Research Article

Magical realist elements in postcolonial feminist fiction: a comparative Study of Sevgili Arsız Ölüm and Beloved

Number: 21 December 21, 2020
  • Serap Sarıbaş *
TR EN

Magical realist elements in postcolonial feminist fiction: a comparative Study of Sevgili Arsız Ölüm and Beloved

Abstract

In terms of race, gender, and class hierarchies, the female characters of Sevgili Arsız Ölüm and Beloved suffer the pressure of being societal outsiders along with patriarchal oppression. This outside pressure leads them to recreate colonization (sometimes a woman can oppress another woman) and sometimes to fight back more in their lives. By analyzing the conflict between the real and the imaginary in both novels, one can understand that it is possible to see suffering and the need for self-discovery by oppressed characters across different times, spaces, and stories. Toni Morrison successfully incorporates magical realist features into her masterpiece Beloved, which manifests Black people’s tragic history and their difficult lives as a result of racism. Latife Tekin, who is a leading magical realist author in Turkish Literature, presents the problems of Turkish people who have immigrated from rural to urban environments and their strivings for self-identification in her novel Sevgili Arsız Ölüm. Typical tenets of magical realism are present in both novels, such as non-linear time and space, passing narrative voices, extraordinary events, and traditional beliefs and fantasy. By referring to the magical realist style of narration and postcolonial feminist theory, the aim of this comparison is to observe the common struggles experienced by non-white and non-Western women in todays’ world. The aim of the study is to discuss the other side of the hidden and/or distorted realities produced by the oppressors, and to analyze the attendant historical, social, and psychological issues by focusing on female characters.

Keywords

References

  1. Bakan, R. (2017, May 14) Sevgili Arsız Ölüm'de toplumsal cinsiyet [1]. Bükak. http://www.bukak.boun.edu.tr/?p=854
  2. Bowers, M. A. (2004). Magic(al) realism. London: Routledge.....................................
  3. Çur, A. (2005). Sevgili cinim, arsız perim, hanimiş ölüm? Kitap-lık Aylık Edebiyat Dergisi, Şubat, 110-112.
  4. Emir, D., & Diler, H. E. (2011). Büyülü gerçekçilik: Latife Tekin’in Sevgili Arsız Ölüm ve Angela Carter’ın Büyülü Oyuncakçı Dükkanı isimli eserlerinin karşılaştırılması. Dumlupınar Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, (30), 51-62.
  5. Halman, T. S. (2013). A Millennium of Turkish literature: A concise history. (J. L. Warner, Ed.) Ankara: Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
  6. Hemminger, B. (1999). Coterminous worlds: Magical realism and contemporary post-colonial literature in English. Amsterdam: Rodopi.
  7. Lorde, A. (1984). Age, race, class and sex: Women redefining difference. In: Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches. Freedom, CA: Crossing Press.
  8. Minh-ha, T. T. (1989). Women, native, other: Writing postcoloniality and feminism. Bloomington, India: Indiana University Press.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Linguistics

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Serap Sarıbaş * This is me
0000-0002-4079-8024
Türkiye

Publication Date

December 21, 2020

Submission Date

November 9, 2020

Acceptance Date

December 20, 2020

Published in Issue

Year 2020 Number: 21

APA
Sarıbaş, S. (2020). Magical realist elements in postcolonial feminist fiction: a comparative Study of Sevgili Arsız Ölüm and Beloved. RumeliDE Dil Ve Edebiyat Araştırmaları Dergisi, 21, 715-723. https://doi.org/10.29000/rumelide.839162

Cited By