돈 드릴로 소설에 나타난 죽음에 대한 공포와 종교의 의미: 『화이트 노이즈』, 『언더월드』, 『추락하는 인간』을 중심으로

Abstract

This paper aims to examine the religion and the fear of death in DeLillo’s White Noise, Underworld, and Falling Man. DeLillo has posed the questions as to the two issues constantly, but his argument has changed and deepened throughout his novels. His early novel, White Noise, describes the contemporary world full of death lurking everywhere and the people trying constantly to get over their death, especially by giving up themselves to a religion. However, death is always around us, and is not caused by nature entirely but by the modern technology more gradually. But there is still a hope, because no one can witness the death of any characters. In Underworld, things have changed drastically. However, death is everywhere and there is no hope for human’s future. Technology attacks its creator ironically and wins the game finally. In this novel, DeLillo describes death with some real historical evidences. Although DeLillo offers hope in religion again, it is not an eventual exit. By showing a nun resurrected in the Internet world after death, DeLillo suggests that in this contemporary society, even the heaven could be replaced by the Internet. His worry of human’s future comes true, and DeLillo pictures the real death of 9/11 in Falling Man. This horrible event makes us think about not only human-beings and death but also our present life. To achieve the goal designated, this paper deals with religion and death in these novels in terms of Nietzschean interpretation. Nietzsche argues that our present life is much more important than after-life. However, he says that death is the true evidence that we are human, not God. According to Nietzsche, the religion and death in this postmodern society shed another different meaning to us.