“Craig Higginson’s The Dream House explores the challenges of
understanding the complexity of transformation which relies on
active, and at times painful, engagement in the past as a journey
towards a possible future.”
Craig Higginson’s “The Dream House” is a novel about the exploration of the past
and identity, the land is in a state of transition and as the last of the old inhabitants of
Dwaleni Farm prepare to leave, they take stock of what has been and never has.
This essay will look at the complexity of transformation that relies on active and
sometimes painful engagement with the past that enables one to move towards a
possible future, looking at the characters engagement of the past and the trauma.
The Novel is set on Dwaleni Farm and all the events that happen center around the
farmhouse. The farmhouse is decayed and broken down, it comes to represent the
past and therefore it is out of place and outdated. Later on, in the novel we come to
find out that the farmhouse was financially unstable. The farmhouse is a leftover of
the Plaasroman, this ‘utopia’ that that brought about the qualities of a family in a
patriarchal society however in Dwaleni everything is broken down, it is “reduced to a
warzone,” it has death and trauma attached to it and therefore it shows that the
Plaasroman has failed. The Farm in itself doesn’t have any meaning with the
present, it is an anachronism. The farm also brings about a sense of renewal due to
the reconstruction that will take place thus depicting trauma and acceptance.
Through the characters we see the complexity of the engagement with the past and
trauma. The characters in “the Dream House” must actively engage with the past,
thus engage with the trauma and move to a better future. This is done both
intentionally and forcefully. Looksmart visits Dwaleni as a means of getting closure,
however he does so in a revengeful manner. “He [goes to Dwaleni] out of hate” and
to force Patricia to realize her past mistakes and make her see her accountability.
This shows the characters engagement of the trauma which shows the complexity of
transformation.
Patricia believes that by leaving Dwaleni and moving to Durban she is leaving her
past with the farm, this is shown by the fact that “in almost every room [of the
farmhouse] the floor is filled with boxes… spilling objects from the past” Patricia
wants “to keep only those… that [are] of value.” This shows that Patricia is packing
her past away with those boxes however “the problem of what to do with the past
[will] have to carry on in the future” as she is packing away her memories that will
follow her to her Dream house in Durban because she isn’t engaging with her past
and trauma. Patricia being unable to engage with her past shows that she cannot
have some control of her future as she hasn’t taken responsibility of the horrors that
occurred on the farm, she is just packing them away in the boxes.
Looksmart’s arrival on Dwaleni farm is a part of Patricia’s life that has come back. He
is a part of her past catching up to her therefore bringing with him trauma laced in
the past, something she doesn’t enjoy facing as “in [her] experience, backward
glances only crick the neck” thus showing that facing her past brings forth pain.
understanding the complexity of transformation which relies on
active, and at times painful, engagement in the past as a journey
towards a possible future.”
Craig Higginson’s “The Dream House” is a novel about the exploration of the past
and identity, the land is in a state of transition and as the last of the old inhabitants of
Dwaleni Farm prepare to leave, they take stock of what has been and never has.
This essay will look at the complexity of transformation that relies on active and
sometimes painful engagement with the past that enables one to move towards a
possible future, looking at the characters engagement of the past and the trauma.
The Novel is set on Dwaleni Farm and all the events that happen center around the
farmhouse. The farmhouse is decayed and broken down, it comes to represent the
past and therefore it is out of place and outdated. Later on, in the novel we come to
find out that the farmhouse was financially unstable. The farmhouse is a leftover of
the Plaasroman, this ‘utopia’ that that brought about the qualities of a family in a
patriarchal society however in Dwaleni everything is broken down, it is “reduced to a
warzone,” it has death and trauma attached to it and therefore it shows that the
Plaasroman has failed. The Farm in itself doesn’t have any meaning with the
present, it is an anachronism. The farm also brings about a sense of renewal due to
the reconstruction that will take place thus depicting trauma and acceptance.
Through the characters we see the complexity of the engagement with the past and
trauma. The characters in “the Dream House” must actively engage with the past,
thus engage with the trauma and move to a better future. This is done both
intentionally and forcefully. Looksmart visits Dwaleni as a means of getting closure,
however he does so in a revengeful manner. “He [goes to Dwaleni] out of hate” and
to force Patricia to realize her past mistakes and make her see her accountability.
This shows the characters engagement of the trauma which shows the complexity of
transformation.
Patricia believes that by leaving Dwaleni and moving to Durban she is leaving her
past with the farm, this is shown by the fact that “in almost every room [of the
farmhouse] the floor is filled with boxes… spilling objects from the past” Patricia
wants “to keep only those… that [are] of value.” This shows that Patricia is packing
her past away with those boxes however “the problem of what to do with the past
[will] have to carry on in the future” as she is packing away her memories that will
follow her to her Dream house in Durban because she isn’t engaging with her past
and trauma. Patricia being unable to engage with her past shows that she cannot
have some control of her future as she hasn’t taken responsibility of the horrors that
occurred on the farm, she is just packing them away in the boxes.
Looksmart’s arrival on Dwaleni farm is a part of Patricia’s life that has come back. He
is a part of her past catching up to her therefore bringing with him trauma laced in
the past, something she doesn’t enjoy facing as “in [her] experience, backward
glances only crick the neck” thus showing that facing her past brings forth pain.
