The Crisis of Liberal Democracy in Contemporary Novels

This book investigates how contemporary novels by Knausgård, Smith, Sansal and Houellebecq reflect a profound shift from post-Cold War optimism to new narratives of uncertainty about the future. In doing so, these works explore the political discontents of our time, capturing the anxieties that are disrupting Western democracies today.

This book explores how contemporary novels reflect a profound shift in Western culture, from the political optimism of the post-Cold War era to growing fears about the future of liberal democracy. Analysing four major works - Karl Ove Knausgård's My Struggle series, Zadie Smith's White Teeth, Boualem Sansal's 2084 and Michel Houellebecq's Submission - it shows how these novels illuminate current social discontents and engages the anxieties of our time. Where the so-called "end-of-history" narrative once promised a triumphant liberal democracy, novelistic fiction today reflects a more ominous outlook: progressives are haunted by dystopian visions of democratic decline, while reactionaries fear cultural displacement and yearn for a lost Golden Age. Bridging literary analysis and political theory, the book offers new perspectives on how literature engages with and challenges contemporary political narratives, making it a vital resource for those interested in the intersection of politics and literature.

Autorentext

Leander Møller Gøttcke holds a PhD from the Department for the Study of Culture at the University of Southern Denmark. He currently works as a research librarian at the University Library of Southern Denmark.

Inhalt

Acknowledgements

Introduction: The Sense of an Ending

1. Liberal Democracy and the Modern Novel

2. Liberal Democracy and Its Discontents: Karl Ove Knausgård's Struggle at the End of History

3. The End and Continuation of History: Zadie Smith's Critique of Francis Fukuyama in White Teeth

4. The Reactionary Dystopia: Boualem Sansal's 2084 vis-à-vis George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four

5. The Decline and Fall of Liberal Democracy: Michel Houellebecq's Submission as Satire

Conclusion: Imaginary Futures and Political Realities

Index