MASARYK UNIVERSITY Faculty of Education Department of English Language and Literature Gender in the Work of Terry Pratchett
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MASARYK UNIVERSITY Faculty of Education Department of English Language and Literature Gender in the Work of Terry Pratchett Bachelor thesis Brno 2021 Supervisor: Author: Mgr. Jiří Šalamoun, Ph.D. Magdaléna Jirásková Acknowledgements I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor Mgr. Jiří Šalamoun, Ph.D. for his kind approach, valuable guidance, and helpful advice during the process of writing. Declaration I hereby declare that I worked on the following thesis on my own and that I used only the sources in the list of references. Prohlášení Prohlašuji, že jsem závěrečnou bakalářskou práci vypracovala samostatně, s využitím pouze citovaných literárních pramenů, dalších informací a zdrojů v souladu s Disciplinárním řádem pro studenty Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy univerzity a se zákonem č. 121/2000 Sb., o právu autorském, o právech souvisejících s právem autorským a o změně některých zákonů (autorský zákon), ve znění pozdějších předpisů. V Brně dne 19. dubna 2021 ………………… Magdaléna Jirásková Abstract The thesis aims to discuss Terry Pratchett’s work and analyse his portrayal of gender topics, such as gender equality, stereotypes or gender identity and expression, in his Discworld series throughout his career as a writer. The thesis also seeks to determine how Pratchett’s female characters evolved during this time. In the first, theoretical, part of the thesis, concepts relating to sex and gender are introduced and explained with reference to several notable authors of the 20th and 21st century, such as Judith Butler or Simone de Beauvoir. In the second section of the thesis, three selected novels, Equal Rites, Feet of Clay and Monstrous Regiment, are analysed, taking into account the period when the novels were published, as well as topical contextual issues present in society at that time. The thesis’s outcomes offer a deeper insight into Pratchett’s portrayal of gender issues and his evolution as a writer. Key words Terry Pratchett, Discworld, gender, gender norms, gender analysis, gender identity, gender expression, gender equality, Monstrous Regiment, Equal Rites, Feet of Clay Anotace Předkládaná práce pojednává o dílu Terryho Pratchetta a analyzuje způsoby, jakými autor ve své sérii Zeměplocha ztvárnil genderová témata, jako je například rovnost mužů a žen, genderové stereotypy a genderová identita a její vyjádření, během své kariéry spisovatele. Dále si práce klade za cíl určit, jakou transformací Pratchettovy ženské postavy s postupem času prošly. V první, teoretické, části práce jsou představeny koncepty vztahující se k problematice pohlaví a genderu a rozdíly mezi nimi s ohledem na stanoviska několika význačných autorů 20. a 21. století, jako je například Judith Butler a Simone de Beauvoir. Druhá část práce analyzuje tři vybrané knihy série, Čaroprávnost, Nohy z jílu a Podivný regiment. Zvláštní pozornost je věnována době, kdy byly knihy vydány, a také genderovým problematikám, které byly v dané době ve společnosti aktuální. Výsledky této práce poskytují porozumění otázce Pratchettova vylíčení genderových témat a jeho vývoji jako autora. Klíčová slova Terry Pratchett, Zeměplocha, gender, genderové normy, genderová analýza, genderová identita, genderové vyjádření, rovnost žen a mužů, genderová rovnost, Čaroprávnost, Nohy z jílu, Podivný regiment Table of Contents Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 1 Practical Section ........................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Introduction to Sex and Gender .................................................................... 3 1.1.1 Sex and Gender – What is the Difference? .......................................... 3 1.1.2 The Sex Spectrum ................................................................................. 4 1.1.3 What is Gender? ................................................................................... 6 1.1.4 The Impact of Gender on Our Lives ..................................................... 8 1.1.5 Gender Roles and Stereotypes .............................................................. 9 1.1.6 Outside the Gender Binary ................................................................. 11 1.2 The Work of Terry Pratchett ....................................................................... 13 1.2.1 Introduction to Pratchett ..................................................................... 13 1.2.2 Fantasy and Criticism of the Genre .................................................... 14 1.2.3 In Pratchett’s Defence ........................................................................ 15 2 Analytical Section ...................................................................................................... 18 2.1 Equal Rites .................................................................................................. 18 2.1.1 Plot Summary ..................................................................................... 18 2.1.2 Pratchett’s Female Protagonists ......................................................... 20 2.1.3 The Threat of Essentialism ................................................................. 22 2.1.4 What It Means to Be a Hero ............................................................... 23 2.1.5 The Stereotype Threat Theory ............................................................ 23 2.1.6 Second-wave Feminist Movement ..................................................... 26 2.1.7 The Portrayal of Women in Equal Rites ............................................. 26 2.2 Feet of Clay ................................................................................................. 29 2.2.1 Plot Summary ..................................................................................... 29 2.2.2 Cheery Littlebottom, the First Female Dwarf .................................... 30 2.2.3 Gender Expression among the Dwarves ............................................. 31 2.2.4 Themes Concerning Gender in the 1990s .......................................... 34 2.2.5 The Portrayal of Women in Feet of Clay ........................................... 35 2.3 Monstrous Regiment ................................................................................... 38 2.3.1 Plot Summary ..................................................................................... 38 2.3.2 Subverting Tropes .............................................................................. 39 2.3.3 A Stylized Repetition of Acts ............................................................. 41 2.3.4 Sergeant Jackrum – An Example of a Transgender Character? ......... 42 2.3.5 Why Monstrous Regiment? ................................................................ 44 2.3.6 Choosing the Setting ........................................................................... 45 2.3.7 The Gender Recognition Act 2004 ..................................................... 45 2.3.8 The Portrayal of Women in Monstrous Regiment .............................. 45 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 48 List of References.............................................................................................................. 52 Introduction Terry Pratchett is one of the biggest names in the world of fantasy literature. We may often find him on lists of top fantasy authors alongside, for example, J. R. R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling, G. R. R. Martin or Neil Gaiman. During Pratchett’s writing career spanning decades – from 1971, when he published his first novel, The Carpet People, to his death in 2015 – he was among the most successful and prolific authors of his generation. Both The Guardian and BBC described Pratchett as Britain’s best-selling author of the 90s, who was only overtaken by Rowling at the turn of the century (Weale, 2002; Terry Pratchett in Conversation, n.d.). Though Pratchett’s popularity is immense, some literary critics consider his books to be too unimaginative or straightforward to be considered literature, as Joe Queenan writes in his 1990 review of Good Omens in The New York Times (Queenan, 1990), or “more entertainment than art”, which is the opinion of British art critic Jonathan Jones (Jones, 2015). However, it could be argued that Pratchett actually utilises his carefully crafted Discworld as a satirical setting to comment on the world we live in while retaining a certain distance. He creates a universe just different enough from our own to engage his readers and push many of our preconceived notions while managing to discuss a variety of challenging topics, ranging from nationalism, racism and bigotry to social and gender equality, war and religion. The topic of gender, in particular, makes an appearance throughout the entire scope of his work and is one of the themes Pratchett touches on most often as he approaches it from various angles. This thesis aims to examine how Pratchett chooses to discuss gender topics and what themes he focuses on, such as gender equality, gender roles and feminism, gender identity and various aspects of being a woman, throughout his Discworld series. The thesis also seeks to determine how Pratchett’s female characters changed and evolved, based on the analysis of three selected novels discussed in the second section of the thesis. 1 The thesis is divided into two parts. In the first, theoretical, part, concepts relating