Womanism as a Method of Literary Text Interpretation: A Study of Emergent Women’s Images under Religious Structures in Selected Works of Heinrich Böll. Inaugural-Dissertation zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades der Philosophie an der Ludwig-Maximilians –Universitiät München Vorgelegt von Aloysius –Gonzagas. Ikechukwu. Orjinta. PhD. aus (Nigeria) (University of Nigeria Press Ltd. Nsukka, Nigeria, 2013) 1 REFERENT: PROFESSOR. DR. CLEMENS. PORNSCHLEGEL. KORREFERENT: PROFESSOR. DR. SVEN. HANUSCHEK. TAG DER MÜNDLICHEN PRÜFUNG: 14. 1.2011 2 Table of Contents- - - - - - - - - - 3 Plan of Work - - - - - - - 7 Abstract - - - - - - - - 9 Chapter One - 13 1.0 Towards the reception of German Literature in Nigeria and in Africa - - - 13 1.2 Literature and Society: Expectations and Reception Horizons - - - - - 16 1.3 The Present situation of German studies in Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria - - -- 21 1.4 Outline of the Development of German Studies in Africa - - - - - - 29 1.5 The difficulties in the teaching of German language and literature in Nigeria and Africa - 33 1.6 Conclusion and Possible Suggestions - - 44 CHAPTER TWO: THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK -47 2.1 Introduction - - - - - - -47 2.2 Feminist Criticism - - - - - -51 2.3 Womanism - - - - - - -62 2.4 Motherism - - - - - - - -68 2.5 Stiwanism - - - - - - - - -71 2.6 A Plea for Womanism - - - - - - 72 CHAPTER THREE- - -74 Feminisms and Womanism: Points of contact and divergence - - - - - - - -74 3 3.1 Introduction - - - - - - - 74 3.2 Feminism - - - - - - - -75 3.3 Womanism - - - - - - - - 81 3.3.1 Introduction - - - - - - - 81 3.3.2 Womanism: Definition and Historical Background - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -83 3.3.3 Womanism as a Brainchild of Negritude and African Criticism - - - - - - - 85 3.4 Similarities and Dissimilarities between Womanims and the Western Feminism - - - 86 3.5 Transition to Heinrich Boll and his Womanist Works - 96 CHAPTER FOUR: LIFE HISTORY OF HEINRICH BÖLL AND THE CHURCH’S IMAGE IN HIS WORKS - 99 4.1 Introduction - - - - - - - 99 4.2 Childhood, Catholic Education - - - - 103 4.3 Epochal and Historical Background (1929-1945) - 108 4.4 Political instability and Economic Crisis - - - - 110 4.5 Religious and Church Crisis - - - - - 119 CHAPTER FIVE: WOMEN’S LITERATURE IN THE WORKS OF HEINCRICH BOLL - - - - 129 5.1 Introduction - - - - - - - 129 5.2 Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum - - - 131 5.2.1 Interpretation - - - - - - - 134 5.3 Gruppendbild mit Dame - - - - - 141 5.3.1 Introduction - - - - - - 141 5.3.2 Content - - - - - - - - 142 4 5.3.3. Interpretation - - - - - - - 143 5.4 Das Ansichten eines Clowns - - - - 148 5.4.1 Introduction - - - - - - - 148 5.4.2 Content - - - - - - - - 149 5.4.3 Interpretation - - - - - - - 150 5.5 Frauen vor Flusslandschaft - - - - - 153 5.5.1 Introduction - - - - - - - 153 5.5.2 Content/Interpretation - - - - - - 154 5.6 Womanist Interpretation - - - - - - 156 5.7 Conclusion - - - - - - - - 169 CHAPTER SIX: THE IMAGE OF THE CHURCH IN THE WORKS OF HEINRICH BÖll - - - - 172 6.1 Introduction - - - - - - - 172 6.2 Boll’s Prophecy - - - - - - - 176 6.3 Caesero – Papism and Materialism - - - - 180 6.4 Morality and Sacrament - - - - - 191 6.5 Conclusion - - - - - - - - 202 CHAPTER SEVEN: WOMEN IN SELECTED WORLD RELIGIONS AND CULTURES - 205 7.1 Gender Discrimination in World Religions and Cultures - - - - - - 205 7.2 Women and Religion - - - - - - 211 7.3 Women in Islam - - - - - - - 213 7.3.1 The stand of the Koran (Sura Annisa) on Women - 218 7.3.2 Divorce in Islam - - - - - - - 219 7.3.3 How Islam treats adultery - - - - - 220 5 7.3.4. Sexism in Islam - - - - - - - 222 7.3.5 Regulations Concerning women’s fashion and body beautification - - - - - - 223 7.3.6 Inculturation and Acculturation - - - - 228 7.3.7 Reaction of Moslem women to Sexism in Islam - 234 Conclusion - - - - - - - 237 7.4 Women in African Religion - - - - 243 7.4.1 Religious Beliefs and Practices - - - - 245 7.4.2 Sexism in African Traditional Religion - - - 248 7.4.3 Women’s leading Roles in A.T.R. - - - 250 7.4.4 Obnoxious Practices in A.T.R. - - - - 254 7.5 Women’s roles in Christianity - - - - 256 7.5.1 Women from the Perspective of Christianity - 267 7.5.2 Experiences of Women in Christianity in the first two Millenia - - - - - - 269 7.5.3 Women’s experiences from 30 A.D. to 1500 A.D 271 Conclusion - - - - - - - 273 7.6 Women’s Role in African Culture - - - 274 7.6.1 The Socio-Political Status of African Women in African Culture before European Cultural Invasion 278 7.6.2 Socio-Economic Status of women before the Advent of Colonialism - - - - 282 7.6.3 General Conclusion - - - - - - 286 Bibliography - - - - - - - 288 6 Plan of work: This work is planned in the following ways: Firstly the goals of this work are stated in the abstract. In chapter one, we tried to situate the work in the context of the new regulations of the intercultural German studies. It should be made clear from the outset that this dissertation is carried out in my own personal interest as well as