foucauldian reading of tom mccarthy’s remainder

In recent years, a significant subgenre has appeared called neuronovels or neurofictions. a common feature of these novels is a character who suffers from an injury or illness and has lost his or her sense of selfhood. tom mccarthy’s remainder (2005) is regarded as a neuronovel, as its narrator is intensely injured and disabled. as the novel goes on, the narrator gets involved in violent actions and becomes mad. although some critics have focused on the narrator’s madness as his victimization, they have overlooked his madness as resistance to power relations. in this study by offering a foucauldian reading of this novel and by deploying his concepts of madness, subjectivity, and disciplinary power, we try to focus on his resistance to society. we argue that the narrator’s madness, depicted through his violent actions and aggressive behaviors, can be considered as resistance to social norms and rebellion against the power relations which strip him from his individuality and his autonomy. therefore, the narrator, as a subjugated subject reveals his resistance to socialization through his violent and murderous acts.