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Masterarbeit MASTERARBEIT Titel der Masterarbeit THE PATRIARCHAL TRAP: DECONSTRUCTING THE “REAL MAN” IN CONTEMPORARY ANGLO-AFRICAN LITERATURE Verfasserin Tanja Gruber, BA Angestrebter akademischer Grad Master of Arts (MA) Wien, 2014 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt: A 066 844 Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt: Anglophone Literatures and Cultures Betreuer: Univ. Prof. DDr. Ewald Mengel 2 EIDESSTATTLICHE ERKLÄRUNG: „Ich erkläre hiermit an Eides Statt, dass ich die vorliegende Arbeit selbständig und ohne Benutzung anderer als der angegebenen Hilfsmittel angefertigt habe. Die aus fremden Quellendirekt oder indirekt übernommenen Gedanken sind als solche kenntlich gemacht. Die Arbeit wurde bisher in gleicher oder ähnlicher Form keiner anderen Prüfungsbehörde vorgelegt und auch noch nicht veröffentlicht.“ Datum Unterschrift Studierende/r 30.01.2014 3 DANKSAGUNG Ein großes Dankeschön gilt meiner Familie die mich zu jeder Zeit und in jeder Phase meines Studiums unterstützt hat, besonders während meinen Auslandssemestern die für sie wahrscheinlich genauso herausfordernd waren wie für mich. Ein besonderer Dank gilt natürlich auch meiner Schwester Lisa die mich in schwierigen Zeiten stets aufgemuntert und motiviert hat. Weiteres möchte ich mich bei all meinen FreundInnen bedanken, die mich auf meinem Studienweg begleitet – mit mir gelernt, gelacht und manchmal auch geweint haben. Ein ganz besonderes Dankeschön gilt an dieser Stelle Esther! Außerdem möchte ich mich bei meinen Arbeitskollegen und -kolleginnen bedanken, die mich in meiner Studienzeit begleitet und für mich den einen oder anderen Dienstplan geändert haben. Natürlich möchte ich mich bei meinen ProfessorInnen, insbesondere bei Hrn. Prof. DDr. Mengel für seine spannenden Vorlesungen und Seminare und natürlich für seine Unterstützung bei meiner Master-Arbeit bedanken. 4 1. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 6 2. TERMINOLOGY ...................................................................................................................................... 9 2.1 GENDER ................................................................................................................................................... 10 2.2 GENDER PERFORMATIVITY ...................................................................................................................... 11 2.3 DISCOURSE AND TEXT ............................................................................................................................. 11 2.4 PATRIARCHY ............................................................................................................................................ 12 2.5 SCRIPT, PRACTICES AND HEGEMONIC MASCULINITIES ........................................................................... 13 3. FATHERS, UNCLES AND GRANDFATHERS – SOURCES OF “IDEAL” MANHOOD AND GENERATIONAL STRUGGLES ......................................................................................................................................... 15 4. URBANIZATION AND WESTERN VALUES: NEW CHALLENGES FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF A HEGEMONIC MASCULINITY ...................................................................................................................................... 16 5. BEING A “REAL MAN”: FULFILLING THE HETERONORMATIVE SCRIPT .................................................... 16 6. FACT AND FICTION: LITERATURE AS MANUFACTURED EVIDENCE ......................................................... 18 7. A MAN IN THE MAKING – CIRCUMCISION RITES IN A MAN WHO IS NOT A MAN ................................... 19 7.1 THEMES IN A MAN WHO IS NOT A MAN ......................................................................................................... 20 7.1.1 Separation and isolation from the mother ........................................................................................ 21 7.1.2 Silence and language for “real men” ................................................................................................. 22 7.1.3 Harassment, shame and stigmatization of the uncircumcised .......................................................... 23 7.2 TRADITIONAL MALE CIRCUMCISION AMONG THE XHOSA – FACT & FICTION .............................................................. 26 8. MALE CRISIS AND URBAN DECADENCE IN THE SILENT EMPOWERMENT OF THE COMPATRIOTS ............ 28 8.1 FROM “YOUNG LOSERS” TO “SUGAR DADDIES” –GENDER TROUBLE IN POSTCOLONIAL TANZANIA ................................. 28 8.2 “REAL MEN” IN RUHUMBIKA’S THE SILENT EMPOWERMENT OF THE COMPATRIOTS ................................................. 31 8.3 SAIDI – FULFILLING THE TRADITIONAL TANZANIAN HEGEMONIC MASCULINE IMAGE ................................................... 32 8.4 NZOKA – FULFILLING THE NEW TANZANIAN HEGEMONIC MASCULINE IMAGE ............................................................ 33 8.5 NOVELS AS SOURCE OF DESCRIPTIVE EVIDENCE ................................................................................................... 35 9. PATRIARCHY AND HOMOPHOBIA IN KINGS OF THE WATER .................................................................. 36 9.1 DECONSTRUCTING THE PATRIARCHAL AFRIKANER HOUSEHOLD .............................................................................. 37 9.1.1 Patriarchy – Praising the superior status of the father ..................................................................... 37 9.1.2 Patriarchal structures – A constant rivalry for the leadership ........................................................... 38 9.1.3 The military – An institution to maintain patriarchy and hegemonic masculinities .......................... 39 9.1.4 Patriarchy – enforcing fear of „the other” ......................................................................................... 40 9.1.5 Language as means to maintain hierarchy ....................................................................................... 41 9.1.6 The control of sexuality ..................................................................................................................... 43 9.1.7 Religion & the denial of homosexuality ............................................................................................. 44 9.1.8 The “eternalization” of patriarchal values ........................................................................................ 46 5 9.2 SHAME AND SILENCE AS RESPONSE TO HOMOPHOBIA .......................................................................................... 47 9.3 HOMOSEXUALITY AS WESTERN IMPORT ............................................................................................................ 48 10. HIV/AIDS – A THREAT TO HEGEMONIC MASCULINITY IN BEAUTY’S GIFT ............................................... 51 10.1 HIV/AIDS IN TANZANIA AND SOUTH AFRICA – A BRIEF OVERVIEW ........................................................................ 51 10.2 CONDOMS – A ‘TACIT THREAT TO HETEROSEXUAL IDENTITY AS “REAL” MAN’ IN FACT & FICTION .................................. 52 10.3 WOMEN – BETWEEN PROTECTION AND ACCUSATION .......................................................................................... 53 10.4 CRUCIAL COMPARISON: BLACK MASCULINITY VS. WHITE MASCULINITY ................................................................... 55 10.5 HIV/AIDS – A CHALLENGE FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF A HEGEMONIC MASCULINITY ................................................. 57 10.6 POLYGAMY – JUSTIFIED BY TRADITIONAL GENDER ROLES ...................................................................................... 60 11. PARCHED EARTH – RECONSTRUCTING IDEALIZED IMAGES OF MASCULINITY ........................................ 65 11.1 CONDITIONED BY THE REALITY OF CHILDHOOD .................................................................................................... 66 11.2 ZIMA – FULFILLING THE STEREOTYPICAL HETERONORMATIVE MASCULINE IMAGE ....................................................... 69 11.3 THE PRESSURE OF BEING “NORMAL” ................................................................................................................ 70 11.4 MARTIN’S FATHER& DOREEN’S MOTHER – PASSING ON SELF-DESTRUCTIVE STRUCTURES ............................................ 72 11.5 PATRIARCHY – A SYSTEM DETERMINING EVERY MEMBER OF SOCIETY ....................................................................... 74 12. CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................................... 78 13. BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................................... 83 14. INDEX .................................................................................................................................................. 86 CURRICULUM VITAE .................................................................................................................................. 87 ZUSAMMENFASSUNG ............................................................................................................................... 88 6 1. INTRODUCTION The aim of this thesis is to outline how a patriarchally organized social system maintains the construction and perpetuation of one-dimensional and limited gender roles; in particular, how it maintains and perpetuates an idealized stereotypical image of a “real man” in Anglo-African literature.
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