Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 2002. Vol. 8. Eger Journal of American Studies.(Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 28)

Studies - Judit Molnár: The Spatio-Temporal Dimension of Diasporic Discourse from the Carrebian on the Canadian Literary Scene

JUDIT MOLNÁR THE SPATIO-TEMPORAL DIMENSION OF DIASPORIC DISCOURSE FROM THE CARREBIAN ON THE CANADIAN LITERARY SCENE By way of preamble to this article, I would like to emphasize the fact that the following is going to be case studies of selected works by two authors: Austin C. Clarke and Dionne Brand, who can trace back their roots to the Carribean in their idiosyncratic ways. The close reading of the texts will basically rely on the concepts put forward by Yi-Fu Tuan Space and Place (1977) and The Production of Space (1974) by Henri Lefebvre. I do not intend to problematize the notions of space and place in this paper but theoretical clarifications are in order. I shall apply the notion verbalized by Yi-Fy Tuan according to whom: "'Space' is more abstract than 'place'. What begins as undiferrentiated space becomes place as we get to know it better and endow it with value" (6). Henri Lefebvre notes, "We are thus confronted by an indefinite multitude of spaces, each one piled upon, or perhaps contained within, the next: geographical, economic, demographic, sociological, ecological, political, commercial, national, continental, global. Not to mention nature's (physical) space, the space of (energy) flows, and so on" (6) Let me also add the space of religion and that of language as well. Spatial references of differents sorts will be pointed out in the texts. Since the authors under discussion are not necessarily known some words about their backgrounds are going to be made. Cyril Dabydeen, himself a poet from the Caribbeans, writes of Clarke, "[t]he Carribean literary groundwork has been laid in the seminal work of the Barbadian-born novelist: Austin Clarke; his place in Canadian 205