‘Performativity’ and ‘Agency’ in Willa Cather’s O Pioneers! and My Antonia: A Butlerian Study
Amirreza
Abyar Firouz Abadi
English Language and Literature, Human Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Qom Branch, Qom, Iran.
author
text
article
2022
eng
ABSTRACTBeing a regional author, Cather creates her fiction replete with immigrant female characters who struggle to resist the patriarchal power and dominant discourse of their society. The present study attempts to explore Judith Butler’s concepts of performativity and Agency in Willa Cather’s O Pioneers! (1913) and My Antonia (1918). The article firstly tries to analyze and explore the performative trait of the protagonists in the novels, and then scrutinize the procedure of agency construction of the characters based on Butler’s theory of performativity. In this regard, the article discusses how Alexandra, the protagonist of O Pioneers!, undoes the patriarchal system of property ownership through standing against her brothers, and Mr. Shimerda’s daughter in My Antonia challenges the stereotypical pattern of women doing all household chores and child-rearing. Both novels present their female protagonists as characters who are mentally and physically strong and non-subservient to men after the loss of their fathers. They ignore the norms and subvert the discourse by building a gender of their own. Judith Butler argues that the concept of agency is indeed an extension of performativity, for, before anything, an act must be performed by an agent, and then that act is performative as long as it is done repeatedly. In addition, Butler contends that agency is what a subject makes out of him/herself and makes every effort to stand against the discourse, power, conventions, and norms of society. For Butler, someone becomes an agent when he/she acts differently, and in an unusual way.
Journal of English Literature and Cultural Studies
KARE Publishing, Turkey
Affiliated by
Eurasian Applied Linguistics Society, Moscow, Russia
Online ISSN: 2667-6214
2667-6214
2
v.
4
no.
2022
26
35
https://www.jelcsjournal.com/article_146383_95dbe3d4362582737c3b3fef47e52ce1.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.26655/JELCS.2021.4.1
Collective Trauma: Healing and Reconciliation in Toni Morrison`s The Bluest Eye
Roja
Ghorbani Rostam
Department of English, Tabriz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tabriz, Iran
author
text
article
2022
eng
As an outstanding African-American author who has got fame for her tragic novel, Toni Morrison is well-known for her depiction of the black's traumatic experiences. She portrays the black community who had suffered as the result of being slaves, therefore being conditioned by their past, now faced with the after-affect of their traumatic suffering under white dominance. This black community has to bear the heavy burden of rejection, oppression, racism, and white dominance, so they are burdened with a wounded psyche and body that causes pain which constantly reminds them of their gloomy past. Morrison`s major novel, The Bluest Eye focuses on traumatic events of the black community; this novel represents the communal and personal trauma of the black community who struggle with pressures pressing them down from upward and inward. This essay aims to study the cultural trauma that the black characters are haunted by and the after-effect of this trauma; especially, the paper focuses mainly on the major character, Pecola, who is so young to be able to deal with her bitter past and unable to struggle with her suppressive society. It further intends to analyze how this trauma condition`s the characters` life and focuses on their difficulty dealing with the problems that weigh down their shoulders. Moreover, it aims to explore how communal trauma conditions subjective healing and the reconciliation in the communities within the work of trauma theory.
Journal of English Literature and Cultural Studies
KARE Publishing, Turkey
Affiliated by
Eurasian Applied Linguistics Society, Moscow, Russia
Online ISSN: 2667-6214
2667-6214
2
v.
4
no.
2022
1
7
https://www.jelcsjournal.com/article_146940_cac9078dd15ad0adb8b8969585d6b173.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.26655/JELCS.2021.4.2
The Conflict between Reality and Magic in Here We Are by Graham Swift
Costanza
Mondo
University of Turin, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures and Modern Cultures
author
text
article
2022
eng
In Here We Are, Graham Swift’s latest novel, the theme of magic features strongly, in that the main character is a professional magician and is fascinated by magic performances. Throughout the story, the world of magic often stands in opposition to the sphere of reality and clashes with it. By investigating this crucial conflict at the historical, existential and emotional level, the present paper aims to underline the importance of the conflict between magic and reality and shed light on the role it plays in paving the way for the ending of the novel. In order to fulfil this aim, significant passages and excerpts of the novel are analysed and quoted. This paper postulates that the outcome of the aforementioned conflict results in the main character’s decision to disappear and provides a solution to the chasm between the two irreconcilable dimensions. Finally, the meaning of the main character’s disappearance is analysed.
Journal of English Literature and Cultural Studies
KARE Publishing, Turkey
Affiliated by
Eurasian Applied Linguistics Society, Moscow, Russia
Online ISSN: 2667-6214
2667-6214
2
v.
4
no.
2022
8
15
https://www.jelcsjournal.com/article_146941_3355092202dd4434f62be797b23cf0d4.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.26655/JELCS.2021.4.3
The Role of Patriarchy and Gender Stereotyping in Children's Books: with Reference to Harry Potter and The Chronicles of Narnia
Tafriha
Senjuti
Lecturer, Department of English, Chittagong Independent University, Chattogram, Bangladesh
author
text
article
2022
eng
This paper focuses on the mechanisms of patriarchy and gender-stereotyping that influences the plots and characters in children’s books. . To shed light on these aspects, two of the most prominent series of novels in children’s literature have been focused on namely, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series and C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia. It also explains how these elements leave traces in their psychology that continue as children grow up. Harry Potter depicts the life of a young wizard and the adventures he undergoes in his attempts to defeat the dark wizard, Lord Voldemort. The Chronicles of Narnia depicts the Pevensie sibling’s accidental discovery of a fictional land called Narnia and the adventures that follow. Both these series represent the highly creative realm of childhood imagination. The innocence of these novels, however, is shredded through their portrayal and treatment of both sexes. Thus, this study works on debunking these misogynist stereotypes to suggest a gender-neutral friendly field of children’s literature.
Journal of English Literature and Cultural Studies
KARE Publishing, Turkey
Affiliated by
Eurasian Applied Linguistics Society, Moscow, Russia
Online ISSN: 2667-6214
2667-6214
2
v.
4
no.
2022
16
25
https://www.jelcsjournal.com/article_146942_ff6a305aece9d73827a7fde814377f07.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.26655/JELCS.2021.4.4