LINGUISTIC MINIMALISM AND EMOTIONAL DISTANCE IN KJÆRLIGHET BY HANNE ØRSTAVIK
LINGUISTIC MINIMALISM AND EMOTIONAL DISTANCE IN KJÆRLIGHET BY HANNE ØRSTAVIK

Summary/Abstract: This paper examines the expression of vulnerability in Hanne Ørstavik’s Kjærlighet (1997) through a combined linguistic–literary approach, foregrounding the text as a site where cultural knowledge and affective meaning are symbolically interconnected. Focusing on deixis, indexicality, and pragmatic silence, the analysis explores how linguistic form participates in the construction of emotional distance between mother and son. Based on theories of vulnerability and ethics, alongside studies of Nordic culture, the paper demonstrates that Ørstavik’s minimalist prose does not merely represent emotional restraint but also enacts it at the level of textual organization.The alternation between the main characters’ internal perspectives establishes distinct deictic centers, producing a fragmented textual space in which reference, addressability, and silence become markers of relational failure. The mother’s linguistic self-containment reflects the cultural ideal of nøkternhet (restraint and emotional moderation) as a central value within Norwegian and broader Western contexts. Through pragmatic and stylistic analysis, the paper argues that Kjærlighet constructs a grammar of vulnerability in which omission, ellipsis, and failed speech acts create even deeper meaning.By situating Ørstavik’s novel at the intersection of pragmatics, stylistics, and cultural analysis, this study aligns with current interdisciplinary approaches to text as a dynamic form of cultural expression. It contributes to discussions on how literary texts encode evolving conceptions of subjectivity, intimacy, and emotional knowledge, highlighting the role of language in shaping the ethical and cultural dimensions of human relations.

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