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I am Kavita Chauhan,a student in MA sem- 3 department of English MKBU.
Assignment Paper No.: 203
This blog is part of an assignment for Sem-3, Paper No 202 Indian English post-independence assigned by Dr. Dilip Bard Sir, Department of English, MKBU. In this assignment, I am discussing:”Feminist Perspectives in Foe: The Role of Susan Barton”.
•Academic Information:
Name: Kavita N. Chauhan
Roll No.: 15
Enrollment No.: 5108230010
Semester: 3
Paper No.: 203
Paper Code: 22408
Paper Name: postcolonial studies
Topic:Feminist Perspectives in Foe: The Role of Susan Barton.
Submitted to: Smt. S.B. Gardi, Department of English, MKBU
E-mail: kavitanchauhan2002@gmail.com
•Table of Contents:
Introduction:
About Novel” Foe”:
About the novelist:
Rewriting the Traditional Female Character:
Susan Barton as the Female Protagonist:
Gender Dynamics and Representation:
Susan Barton’s Relationship with Crusoe and Friday:
The Significance of Friday’s Silence:
Coetzee’s Feminist Rewriting of History:
Conclusion:
References:
- Introduction:
J.M. Coetzee’s Foe is a postcolonial and feminist revision of Daniel Defoe’s classic Robinson Crusoe. In Foe Coetzee reimagines the well-known story of Crusoe’s island survival, but this time from the perspective of Susan Barton, a woman who finds herself stranded on the island. Through Susan Barton, Coetzee offers a critical exploration of gender roles, challenging traditional notions of female agency and subjectivity. In this assignment, we will explore Susan Barton's character in Foe and how Coetzee challenges traditional gender roles and representations through her narrative.
- About Novel” Foe”:
Click:👉Vedio lecture on Foe novel
J.M. Coetzee’s Foe (1986) is a dividend in three chapters also postcolonial and feminist reimagining of Daniel Defoe’s classic Robinson Crusoe. The novel is a retelling of the story from the perspective of Susan Barton, a woman who is stranded on the island with Crusoe and Friday. Coetzee revises the original narrative by focusing on themes of colonialism, race, power, and gender.
In Foe, Susan seeks to take control of her own narrative, challenging the traditional roles assigned to women in literature. The character of Friday is also reimagined, his silence becoming a form of resistance. Through the interactions between Susan, Crusoe, and Friday, the novel critiques the ways in which history has marginalized voices, especially those of women and colonized subjects. Coetzee uses this revision to interrogate the power dynamics of storytelling, colonialism, and gender, offering a fresh perspective on a classic tale.
- About the novelist:
J.M. Coetzee is a South African writer, known for his works of fiction, essays, and criticism. Born in 1940 in Cape Town, Coetzee is one of the most prominent and influential writers of contemporary literature. His works often explore themes such as colonialism, apartheid, power, identity, and human suffering. Coetzee’s writing is marked by its moral and philosophical depth, as well as its sparse and controlled style.
He won the Booker Prize twice, for Life & Times of Michael K (1983) and Disgrace (1999). In 2003, Coetzee was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for his "increased understanding of the human condition." His notable works also include Waiting for the Barbarians (1980), The Master of Petersburg (1994), and Elizabeth Costello (2003). Coetzee's writing reflects his deep engagement with the social and political issues of his native South Africa, as well as his exploration of the complexities of human experience.
- Rewriting the Traditional Female Character:
In Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe women are largely absent, and when they do appear, they are either passive or entirely absent from the narrative. Crusoe’s world is predominantly masculine, with few references to female agency or identity. Coetzee’s Foe confronts this gender gap by introducing Susan Barton as a central character who not only narrates her version of the events but also challenges the gender dynamics at play on the island.
Susan Barton is not a passive character, but an active agent in the novel. Unlike the women in Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, who are largely defined by their relationships to male characters, Susan's character is independent, self-conscious, and assertive. She is a woman who actively takes control of her narrative, making her voice central to the retelling of the story. Through Susan's character, Coetzee offers a feminist perspective that addresses the erasure of women from historical and literary narratives, particularly in the context of colonialism and adventure tales.
- Susan Barton as the Female Protagonist:
Susan Barton is depicted as a strong, independent, and self-reliant woman who challenges the traditional roles that women are often relegated to in literature. When she finds herself stranded on the island with Crusoe, Friday, and the other characters, she does not submit to the traditional notion of a woman as a passive or subservient character in a patriarchal society. Instead, Susan asserts her agency, becoming a significant force in the narrative.
Susan's character is defined by her constant striving for agency. She seeks to be recognized as an equal by the male characters around her. Her relationship with Crusoe is far from submissive, and she resists his control over her actions. Susan challenges Crusoe’s colonial mindset and strives to rewrite the narrative in a way that gives her voice more power. This marks a stark contrast with the female characters in Robinson Crusoe, who are either absent or positioned as figures of domesticity and servitude.
- Gender Dynamics and Representation:
Coetzee’s Foe is a commentary on the power dynamics between men and women in a patriarchal society. The novel reveals how women have often been marginalized and silenced in colonial and literary contexts. Through Susan Barton, Coetzee critiques this marginalization and brings attention to the importance of giving women a voice in history and literature.
