| Abstract [eng] |
Combining the concepts of literary geography, critical feminist geography and feminist literature critique, the master’s thesis analyses urban novels by Lithuanian women authors written abroad: Akvilina Cicėnaitė’s “Anglų kalbos žodynas“ (2022) and Vita Vilimaitė Lefebvre Delattre’s “Kvėpuoti kitais“ (2021). Cicėnaitė moved to Sydney, and Lefebvre Delattre moved to Paris. The authors’ encounter with another culture and environment inspired the ideas for a new novel, in which the main character, having encountered a foreign city, seeks to settle in it. This master’s thesis is the first attempt to describe women’s experiences in the city based on a combined interdisciplinary approach of Humanities and Social sciences. In the master’s thesis, a foreign city is treated not as a backdrop for the plot to unfold, but rather as a constantly changing space shaped by connections and encounters. The urban space is shaped by the individual experiences of women. The characters try to tame an unfamiliar city by walking, travelling, creating connections with other characters in the novels, and reflecting on their experiences. As the main characters explore cities or travel beyond their borders, more and more places and stories are revealed. Space in these novels is recreated comprehensively, using sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. The aim of the work is to reveal the relationship of the main female characters with a foreign city, thus highlighting the authors’ strategies of space writing. The theoretical part discusses the concept of the city in literature, while comparing the old and new geographical perspectives, highlighting the importance of feminist literature critique for studying women’s urban novels, and presenting the concept of the novel as a spatial event. The modern geographical perspective suggests perceiving cities not as objects recognizable to readers by mentioning recognizable streets, architecture, and monuments, but as open spatial formations formed by the individual experiences of the literature characters. The city in literature is considered a third space, formed by the author’s real experiences and creative processes. The relationship between a woman and a foreign city is analysed in the second part of the master’s thesis. This part distinguishes what forms space in these literature works, concentrating on the interaction of the main female characters of the novel with the city, their experiences, and sensations. In the “Anglų kalbos žodynas”, the city is “tamed” after resolving the main character’s internal conflict. In “Kvėpuoti kitais”, the character’s experience of the city is limited by assigned social roles and her immigrant status. In both novels, the space of Sydney and Paris is multilayered. It is formed by the writing, the spatial practices of the main characters, social roles, global and local processes, and time. Based on the analysis, schemes of Sydney and Paris as spatial events in literature are presented. Based on the analysis of “Anglų kalbos žodynas” and “Kvėpuoti kitais”, it can be distinguished that Sydney and Paris are sensory spaces, constantly recreated by the narrative. Meanwhile, place in both novels is related to past experiences and memories. The space in Anglų kalbos žodynas is perceived as transitory, shaped by the narrator’s subjectivity. The space in Kvėpuoti kitais is dense, shaped by the establishment of new connections and the interaction of characters. Space in these novels is perceived as a process. Both novels can be treated as unique examples of writing oneself through space. |
