TY - JOUR
TI - Elements of Menippean Satire in B.S. Johnson’s Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry 
AU - Sosin, Sabina
TI - Elements of Menippean Satire in B.S. Johnson’s Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry 
AB - 
	Menippean satire is an ancient form of prose whose inclusiveness still prevents scholars from reaching an agreement on its one generic definition. While in its classical understanding the genre is regarded as long-extinct, some argue that its elements were carried on to the works of postmodern authors unafraid to experiment with new means of literary expression – B.S. Johnson being their prime example. At first, the author’s outward hostility towards well-established conventions makes it highly unlikely for him to draw inspiration from ancient genres such as the Menippean satire. Is it then possible that while still being an uncompromised experimenter, he was also a worthy successor of classical parodists? 

	Echoing James E. Irby’s (Borges’s editor’s) claim that that “all writers are more or less faithful amanuenses of the spirit, translators and annotators of pre-existing archetypes,” this paper aims to analyze affinities between Johnson’s penultimate novel, Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry (1973), and the features of the Menippean satire as specified by, among others, Mikhail Bakhtin in Problems of Dostoyevsky’s Poetics (1984) and H. Rikonnen in Menippean Satire as a Literary Genre (1987). While in its classical understanding this ancient form of prose is regarded long-extinct, these scholars argue that its elements can be found in the works of the more inventive modern authors. In fact, as Brian McHale suggests: “Postmodernist fiction is the heir of Menippean satire and its most recent historical avatar” (Postmodernist Fiction, 1987, p. 172). 

	 The paper is an attempt at presenting Johnson more in line with classical tradition, suggesting that it is possible to analyze his works in a broader critical spectrum and thus move them from the peripheral to the mainstream literary discourse. It also raises the question of the (im)possibility of an artistic creation in total isolation from any formerly known conventions. 
VL - 2019
IS - Volume 14, Issue 2
PY - 2019
SN - 1897-3035
C1 - 2084-3933
SP - 101
EP - 110
DO - 10.4467/20843933ST.19.010.10314
UR - https://ejournals.eu/czasopismo/studia-litteraria-uic/artykul/elements-of-menippean-satire-in-b-s-johnsons-christie-malrys-own-double-entry
KW - Menippean satire
KW - B.S. Johnson
KW - British experimentalism
KW - Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry.