Private and professional life in autobiographies of Lithuanian women writers

Abstract

The article analyzes women’s autobiographies published in the most recent edition of Soviet Lithuanian writers’ autobiography collection Tarybinių Lietuvos rašytojų auobiografijos (Autobiographies of Soviet Lithuanian writers, ed. Aldona Mickienė, Vol. I and II, 1989). Due to their professional careers, the Soviet Lithuanian female writers were part of the patriarchal and normative elite of the society, and thus acted as secondary characters of the said elite. In order to be treated as equals, the female writers, just like their male counterparts, primarily tried to present themselves as professionals, hence their autobiographies are dominated by public activities. On the other hand, the autobiography as a secondary genre, served well to express personal observations that were not considered fit for other, more official genres. The article aims to highlight the complex connection between personal traits of an individual and his or her living conditions the way it is reflected in autobiographies. It is then helpful to review the women’s autobiographies written during that timeframe by relying on both, the research traditions of women autobiographies as well as the documentary studies of the Soviet society.

Keywords

• mid-twentieth century literature
• women writers
• writers’ autobiography
• women’s autobiography
• self-representation in autobiography