K@ta: A Biannual Publication on the Study of Language and Literature (Jan 2016)
Following the Traces of Feminine Writing in Adrienne Rich’s Poems
Abstract
The phallogocentric structure of language privileges the male in construction of meaning throughout the patriarchal history which allows no place for feminine writing. Opposing what Lacan calls as phallogocentric discourse, poststructuralist feminists exhort to what Cixous terms as “écriture feminine” as the inscription of female difference in language and text. Therefore, viewing women's difference as a source (of imagery) rather than a point of inferiority to men, Rich rediscovers female experiences in her poems through using “écriture feminine” and thus exhibits the productivity and plurality of women’s language. Hence, the present study, looking from the perspective of Cixous’s “écriture feminine,” aims at analyzing female modes of writing in Rich’s poems. The main finding of the research is that, through using genuine female forms of expression as opposed to phallogocentric structure of expression, Rich brings into being the symbolic weight of female consciousness, illustrating the oppressive forces that obstruct female expression.
