RESUMEN DEL LIBRO (Para q podmos leerlo ms rpido jejeje) David Lurie is a professor of Communications at Cape Technical University

in Cape Town, South Africa. He is a middle aged man, twice-divorced, living alone. He finds no pleasure in his work. He is a lonely man, and finds pleasure in going to a prostitute every week. One day he sees the woman, Soraya, in the city with her two sons, and shortly after that the prostitute stops working at the brothel where David frequented. He is now left alone and lonely. David is a man who has had more than his share of women in his life. Most of these women have been strangers, one-time affairs that ended as quickly as they started. David pursues one of his young students, Melanie Isaacs. He sleeps with her on several occasions, despite her protests and complete lack of interest in him. He finds her exciting and doesn't really think about how she feels. Melanie, with the urging of her family and her boyfriend, files an official complaint against David with the University. David is given the chance to save his job by apologizing and taking the blame for what he did. When he is unwilling to do so, his only other option is to leave the university for good. David goes to live temporarily with his daughter from his first marriage, Lucy. As David arrives on the farm, he begins to help out with the daily chores. He sees that his daughter is a country woman, despite himself being a city man. Lucy's neighbor is Petrus, a black man who was once her employee but has now bought a piece of land next to her and is a true landowner. David marvels at how the times have changed in South Africa with blacks and whites. One day, Lucy's farm is attacked by three men who take a lot of her belongings, set David on fire, and brutally rape Lucy. This incident leaves David shaken to the core, and Lucy in a state of disbelief. Lucy, however, does not tell the police about the rape, and keeps it to herself. She believes that in some way the rapists were paying Lucy back for all of the wrongs that have been done by whites towards blacks in South Africa. As David continues to live on the farm, he often helps out Bev Shaw, who runs an animal clinic. He helps with the gruesome task of putting down unwanted and sick dogs. He feels a strange connection with the dead dogs, and goes to great lengths

to ensure that their bodies are disposed of properly. David and Bev sleep together on a couple occasions, even though Bev is married. As David eventually finds out that Lucy is pregnant, he also learns that one of her rapists is living next door with Petrus. Petrus is now an independent man and even offers to marry Lucy in order to keep her safe. Lucy knows that he is only after her land, but thinks that this may be her only option. David keeps insisting that Lucy leave the farm immediately for her own safety, and this drives a deep wedge between father and daughter. David is busy writing an opera that he has been contemplating for some time, and finds himself connecting to the character of the female lead. Returning to the city, he realizes that there is no place for him here anymore and that he is an outsider among his former peers. He returns to the country, lives in a small rented room, and tries to reconnect with his daughter. He continues helping out at the animal shelter. http://litsum.com/disgrace/

ANLISIS DL LIBRO (pueden ignorarlo si kierne..son ms como notas)excpeto lo q hable d violacin y violencia , etc) Disgrace is preocupaied with themes of retribution and redistribution, both demand the acceptance of disgrace as a perman ent state of being , as Laurie recognizes. Coetzee; conceives the new south African society as a circulatory system in which goods (sadly this seems to include women) are constantly redistributed ,without much thought for reparative justice ---so the acceptance of reduced lives, loss of possessions, jobs, self esteem, is tied to the surrender of the individuals. Laurieobjectified others around him After the rape Luriebegins to feels toward others and to translating everything in terms of his own needs Both Lucy and Lurie take on the role of sacrificial goat (sacrificial killing comparison she makes) and under dog . Disgraceexplore the systematic aspect of the rape epidemic in South Africa (149)

Disgracerelation between human violence toward other humans and humans treatment of dog (animal) toward other humans If human is opposed to animal, then how comoe a violent human (perpetrators in the novel, that Lurie call dogs) become an animal? Disgraceratial indentifications ---Redifinition of our humanity ; international ecological violence, violence toward women in general. Racism or cruelty is not exclusive of one culture, and it can go both ways. http://books.google.es/books?id=BalLL9BL4acC&pg=PA140&lpg=PA 140&dq=disgrace+coetzee+african+society&source=bl&ots=Tr0oKk2eB&sig=AZt3tHSPrxXV_k_9U0wRTcLsdqM&hl=es&ei=IX27Sr P5IcKltgfW9oSeDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#v=o nepage&q=disgrace%20coetzee%20african%20society&f=false

SOCIAL ISSUES: ---esto si es importante!!!! ;-)

According to a survey for the period 19982000 compiled by the United Nations, South Africa was ranked second for murder and first for assaults and rapes per capita.[100] Official statistics show that 52 people are murdered every day in South Africa.[101] The reported number of rapes per year is 55,000.[102] Total crime per capita is 10th out of the 60 countries in the data set. One in three of the 4,000 women questioned by the Community of Information, Empowerment and Transparency said they had been raped in the past year.[104] South Africa has some of the highest incidences of child and baby rape in the world.[105] In a related survey conducted among 1,500 schoolchildren in the Soweto township, a quarter of all the boys interviewed said that 'jackrolling', a term for gang rape, was fun.[104] Along with many African nations, South Africa has been experiencing a "brain drain" in the past 20 years. This is believed to be potentially damaging for the regional economy,[107] and is almost certainly detrimental for the well-being of the majority of people reliant on the healthcare infrastructure, given the HIV/AIDS epidemic.[108] The skills drain in South Africa tends to demonstrate racial contours (naturally given the

skills distribution legacy of South Africa) and has thus resulted in large white South African communities abroad. Crime against Farming Community. The South African farming community has suffered from attacks for many years.[1] The vast majority of the victims have been white farmers, with claims of death tolls of up to 3,000 (February 2009) cited in the media.[2] The independent South African Human Rights Commission, set up by Mandelas government, says the number is 2,500[3], although farmers organisations say the figure is closer to 3,000.[3] The commission's report stated that "there was a considerably higher risk of a white victim of farm attacks being killed or injured than a black victim." The report also found that the rate of murders had increased by 25% since 2005[3].The age of those killed range from as old as 87 years to young infants. Genocide Watch has stated that these attacks constitute early warning signs of genocide against Boers and has criticised the South African government for its inaction on the issue, pointing out that the murder rate for them ("ethno-European farmers" in their report) is four times that of the general South African population.[4][5] Human Rights Watch, however, states that the term "farm attacks" (plaasmoorde in Afrikaans, farm murders) is misleading, as it suggests the presence of an organised campaign, rather than simply increased crime rates, and has criticised the South African government for giving the issue too much attention at the expense of the rights of other South Africans, such as farm labourers.[6]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Africa#Social_issues