Arnon Grunberg

Resistance

Politeness

Today my course on three books by Coetzee at the University of Leiden started. (I’m teaching the course together with a philosopher, Mr. Schliesser.)
In chapter 1 of “Elizabeth Costello” (the lesson on realism) Coetzee writes: “The man is seduced not because he has a will to resist that is clearly overcome, but because being seduced is a pleasure in itself. One yields for the sake of yielding.”

An interesting thought that the woman yields because her resistance is overcome and the man yields for the sake of yielding. I would add a third possibility: one yields out of politeness.