Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11
Prompted by debates on the role of comedy in the USA after 9/11, the essay explores the use of satire as one important narrative strategy that emerged in the subgenre of the American 9/11 novel. Criticism of 9/11 fiction tends to regard literary satire as a device used to counter governing descripti...
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European Association for American Studies
2017-08-01
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| Series: | European Journal of American Studies |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/12067 |
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| author | Katherina Dodou |
| author_facet | Katherina Dodou |
| author_sort | Katherina Dodou |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Prompted by debates on the role of comedy in the USA after 9/11, the essay explores the use of satire as one important narrative strategy that emerged in the subgenre of the American 9/11 novel. Criticism of 9/11 fiction tends to regard literary satire as a device used to counter governing descriptions of twenty-first century terrorism. By way of Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country (2006), I show how literary satire on 9/11 is neither straightforward nor merely a means of political attack. Drawing on recent satire theory that views the satirical mode as unruly, various, and open-ended, I suggest that a closer look to the mixed intentions of this novel presents an opportunity to explore the dynamic between denunciation and comic relief in literary satire on 9/11 and opens the way for a more complex understanding of the operation and affordances of literary 9/11 satire. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0ee983b74be742e6add345a714fd4d64 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1991-9336 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2017-08-01 |
| publisher | European Association for American Studies |
| record_format | Article |
| series | European Journal of American Studies |
| spelling | doaj-art-0ee983b74be742e6add345a714fd4d642025-01-06T09:09:35ZengEuropean Association for American StudiesEuropean Journal of American Studies1991-93362017-08-0112210.4000/ejas.12067Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11Katherina DodouPrompted by debates on the role of comedy in the USA after 9/11, the essay explores the use of satire as one important narrative strategy that emerged in the subgenre of the American 9/11 novel. Criticism of 9/11 fiction tends to regard literary satire as a device used to counter governing descriptions of twenty-first century terrorism. By way of Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country (2006), I show how literary satire on 9/11 is neither straightforward nor merely a means of political attack. Drawing on recent satire theory that views the satirical mode as unruly, various, and open-ended, I suggest that a closer look to the mixed intentions of this novel presents an opportunity to explore the dynamic between denunciation and comic relief in literary satire on 9/11 and opens the way for a more complex understanding of the operation and affordances of literary 9/11 satire.https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/12067American identity9/11terrorismContemporary American novelsatireKen Kalfus |
| spellingShingle | Katherina Dodou Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11 European Journal of American Studies American identity 9/11 terrorism Contemporary American novel satire Ken Kalfus |
| title | Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11 |
| title_full | Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11 |
| title_fullStr | Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11 |
| title_short | Satirical Frame of Mind: Ken Kalfus’s A Disorder Peculiar to the Country and the Literary Engagement with 9/11 |
| title_sort | satirical frame of mind ken kalfus s a disorder peculiar to the country and the literary engagement with 9 11 |
| topic | American identity 9/11 terrorism Contemporary American novel satire Ken Kalfus |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/12067 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT katherinadodou satiricalframeofmindkenkalfussadisorderpeculiartothecountryandtheliteraryengagementwith911 |