Intertextuality and Utopianism in David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas

Abstract

One of the most important characteristics of David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas (2004) is intertextuality, which is explored through quotes, allusions, and references along the narrative. Among these intertexts, the dialogue with utopian and dystopian literary traditions represents an important dimension for the novel. Since the structure of Mitchell’s narrative implies a mirror play between its six stories, and considering that the workings of metafiction (HUTCHEON, 1980) and autotextuality (DALLENBACH, 1979) invite a concentric reading of the text, that is, aware of its inner relationships, then it is possible to observe the presence of utopian and dystopian elements even in the stories of this novel that are not immediately related to these two literary traditions. Thus, based on theoretical reflections on intertextuality (COMPAGNON, 1996; GENETTE, 2010; JENNY, 1979; KRISTEVA, 2005; SAMOYAULT, 2008), dystopia (BACCOLINI; MOYLAN, 2003; BEAUCHAMP, 1983; CLAEYS, 2017), utopia and utopianism (LEVITAS, 2001; SARGENT, 2014), the present paper aims at identifying and analysing the intertextual relations David Mitchell’s novel establishes with utopia and dystopia; furthermore, it also aims at reflecting upon the images through which utopianism, understood as a force that prompts transformations, is explored throughout the text.