“God loves you but not enough to save you”: Patriarchal Authority and Feminine Punishment in Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar and Ethel Cain’s Preacher’s Daughter
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Authors
Fattor, Sacha
Date
2024-07-09
Type
thesis
Language
eng
Keyword
Sylvia Plath , Ethel Cain , Feminism , Agency , Patriarchy , Biblical Submission
Alternative Title
Abstract
This thesis draws upon critical feminist theory, autobiographical genres, and contemporary comparative analysis to examine gendered discourse and corporeal feminine punishment in The Bell Jar (1963) by Sylvia Plath and Preacher’s Daughter (2022) by Ethel Cain. My research links confessional women’s writing and patriarchal authority to examine the oppressive nature exerted by patriarchal institutions over feminine subjects. I observe the characterization of feminine heroine within patriarchal landscapes in which Biblical ideas of damnation, punishment, and salvation serve as a trajectory that both maps patriarchal violence and, at times, offers a window through and out of it. My thesis aims to highlight the evolving female literary landscape of the mid-20th century, establish the patriarchal conventions that exist in women’s writing, and denote patriarchal subjects’ consistent allusion to Biblical functions as reasoning for their systematic torment.
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Queen's University's Thesis/Dissertation Non-Exclusive License for Deposit to QSpace and Library and Archives Canada
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Copying and Preserving Your Thesis
This publication is made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws without written authority from the copyright owner.
ProQuest PhD and Master's Theses International Dissemination Agreement
Intellectual Property Guidelines at Queen's University
Copying and Preserving Your Thesis
This publication is made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws without written authority from the copyright owner.