The Politics of Reorientation in Summer Will Show

Abstract

The essay argues that Summer Will Show offers the reader a ‘politics of reorientation’. It suggests that the novel centres on moments of transition, which are for the protagonists moments of reckoning and rebuilding that reconstruct their political priorities and understandings. The narrative shows the protagonist Sophia Willoughby reorienting herself not only to see, but also to address the situation which was for her previously in the background. The essay analyses interrelations between class, gender, sexuality and race in the novel.