Violence, Care and Improbable Acts of Faith in Jan Carson’s recent work

Abstract

The paper explores the work of Northern Irish novelist and short story writer, Jan Carson. It considers the role of her magic realism aesthetics alongside French philosopher Jacques Rancière's theorising of dissensus and its functions.

The paper analyses the ways violence, care and improbable acts of faith permeate The Fire Starters (2019) and The Raptures (2022).

Keywords

• Jan Carson
• contemporary Northern Irish fiction
• dissensus
• care
• magic realism