the reader with regards to how an individual should approach the situation of extensive violence within the nation of South Africa.24 From a literary analysis point of view, it can be said that such an approach is ineffective in performing any newfound understanding concerning violence within South Africa.25 Instead, by the time that change and the need for it is presented to the reader, stereotypes and perceived understandings concerning the exhibition of violence within South Africa have already been nursed by the author to such an extent to that the reader finds it difficult to approach the issue from a new paradigm.26 All in all, the work itself falls far short of seeking to integrate a more profound understanding concerning violence and its place in African culture and society. To the book’s credit, it was not written as a case study on anthropology or sociology; rather, it was written as a means of lightly entertaining the audience with a crime novel that is set in one of the more violent of regions in the entire world.27 That being said, it only stands to reason that the author has leveraged stereotypes and preconceived notions as a means of presenting a massive amount of information to the reader and being able to promptly pick up the plot and storyline from these preconceived understandings. Instead of languishing for chapters defining a nuanced state of affairs in which the old South Africa and apartheid impacted upon the actions that many disaffected youth were currently taking part in, the author saw it far more convenient to briefly engage the reader with an understanding of how these elements coalesce to define South African than launching into a lengthy discussion and elaboration of how and why these elements have come to be understood and discussed in the way they have. Even though one cannot fault the author for taking such an approach, the fact of the matter is that a more nuanced understanding would have been more effective in presenting the reader with a more informed understanding of current violence in Africa and dispelling some of the stereotypes that so oftentimes exist. In short, the novel itself is a prime example of how the existing stereotypes concerning violence and crime in Africa are purveyed well into the future. As stakeholders within society integrate with information that hearkens back to prior understandings, further stereotypes are accepted and issues are seemingly understood to a better and greater degree. Read More