University of Kentucky UKnowledge Theses and Dissertations--Hispanic Studies Hispanic Studies 2013 LETTERS AS SELF-PORTRAITS: EPISTOLARY FICTIONS BY WOMEN WRITERS IN SPAIN (1986-2002) Lynn Y. Celdran University of Kentucky, [email protected] Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Celdran, Lynn Y., "LETTERS AS SELF-PORTRAITS: EPISTOLARY FICTIONS BY WOMEN WRITERS IN SPAIN (1986-2002)" (2013). Theses and Dissertations--Hispanic Studies. 17. https://uknowledge.uky.edu/hisp_etds/17 This Doctoral Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Hispanic Studies at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations--Hispanic Studies by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STUDENT AGREEMENT: I represent that my thesis or dissertation and abstract are my original work. 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Celdran, Student Dr. Ana Rueda, Major Professor Dr. Moisés Castillo, Director of Graduate Studies LETTERS AS SELF-PORTRAITS: EPISTOLARY FICTIONS BY WOMEN WRITERS IN SPAIN (1986-2002) ____________________________________ DISSERTATION ____________________________________ A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Kentucky By Lynn Celdrán Lexington, KY Director: Dr. Ana Rueda, Professor of Hispanic Studies Lexington, KY 2013 Copyright © Lynn Celdrán 2013 ABSTRACT OF DISSERTATION LETTERS AS SELF-PORTRAITS: EPISTOLARY FICTIONS BY WOMEN WRITERS IN SPAIN (1986-2002) My study seeks to explore the interest that Spanish women authors such as Josefina Aldecoa, Carme Riera, Nuria Amat, Esther Tusquets, Marina Mayoral, Carmen Martín Gaite, and Olga Guirao have taken in the revival of epistolary fiction in recent decades. Eighteenth- and nineteenth-century epistolary fiction in Spain was conditioned by social practices and by literary conventions that typically confined its heroines to an amorous plot and women authors to anonymity. I contend that if modern tradition of epistolary practices and other male-discriminatory practices kept women writers silenced or invisible in the Spanish literary world, contemporary women writers sketch themselves back into their texts. Fictional letters function as written self-portraits for them to reflect and tell their own stories, thereby creating a playful mirror effect between the fictional epistolographer and the historical author. By pushing the conventional boundaries of letter writing as a sentimental genre, contemporary women authors take liberty to rewrite female representation and to give the fictional protagonists a new voice and visibility. They revisit the theme of love in epistolary literature to explore refashioned— and often transgressive—discourses on gender, sexuality, and subject identity. KEYWORDS: Epistolarity, Spain, Fiction Contemporary, Women/Gender ____ Lynn Celdrán_________________ _______August 27, 2013_______________ LETTERS AS SELF-PORTRAITS: EPISTOLARY FICTIONS BY WOMEN WRITERS IN SPAIN (1986-2002) By Lynn Celdrán ____________Ana Rueda__________ Director of Dissertation ____________Moisés Castillo_______ Director of Graduate Studies ____________August 27, 2013_______ To my precious family who supported me, unconditionally, and allowed me over the years to realize a rewarding dream of mine. Acknowledgements There are no words of gratitude that could adequately thank my dissertation director, Dr. Ana Rueda, for her time and dedication extended toward me during my academic journey at the University of Kentucky. Her positive disposition, combined with her patience and understanding have been a source of strength for me while I endeavored to pursue this project. Furthermore, it was Dr. Rueda’s own groundbreaking research on Spanish epistolarity, Cartas sin lacrar that inspired my interest in the topic of letter fiction. It is her expertise and professionalism, among many other wonderful qualities, that I have so greatly come to admire about her. Dr. Susan Carvalho, too, has been a source of inspiration for me from the first day that I met her, and her classes devoted to Latin American women authors’ works eventually directed my interest toward women’s literature. One of the profound impressions that Dr. Carvalho has left to me is the spirit of tenacity. Her encouragement and support was immensely appreciated these last years. Dr. Biglieri’s humor and light-hearted spirit have been refreshing, and at times, very much needed during the heaviness of my project. His guidance and knowledgeable contributions to my study have been invaluable. I would like to thank Dr. Cristina Alcalde for having agreed to serve on my committee early into her first year at the University of Kentucky. Indeed, Dr. Alcalde’s scholarship on Latin American women and violence has influenced me in my pursuit of local humanitarian work related to immigrant women and violence because of the impression she has made on me. Finally, I would like to thank Dr. Yanira Paz, whom I met many years back while participating in the KIIS program in Segovia, Spain. It was at that time in my life iii when I began to entertain the idea of teaching at a higher academic level. Dr. Paz gave me wonderful feedback and support on ways to be pedagogically effective as I grow in the profession. All of these aforementioned experts have left an indelible footprint in my academic life at the University of Kentucky. I am eternally grateful to each of them for having walked this journey out with me. I recognize that this dissertation is, in some sense, a reflection of their shared ideas, in one way or another. iv Table of Contents Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... iii Introduction .................................................................................................................... vii Chapter 1: The Epistolary Tradition at a Crossroads: From Artistic Constraints to Female Agency ........................................................................................................ 1 Theoretical Framework ....................................................................................... 12 The Epistolary I-You Paradigm .......................................................................... 13 Body, Text, and the Construction of “Self” ........................................................ 19 Sexuality and Homoerotic Expression ................................................................ 24 Letter Writing as an Allegory for the Woman Artist .......................................... 29 A Case Study: ¿Te acuerdas de Shahrazad? ..................................................... 33 Concluding Remarks ........................................................................................... 41 Chapter 2: Self-Love: Letters as an Autobiographical Manifesto ................................. 44 The I-You Paradigm as a Masked “I” ................................................................. 48 Letter-writing as Mirroring ................................................................................. 56 “Espejismo” or Mirage in Josefina Aldecoa’s Porque éramos jóvenes ............. 58 Self-Reflexivity in Carme Riera’s Cuestión de amor propio ............................. 69 Self-Referentiality in Nuria Amat’s “El relato de Mónica” ................................ 76 Letter as Rhetorical Artifact in Esther Tusquets’ “Carta a mi primer amor” .... 82 Trauma and Memory in Marina Mayoral’s “Querida amiga” and “Estimada Señora ....................................................................................................... 90 Concluding Remarks ......................................................................................... 100 v Chapter 3: Carmen Martín Gaite’s Nubosidad variable: Reflections of Love and Identity ..................................................................................................................... 104 The Subversive Art of Carmen Martín Gaite. ..................................................