The Quest for Feminine Expression in the Bone People, Tenant of Wildfell Hall and Mrs
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ABSTRACT THE QUEST FOR FEMININE EXPRESSION IN THE BONE PEOPLE, TENANT OF WILDFELL HALL AND MRS. DALLOWAY Using the feminist theory of Julia Kristeva and Luce Irigaray, this thesis explores the journey of female protagonists through a rite of passage with the outcome being greater feminine expression. The theory of Arnold van Gennep, Victor Turner, and Robert Torrance help elucidate the elements specific to rites of passages and quests within the novels as well. The primary finding of this examination is that one key component in feminine expression is the harmonious coexistence of opposites. While this is contrary to phallocratic labeling, feminine expression resists hierarchical structure, and thus resists a preference for the feminine alone, rather it includes phallocratic labeling in addition to Other forms of self-labeling. This is just one example of harmonious coexistence. Ultimately, feminine expression demonstrates the usefulness of ambiguity, fluidity, and inclusiveness in facilitating agency within a patriarchal society. This study ends with the theory of Gloria Anzaldúa, who demonstrates how feminine expression propels alliance building. Tomaro Scadding December 2012 THE QUEST FOR FEMININE EXPRESSION IN THE BONE PEOPLE, TENANT OF WILDFELL HALL AND MRS. DALLOWAY by Tomaro Scadding A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English in the College of Arts and Humanities California State University, Fresno December 2012 APPROVED For the Department of English: We, the undersigned, certify that the thesis of the following student meets the required standards of scholarship, format, and style of the university and the student’s graduate degree program for the awarding of the master’s degree. Tomaro Scadding Thesis Author John Beynon (Chair) English Steve Adisasmito-Smith English Ruth Jenkins English For the University Graduate Committee: Dean, Division of Graduate Studies AUTHORIZATION FOR REPRODUCTION OF MASTER’S THESIS X I grant permission for the reproduction of this thesis in part or in its entirety without further authorization from me, on the condition that the person or agency requesting reproduction absorbs the cost and provides proper acknowledgment of authorship. Permission to reproduce this thesis in part or in its entirety must be obtained from me. Signature of thesis author: ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to gratefully acknowledge the help of several people whose confidence in my ability has been unflagging and was definitely a part of my success in the completion of this work. First, my long-time friend, Gail Byas, who always knew I would write a book one day, but didn’t know what it would be. Second, my more recent friend, Lyn Johnson, who believed in my ability to write an expository essay long before I even knew what one was, and whose fault it is that I applied to the M.A. program in the first place. Naturally, I thank my mother, who has continued to parent me long after I reached 18 years of age, and whose love has picked me up more times than I can count. I also appreciate the support of my son, who for an adolescent of 16 has been extremely patient with a mother who was figuratively chained to her desk and would often growl and snap at him. And finally, I wish to thank my readers, and especially my chair, John Beynon, who has been incredibly patient with my incessant emails and who also refused to ease up in his demands so as to ensure that I would shine all the brighter. This work is a representation of more than one person’s effort. It is a testament to the love of people I’m blessed to have as a part of my life. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................ 1 The Journey to Self-Actualization: Arnold van Gennep, Victor Turner, and Robert Torrance ............................................................................... 2 A Theological Connection to the Liminal: Carmel Davis .............................. 10 Feminist Theory and Self-Expression: Luce Irigaray and Julia Kristeva ....... 15 The Feminine Quest in Literature ................................................................... 22 Troubles with a Gendered Study ..................................................................... 23 CHAPTER 2: THE TENANT OF WILDFELL HALL: THE ROLE OF LIMINAL SPACES IN HELEN’S DEVELOPMENT OF AUTONOMY .............................................................................................. 27 Synopsis of the Tenant of Wildfell Hall ......................................................... 31 Helen’s Use of the Limin ................................................................................ 34 The Role of Liminality in Conjunction with Helen’s Spirituality .................. 38 The Feminine in Helen’s Quest ...................................................................... 43 CHAPTER 3: THE ROLE OF SIMULTANEITY IN FOSTERING INCLUSION: KERI HULME’S FEMININE DISCOURSE IN THE BONE PEOPLE ........................................................................................... 50 Coexistent Labels Create Simultaneity ........................................................... 52 Kerewin’s Spiritual Quest ............................................................................... 61 The Resolution of Kerewin’s Quest: A Matrifocal Outcome ......................... 66 CHAPTER 4: MRS. DALLOWAY: THE FEMININE AGGREGATION OF CLARISSA DALLOWAY ......................................................................... 73 Synopsis of Mrs. Dalloway ............................................................................. 74 Between the Split: Not This Binary ................................................................ 76 The Plurality of Silence ................................................................................... 84 Managing the Abject Through Privacy ........................................................... 88 vi vi Page Self-Authorship: Clarissa’s Parties ................................................................. 95 CHAPTER 5: A NEW BEGINNING .................................................................. 104 WORKS CITED ................................................................................................... 115 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Within society, the recognition of differences has become a fruitful place towards promoting agency as well as a negative space towards fostering stereotypes and misunderstandings. Even while we strive to create equality, promote social justice, and create a climate which honors diversity—inequality, injustice and uniformity continue to exist as a reality for many because of assumptions surrounding power and privilege. These same sources of power reinforce patriarchal social scripts and phallocratic language that propels dominance and inequality. Additionally, due to a pervading sense that logic is in conflict with the emotional inner life, as well as the nature of in-depth scholarly research which requires an increasingly narrowed focus, connections between the concrete, practical concerns of self-definition and expression to subjective, ethereal spiritual concerns are rarely made at length. A scientific study, for example, might treat what is otherwise deemed sacred in a way that devalues it, robbing it of its mystery, for science seeks to answer every question, while the spiritual is often elusive and intimately personal with a variety of answers or responses. Feminist theory however, works to bridge this gap. Through examinations of marginalized groups, it uniquely attaches sensory, nonverbal, ambiguous understandings of identity and cultural scripts to tensions an individual experiences within a highly verbal, logical world. In this study, the theories of Luce Irigaray and Julia Kristeva demonstrate how interaction of the tangible and intangible go hand in hand. These women have worked to foster a belief that the emotional is as valuable as the logical, that ambiguity has as much a place as the concrete and definable. They go so far as to imply that what can’t be immediately 2 2 articulated can change the world just as fundamentally as knowledge which is communicable. In particular, I shall examine the ways that the harmonious coexistence of opposites, often noted as ambiguity, is useful to women, specifically in its allowance for fluctuating identities as well as its fostering of creativity, both of which facilitate agency within alternative gender roles outside of cultural norms. The Journey to Self-Actualization: Arnold van Gennep, Victor Turner, and Robert Torrance Within sociology, a connection between scholarly study and the spiritual begins with the concept of the limin in Arnold van Gennep’s Les rites de passage. Published in 1909, his discussion lays out in scientific fashion an observable and linear path by which to view the individual’s change within society. This is widely regarded as his most famous work and examines patterns found in both the sacred and the mundane. While the term rite of passage was probably not new, his theory applied this term to every fluctuation an individual makes within the social group. Additionally, Gennep claims that a rite of passage can be initiated either by society, the individual, or a combination of the two. He states there are three parts to this passage: 1) separation, 2) transition, and 3) incorporation (11, 21, 184). It is within this second part that the limin is found. As can be inferred from the terms, the first phase is one where