Women’s Lives in Contemporary French and Francophone Literature

Ramond Jurney, Florence; McPherson, Karen

The essays in this volume provide an overview and critical account of prevalent trends and theoretical arguments informing current investigations into literary treatments of motherhood and aging. They explore how two key stages in women’s lives—maternity and old age—are narrated and defined in fictions and autobiographical writings by contemporary French and francophone women. Through close readings of Maryse Condé, Hélène Cixous, Zahia Rahmani, Linda Lê, Pierrette Fleutieux, and Michèle Sarde, among others, these essays examine related topics such as dispossession, female friendship, and women’s relationships with their mothers. By adopting a broad, synthetic approach to these two distinct and defining stages in women’s lives, this volume  elucidates how these significant transitional moments set the stage for women’s evolving definitions (and interrogations) of their identities and roles.  

Details

Published by: Palgrave Macmillan

Publication Date: 2018-06-16

Format: Paperback

ISBN-13: 9783319822006

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-40850-7

Dimensions: 210cm x148cm

Pages: 169