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Feminist Themes in Jane Somers Diaries

This document analyzes feminist issues in Doris Lessing's novel The Diaries of Jane Somers through the character of Janna. It examines Janna's roles as a wife and worker, and the stereotypes she confronts around marriage, sexuality, and her relationship with her husband Freddie. The analysis also looks at narrative techniques used to convey introspection and commentary on the past through a diary format.

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Mihaela Miha Turlea
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247 views3 pages

Feminist Themes in Jane Somers Diaries

This document analyzes feminist issues in Doris Lessing's novel The Diaries of Jane Somers through the character of Janna. It examines Janna's roles as a wife and worker, and the stereotypes she confronts around marriage, sexuality, and her relationship with her husband Freddie. The analysis also looks at narrative techniques used to convey introspection and commentary on the past through a diary format.

Uploaded by

Mihaela Miha Turlea
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

DORIS LESSING, The Diaries of Jane Somers

Tasks:

1. Identify the general feminist issues addressed in the excerpt.


-the woman that needs a man
-women in society
-marriage as a way of economic protection

2. Discover their particular instantiations and comment on them.


Janna has the roles of:a wife,lover “the night of love’ –offering love;
worker,cook “So I did – tidied, cleared up, put on the radio and danced a little by
myself”.

3. Find the female stereotypes alluded to and discuss their reception.


“a reception at the Savoy”-a beautiful place for wedding
“The honeymoon, motoring in the Dordogne”- this couple will have their
honeymoon in France
”after all, I was very pretty. But what was I feeling? I have no idea at all”-
suggests how women are treated.

4. Develop on sexuality and (meta)symbolism.


Sexuality is a connection between two pepople. ‘If the lights were off,
Janna –but who would we be making love with, I wonder?-no words needed,
just looking at each other without a mask.

5. What are the barriers inferred and to what extent are they overcome
inside the text and outside it?
-Janna is acting the role of a lover
-Barries:the door,Freddie.
6. Concentrate on the man-woman relationship and underline the
deviations from accepted/acceptable patterns.
- women as overthinkers
- men domination
- men always in a rush

7. Discuss the narrative technique employed to forward the text.


- 1st person subjective narrator;
- social commentary on social dimension;
-the present is used to trigger commentaries on Janna’s distant past;

8. How much does the diary form contribute to facilitating introspection?


The journal is to focus in writing on personal issues,but here it is more
therapeutically.

9. Observe the deliberate textualization of the self and discuss it in


relation with the contemporary situation.
Jane prefers to express her feelings and thoughts in her diary, because the
thought that she might not be noticed scares her.

10. Point to the juxtaposition of temporal levels and the demarcation


between the real and the fictional(ised).
Janna doesn't like living in the past because she thinks it's not
healthy for her mind.She only remembers the essentials from the past, so
we can say that the mind plays an important role. She remembers her life
with Freddie as almost perfect.

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