THE LIMITS OF UTOPIA: REMEDY AND POISON IN THE CARHULLAN ARMY BY SARAH HALL
THE LIMITS OF UTOPIA: REMEDY AND POISON IN THE CARHULLAN ARMY BY SARAH HALL

Summary/Abstract: This study offers a critical investigation into the fluid boundary between utopian and dystopian paradigms, with particular emphasis on the fictional society depicted in Sarah Hall’s The Carhullan Army (2007). The analysis initially employs The Origins of Greek Thought by Jean-Pierre Vernant and Phaedrus by Plato to delineate the affinity between the Carhullan community and the ancient ‘polis.’ Building on that focus, the study draws upon Jacques Derrida’s concept of the ‘pharmakon’ (a key term in his essay titled “Plato’s Pharmacy”) as the primary deconstructive framework. Derrida’s notion, signifying a dual nature as both remedy and poison, is pivotal to his deconstructionist endeavour, as he seeks to expose the inherent instability of hierarchies and dualities, such as those between writing and speech, that underlie the logocentric Western thought. Within this context, the primary objective of this study is to demonstrate the mechanisms by which the agrarian society depicted in Hall’s novel conceals some dystopian elements beneath the veneer of utopian promises, and to analyse the function of technology in this respect.

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