This course gave me a new way of approaching fiction. Controversial topics translated better in the fictitious realm than they do in traditionally more reliable sources, such as news. Fiction can tell the truth in an invented story, and is not dictated by time as news is. It has the freedom to dwell on past moments and expand on untold stories.
Benito Cereno and Heart of Darkness taught us that the narrator's descriptions often say more about the narrator than they do about what is being described. These novellas showed us the world through the imperial's eye, a problematic perspective grounded in historical truth.
A Small Place, Quiemada!, and The Reluctant Fundamentalist engaged the reader/viewer in the narrative with the use of the second person, pointing out our evolvement and responsibility in conflicts around us. We are a guilty audience.
A Pale View of Hills revealed the unreliability of memory while simultaneously highlighting the devastating effects of trauma. Footnotes in Gaza explored memory on the collective front, demonstrating that even something as unreliable as memory still holds a revealing truth.
The Quiet American showed us the faults in journalism and the myth of neutrality. Influence from dominant world powers trickles in everywhere, and in doing nothing, we are assuming a side in conflict.
When combining all of these lessons I learned that I am a guilty reader through my decision to not be involved. Memory can, in many ways be more truthful than news or journalism, and narration always says something about the narrator.
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