Kandidatuppsats Engelska 61-90, 30hp The Gaze In Fantasy Literature A critical analysis of the novel A Game of Thrones Engelska 15hp 2020-05-30 Henrik Oresten Abstract Syftet med denna studie är att utforska den manliga och kvinnliga blicken i George R.R. Martins fantasinovell, A Game of Thrones (1996). Jag föreslår att skillnader i hur den manliga och kvinnliga blicken betraktar sitt objekt, kan avslöjas genom kritisk analys av kvinnliga huvudkaraktären Sansa Stark. Vidare menar jag att patriarkala strukturer kan synliggöras genom analys av manliga blickar som riktas mot den kvinnliga karaktären. Min analys av Martins fantasinovell har genomförts med hjälp av ett teoretiskt ramverk baserat på framförallt Laura Mulveys artikel Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema (1975) och Rachel S. Grates tes ”Love at First Sight? Jane Austen and the Transformative Male Gaze” (2015). Min analys visar att det finns skillnader i hur den kvinnliga och manliga blicken betraktar i sitt objekt. Den kvinnliga blicken tenderar exempelvis att vara mer mångfacetterad i sin värdering av ett objekt. Vidare visar analysen att de manliga blickarna avslöjar patriarkala strukturer. Nyckelord A Game of Thrones Feminist criticism Gaze theory Table of contents 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1. Aim and Approach ........................................................................................................................ 2 1.2. Gaze theory .................................................................................................................................. 3 1.2.1. The male gaze ........................................................................................................................ 4 1.2.2. The female gaze ..................................................................................................................... 5 1.2.3. Application of gaze theory on literature ................................................................................ 6 1.3. Material and Sources .................................................................................................................... 7 1.4. Character background .................................................................................................................. 8 1.5. Previous Research ........................................................................................................................ 9 2. Analysis .............................................................................................................................................. 10 2.1. The gaze of Ser Ilyn Payne .......................................................................................................... 10 2.2. The gaze of Lord Petyr Baelish ................................................................................................... 13 2.3. The gaze of Sansa Stark .............................................................................................................. 15 2.4. Summary and comparison .......................................................................................................... 18 3. Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 20 3.1. Didactic reflection ...................................................................................................................... 21 4. Works Cited ....................................................................................................................................... 22 1. Introduction By the mere appearance of the Other, I am put in the position of passing judgement on myself as on an object, for it is as an object that I appear to the Other. (translation of Sartre, Barnes 222) According to dictionary.com, the verb form of gaze implies: “to look steadily and intently, as with great curiosity, interest, pleasure, or wonder.” There is a clear distinction between merely looking and gazing. The latter suggests there is an intent behind the look, furthermore, this intent is typically felt by the one being looked at. Theories on the gaze have been developed and discussed in critical cultural theory in relation to the fields of psychoanalysis and sociology. Work from Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan have been used extensively for the development of gaze theory. Furthermore, scholars such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Michel Foucault have contributed to gaze theory, especially in its application to critical theory. In his acclaimed essay Being and Nothingness (1943), Sartre argues that the look of others causes us to question ourselves even without knowing the look’s true intent. Sartre’s argument speaks to the power of the gaze and its ability to impact and transform the inner life of its object. In what manner one is affected by a gaze is connected to the power relationship between the one who looks and the one who is looked at. The act of gazing is not simply ‘to-observe’ but to actively pass judgement on who is ‘looked-at’. This essay will explore the concept of the gaze and how it can be applied to critical analysis of literature. The focus is on the fantasy novel A Game of Thrones (1996) by George R.R. Martin, and his literary representations of the gaze. I will argue that differences in how the male gaze and the female gaze operates can be revealed through critical analysis of the female protagonist Sansa Stark. Moreover, this study will consider how the concept of the gaze can be applied by high school students when working with literature. 1 1.1. Aim and Approach The aim of this essay is to explore George R.R. Martin’s representations of the female and male gaze in his fantasy novel, A Game of Thrones (1996). I will argue that there are differences in how the male and female gaze function and relate to an object. Additionally, I will propose and show that these differences can be linked to patriarchal power structures within the novel. I will also consider the usefulness of gaze as a concept to be used by high school students to analyse literature. The critical analysis of the novel is structured around specific gaze theory, primarily derived from Laura Mulvey and her article “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema” (1975). Mulvey focuses her attention on the Hollywood film industry, thus her theory has typically been used for film analysis. This essay also incorporates the thesis “Love at First Sight? Jane Austen and the Transformative Male Gaze” (2015) by Rachel S. Grate, to support the adaptation of Mulvey’s gaze theory for literature. The theoretical framework of this essay offers a definition on the male gaze, based on Mulvey’s theory. To expand the definition of the male gaze, this essay also incorporates Lois Tyson’s general discussion about the gaze in Critical Theory Today (2006), while maintaining focus on literature. Since Mulvey is dismissive of the female gaze, Grate’s thesis will be used to supplement the discussion of the female gaze. The analysis focuses on the female protagonist Sansa Stark and her interaction with the two male characters Ser Ilyn Payne and Lord Petyr Baelish. The intention with the analysis is to examine Martin’s representations of the female and male gaze respectively. The female gaze can be observed through Martin’s use of Sansa as a focalizer and the description of Sansa’s thoughts as she gazes at the male other. The male gaze can be observed when it is directed toward Sansa and how the narrator presents her reception of that gaze. Additionally, the power relations between Sansa and the two male characters can be observed in the impact and transformative power of each gaze or its lack of impact. 2 1.2. Gaze theory Gaze theory is complex and not easily explained without extensive theoretical discussion. Tt is beyond the scope of this essay to give an all-encompassing presentation of gaze theory. This essay will instead focus on more recent research on gaze theory and its application in Film and Literary Studies. Feminist scholars have over the years become intensely interested in gaze theory. Specifically, they have made the connection between the gaze and patriarchal power structures. In her work Critical Theory Today (2006), Lois Tyson explains that “… in what many thinkers refer to as the male gaze: the man looks; the woman is looked at. And it is the one who looks who is in control, who holds the power to name things, the power to explain the world and so to rule the world.” (Tyson 102). In a patriarchal society, men are empowered through deeply rooted societal norms and institutionalized power. Women are by the same principles separated from this power. The gaze’s power and ability to impact and transform is connected to these patriarchal structures. Gaze theory within feminist criticism has been directed primarily toward the presence and power of the male gaze and female representation in the film industry. This direction was initiated by Mulvey and her article “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema” (1975). Mulvey examines the patriarchal nature of Hollywood filmmaking. The focus is put on the effects that the patriarchal society has on film industry and its film viewers. Mulvey uses a psychoanalytic perspective to establish how the woman is repeatedly inserted into Hollywood films, as a sexual object. She argues that pre-existing social norms, linked to patriarchy, are already at work when a typical