in the interest of all German students with a view to finding a way out of the problematic of intercultural German studies. The theoretical framework is analyzed in chapter two. We shall at the same time theoretically define and evaluate the following concepts and feminist technical terms: Feminist criticism, womanism, Motherism and Stiwanism. Other sub themes will however be considered. Finally we shall take a stand for womanism as a suitable literary interpretation of feminist texts of Heinrich Böll. In the fourth chapter we shall try to go deeper into the concept of feminism and womanism, whereby one will consider the similarities and dissimilarities between both terms. One will explain that as an African with the African background of Slave Trade, Colonialism and Neo-imperialism as well as the Negritude, one will like to view Heinrich Böll and his works or the German literature with the sociological or New – Marxist literary criticism. Moreover, we shall try to pass on this research to the African recipients, who can hardly understand the German literature through the European or Western criticism, be it hermeneutics, Text- interpretation or feminist literary theory. In chapter five, we shall take up the life history of Heinrich Böll. The biography that shall be shown here is based on the conviction of the author, that his literary engagement was deeply influenced by his life experience. The author cannot achieve the luxury of l’art pour l’art in the literature of ruins and trends. Literature should mirror the society. That is why we shall treat in detail such sub-themes as: childhood, Catholic upbringing and education as well as the historical background of 1929-1945. After a presentation of the relationship between literature and its milieu, we shall come to women’s literature in the works of Heinrich Böll in the fifth 7 chapter. First of all, we shall give a detailed contextual interpretation of the respective titles: Die verlorene Ehre der Katharina Blum, Gruppenbild mit Dame, Ansichten eines Clowns and Frauen vor Flusslandshaft. There after we shall take up the womanist interpretation. In chapter six, the image of the church in the works of Heinrich Böll will be examined exclusively. Böll polemicized a lot against the church’s hierarchy. His objections will be analyzed here and his alternatives accurately explained. In chapter seven, I will globalize my research on the image of woman, by studying the role of women in world religions. First we shall globally present sexism in selected religions. After that, we shall explain in detailed form Gender differences and conflicts in Islam, Christendom and in the African Traditional Religion (A.T.R). In the course of the chapter the reaction of women will be analysed. Because the theoretical assessment of this work is partly based on the African culture; this culture will also be considered from the feminist point of view. The major part of this work shall explain that Heinrich Böll made his mark as a womanist. Up to this point, feminists have inadequately criticized him and his work. A holistic re-reading of the selected stories and novels of Heinrich Böll will weaken the criticism of feminists. Contrary to the opinion of certain critics, that Heinrich Böll portrayed a conservative image of women and an anti-feminist picture, this work has discovered that the author highlighted the situation of woman through his stylistics and literary approaches – even more than many of the so-called feminists. Böll’s methodical procedure is most suitable to the model of the post modern feminism, where the womanist theories find their seat. Sequel to this, we try to research on how the African readers can read, understand and evaluate German literature; even when such literature is already translated into English or French. In my own opinion, one can arouse the interest of the African recipient with a womanist interpretation. This mediatory role should serve as the basic tool for making the reading of literature exciting to Africans studying German language and literature up to the University level. 8 ABSTRACT Researches on the image of women in religion and in literature are often a big topic in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The literary image of women are created or made by male authors ab initio because the orient, the birth place of the three religions, was dominated by patriarchy for a long time. Most male authors were writing patriarchal oriented stories, where women were degraded or demoted to second class beings. This brought about stereotypes, prejudices and a prior condemnation of woman, and men placed themselves in the centre of leading stories as well as in literary canons. On the one hand, men were writing about what they thought about women; their image of woman, however, hardly corresponded with what women thought about themselves. On the other hand they were abusing the religious feelings of women and exploited them. This work deals with further research on the concept of women in the above religions and on their fictional portraits in selected novels and stories of Heinrich Böll.