The Exploitation and Subjugation of women in J M Coetzee's novel Disgrace

Abstract

The lives of the novel's female protagonists serve as a lens through which the author J.M. Coetzee examines the exploitation and subjection of women as a central issue in his book Disgrace. The events of the narrative take place in a post-apartheid version of South Africa and focus on the life of David Lurie, a university professor who is involved in an affair with Melanie Isaacs, one of his pupils. Lurie is forced to resign once the romance is uncovered, and he takes safety with his daughter Lucy, who lives in the countryside. In a society dominated by patriarchy, Coetzee consistently shows women to be defenceless and helpless throughout the book. Melanie Isaacs, the student with whom Lurie had an affair, is a young and naive lady who is easily deceived by Lurie because of his charisma and influence as a professor. Lurie's romance with Melanie Isaacs begins while Melanie is a sophomore in high school. After the affair is discovered, Melanie is made to suffer the embarrassment and humiliation of being called a whore in public by Lurie's co-workers and pupils. She is forced to go through this because she has no choice. Lucy, who is Lurie's daughter, is similarly exploited and forced to live in servitude by her mother. She is violated sexually by a gang of guys who break into her house, and despite her efforts to seek justice, she is faced with apathy and indifference from the community as well as the authorities. Lucy's storey is representative of the pervasive culture of violence against women in South Africa, where rape and sexual assault are commonplace and victims are often subjected to victim blaming and stigmatisation. In South Africa, rape and sexual assault are commonplace. The way that women are portrayed in Disgrace by Coetzee brings to light the ways in which patriarchy and gender inequality may contribute to the objectification of women and the abuse of women. He reveals the ugly facts of gender-based violence and the participation of society in maintaining it via the experiences of Melanie and Lucy. He does this by using their stories. The book is both an impassioned indictment of the pervasive patriarchal structures that keep women down and a rallying cry for positive social reform.