The convergence of sacred and secular spaces in three selected contemporary novels

Abstract

This article focuses on the return and revitalisation of traditional Christian themes, such as sacrifice, guilt, sin and redemption, and the manifestation of supernatural phenomena, such as visions, faith healing and stigmata in three selected contemporary postmodern novels (Atonement by Ian McEwan, Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult and Mariëtte in Ecstasy by Ron Hansen). It offers an examination of how these themes materialise in novels written by certain writers who are not explicitly religious, or in novels which do not have an overtly religious focus. There is a coexistence of belief and unbelief, or religion and science in all the novels under discussion. The theories of Jean François Lyotard and specifically his notion of “incredulity towards metanarratives” as well as his notion that narrative and scientific knowledge are both subject to legitimisation are relevant to this article. Gianteresio Vattimo’s ideas on the role of religion in contemporary life and the possible convergences of postmodernity and the Christian faith also come into play. He advocates weak thought as opposed to strong thought and sees caritas as essential in a postmodern society. Readers find themselves either on the side of the believing or unbelieving camp in the novels discussed. However, many readers may hover in the liminal space between belief and unbelief. Interpretation depends on many factors that constitute the world view of the readers.