Die clowneske in die kortverhale van Abraham H. de Vries : deel 1 : 'n Inleidende verkenning

The clownesque in the short stories of Abraham H. De Vries : an introductory survey When Abraham H. de Vries received the RAU prize for Creative Writing in 2004, it was an honour long overdue. How the two main phases in his work relate to concepts such as liminality, mythicity and the numinous dimensions of existence, the picaresque, inversion, the grotesque, and especially the clown and the clownesque, is the focus of this introductory study. Although the clownesque symbolizes the human being's constant need for consolation and escape from care, De Vries's metafictional prose opens new dimensions for the relationship between "word" and "world". Janik's criteria for the fool's perception and acknowledgement of his and others' weaknesses or desires are proposed as a starting point for a more comprehensive study of De Vries's clowns.