Public Announcement

I extend my apologies to those who have willingly subjected themselves to the sort of nonsense I've written lately on this blog. Sometimes I use the blog to help get my ideas out - even if I find them invalid down the road. As you can tell, I have a tendency to bite off more than I can chew in terms of assignments - and sometimes the brain food has fancies mixed in it. I can't figure out my focus for the Reef presentation. First I considered looking at three intertexts, which turned out to be too much material to cover in 15 minutes. Second I convinced myself that Huxley's Island is being re-written by Gunesekera in Reef. Now I am beginning to think that there are similarities - but after reading an article by Tariq Jazeel on the concept of 'island-ness' in Reef I am reconsidering my topic, again! What seems to be happening, as it usually does, is that I am adding an extra layer each time I re-examine my focus - blurring parts in the process.

What I definitely stand by is the importance of the three intertexts, as well utopian and island narratives in Island and Reef. The question is, what now? I have 15 minutes. At the moment the best idea I have is to compare the use of 'utopian' and 'island' narratives in both novels - see what they say.