Abstract
In the labyrinthine depths of S., a contemporary experimental fiction, the Ship of Theseus serves as a vessel of self-discovery. Beyond a metaphor, sea is an idea, a medium and a space in the novel where the proverbial “ship” is occupied. Theseus, the mythical hero, after killing the Minotaur, is on an expedition on his ship and “Ship of Theseus,” the inner text of the novel, accommodates the conversations of the characters of the outer text, S., on its margins. In “Ship of Theseus,” the central character S. is an amnesiac who is trying to learn more about himself. S. copes with his memory loss by recreating his true disposition, only to be overshadowed by the remnants of the things he used to be, representing the metaphysical puzzle of the Ship of Theseus. The undercurrent that holds the narrative complexities, including the detachable paratextual elements in the text, is its characteristic self-reflexivity. The paper semiotically analyzes the experimental manifestation of the oceanic journey, while examining how the Ship of Theseus, both a physical object and a conceptual construct, embodies the paradoxes of identity, memory, and consciousness. It also looks at sea as a boundary, particularly between the known and unknown and several other binaries. The primary motive of the paper is to investigate the metaphorical, literary and symbolic significance of the ship in S. and its correlation to self-reflexivity as a narrative strategy.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Self-reflexivity, Ship of Theseus, Contemporary Experimental Fiction, Expedition, Consciousness