In the novel, Susan is often confronted with the gendered expectations placed upon her. She is portrayed as a woman who seeks to assert her autonomy in a world that continually diminishes her. Her desire to write her own story is a direct challenge to the traditional gender roles that have historically relegated women to the background. Susan’s attempts to retell the story of Crusoe’s island survival are significant because they represent a feminist reclaiming of a narrative that was initially constructed without her input.
One of the most telling moments in the novel is when Susan attempts to tell her version of the story to the public. She is not content to remain in the background while the male characters dominate the narrative. She seeks to become the narrator of her own life, refusing to let the male characters, especially Crusoe, define her existence. Through this act of narrative assertion, Coetzee highlights the struggle for women’s voices in a society that privileges male authority.
- Susan Barton’s Relationship with Crusoe and Friday:
The relationships Susan forms with Crusoe and Friday further challenge the traditional gender roles in Foe. In Robinson Crusoe Crusoe's relationship with the character of Friday is one of dominance and subjugation. Crusoe views Friday as a servant or a subordinate, a relationship reflective of colonial attitudes toward indigenous people. However, Susan does not accept this power dynamic. She questions the unequal relationships between the male characters and takes a more egalitarian approach.
Susan’s relationship with Friday is marked by mutual respect and an understanding of shared humanity. Unlike Crusoe, who sees Friday as an object of his own will, Susan acknowledges Friday’s autonomy and humanity. She refuses to reduce him to a mere tool of her own survival, instead seeing him as a person with his own voice and perspective. Through Susan’s relationship with Friday, Coetzee subverts the traditional colonial narrative, challenging the assumption that women, like colonized subjects, are always passive and subjugated.
In contrast to Susan’s relationship with Friday, her relationship with Crusoe is much more fraught with power dynamics. While Susan is independent and self-assertive, Crusoe remains a figure of patriarchal authority, expecting her to conform to his ideas and desires. However, Susan refuses to accept this dominance. She challenges Crusoe’s authority at every turn, making it clear that she will not be silenced or subjugated. Her rebellion against Crusoe is a feminist act, as it represents a rejection of the traditional gender roles that confine women to subordinate positions in society.
- The Significance of Friday’s Silence:
One of the most striking features of Foe is the character of Friday, whose silence is a central element in the novel. In Robinson Crusoe Friday is a submissive character who is largely defined by his silence and subjugation. In Coetzee’s Foe Friday's silence is both a literal and symbolic act of resistance. Friday refuses to speak, thereby asserting control over his own narrative and rejecting the colonial and patriarchal forces that have sought to silence him.
Susan Barton is the one who attempts to give Friday a voice. She seeks to interpret his silence and make sense of his experiences, while also giving him agency. However, Friday’s refusal to speak can be seen as an act of defiance. It is as though he is rejecting the narratives imposed upon him by both Crusoe and Susan. Through this dynamic, Coetzee suggests that silence itself can be a powerful form of resistance, particularly for those who have historically been oppressed and silenced by dominant powers.
- Coetzee’s Feminist Rewriting of History:
Coetzee’s Foe serves as a feminist rewriting of history. Through Susan Barton, Coetzee challenges the traditional male-dominated historical narrative. The novel critiques the ways in which colonial histories have been constructed to marginalize the voices of women and other oppressed groups. By giving Susan Barton a voice and a central role in the retelling of the story, Coetzee forces the reader to reconsider the historical narratives they have been taught to accept
The feminist aspect of Foe lies in its critique of the way history is written. Coetzee’s portrayal of Susan as a woman who actively resists male authority and seeks to control her own narrative is a direct challenge to the patriarchal structures that have historically shaped historical and literary discourse. Susan’s character represents a reclamation of women’s voices, making her an essential figure in the feminist critique of colonial and literary history.
- Conclusion:
Through Susan Barton’s character, Coetzee offers a complex and nuanced critique of traditional gender roles and representations. Susan is not a passive female character; instead, she is an active agent who challenges the patriarchal norms that define her world. Her relationships with Crusoe and Friday subvert traditional power dynamics, and her struggle to tell her own story reflects the broader feminist critique of the erasure of women’s voices from history. Coetzee’s Foe is, therefore, not just a postcolonial revision of Robinson Crusoe, but also a feminist retelling that seeks to give women the power to reclaim their narratives and challenge the gendered hierarchies that have shaped literary and historical discourse.
Through Susan Barton’s narrative, Coetzee encourages us to reconsider the ways in which gender, power, and history are intertwined. By questioning the traditional representation of women in literature, Coetzee makes a powerful feminist statement, offering a new model for understanding the role of women in history and storytelling.
Words:1949
Images:7
Video:1
- References:
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "J.M. Coetzee". Encyclopedia Britannica, 12 Oct. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/J-M-Coetzee. Accessed 10 November 2024.
Whitehead, Deborah. “Feminism, Religion, and the Politics of History.” Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, vol. 27, no. 2, 2011, pp. 3–9. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2979/jfemistudreli.27.2.3. Accessed 10 Nov. 2024.
Turk, Tisha. “Intertextuality and the Collaborative Construction of Narrative: J. M. Coetzee’s ‘Foe.’” Narrative, vol. 19, no. 3, 2011, pp. 295–310. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41289306. Accessed 10 Nov. 2024.
Prentice, Chris. “Foe (1986).” A Companion to the Works of J. M. Coetzee, edited by Tim Mehigan, Bo
ydell & Brewer, 2011, pp. 91–112. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7722/j.ctt1x72rx.13. Accessed 10 Nov. 2024.
Thank you 😊
Happy Learning ☘️
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