Hidden Topographies

This book examines dystopian fiction’s recent paradigm shift towards urban dystopias. It links the dystopian tradition with the literary history of the novel, spatio-philosophical concepts against the backdrop of the spatial turn, and systems-theory. Five dystopian novels are discussed in great detail: China Miéville’s Perdido Street Station (2000) and The City & The City (2009), City of Bohane (2011) by Kevin Barry, John Berger’s Lilac and Flag (1992), and Divided Kingdom (2005) by Rupert Thomson. The book includes chapters on the literary history of the dystopian tradition, the referential interplay of maps and literature, urban spaces in literature, borders and transgressions, and on systems-theory as a tool for charting dystopian fiction. The result is a detailed overview of how dystopian fiction constantly adapts to – and reflects on – the actual world.

" […] the solid methodology Zähringer has developed to understand the representation of space in fiction will likely be of use to scholars interested in this highly important aspect of literature."
Péter Hajdu in: Recherche Littéraire Journal (2018), 284-288.

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"If proof was still needed that literary studies books providing intelligent readings of a handful of texts are not only still possible, but, if well conceived and executed, can provide insights otherwise unavailable, here it is. Zähringers Hidden Topographies is a brilliant achievement and an excellent example of the type of book that is theoretically informed, analytically insightful, and highly readable."
Jens Martin Gurr in: Anglistik (2020) 31/2, 174-176.