Unveiling the Ordinary “Other” in Neo-Victorian Biofiction

k 2024

Unveiling the Ordinary “Other” in Neo-Victorian Biofiction

VALOVÁ, Jana

Základní údaje

Originální název

Unveiling the Ordinary “Other” in Neo-Victorian Biofiction

Autoři

VALOVÁ, Jana

Vydání

SEAC International Conference : THE (NEO-)HISTORICAL IN BRITISH LITERATURE AND VISUAL ARTS (20th – 21st CENTURIES), 17 - 18th October 2024, University of Caen Normandie, France, 2024

Další údaje

Jazyk

angličtina

Typ výsledku

Prezentace na konferencích

Obor

60206 Specific literatures

Stát vydavatele

Francie

Utajení

není předmětem státního či obchodního tajemství

Odkazy

URL

Organizační jednotka

Filozofická fakulta

Klíčová slova anglicky

Margaret Forster; Kate Pullinger; female servants; neo-Victorian literature; biofiction

Příznaky

Mezinárodní význam, Recenzováno

Změněno: 25. 1. 2025 18:00, Mgr. Jana Pelclová, Ph.D.

Anotace

V originále

While neo-Victorian literature is often concerned with stories about fame or infamy, deviance, and shocking Otherness, the genre also shows a keen interest in servitude. The servant character can be characterised by inherent invisibility, with their roles strictly prescribed and their freedom limited. Neo-Victorian narratives experiment with the issue of invisibility and ordinariness, portraying servant characters with multifaceted desires and natures. These experiments result in varied levels of development of the servant character, as will be discussed in relation to two neo-Victorian biofictional works: Lady’s Maid (1990) by Margaret Forster and The Mistress of Nothing (2009) by Kate Pullinger. The depiction of Wilson (Lady’s Maid) and Sally (The Mistress of Nothing) constantly emphasises these maids’ subordinate and marginal positions compared to their mistresses, who hold all the power. When portraying the overlooked working class, adding and fictionalising stories that have been insufficiently documented becomes crucial. It is evident that without their well-known mistresses, Wilson’s and Sally’s revisitations would not exist. However, a question arises as to whether, because of their mistresses, they can also not become pivotal characters in their neo-Victorian revisitation. This presentation argues that the Otherness of both protagonists is not only rooted in their subordinate working-class position but also in the suggested ordinariness and secondariness of their lives, reliant on their employers and suspended in indeterminacy that makes them liminal. This reliance is further emphasised by the stories told due to the servant’s connection to their more well-known employers. As a result, both Wilson and Sally represent neo-Victorian protagonists of what Kohlke categorises as biofiction of marginalised subjects, while the narrative also provides “skewed insights and revelations … into the (more) noteworthy personalities” (Kohlke 11), in this case, their mistresses Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Lady Duff Gordon. Kohlke, Marie-Luise. “Neo-Victorian Biofiction and the Special/Spectral Case of Barbara Chase- Ribouds Hottentot Venus.” Australasian Journal of Victorian Studies, vol. 18, no. 3, 2013, pp. 4-21

Citovat

VALOVÁ, Jana. Unveiling the Ordinary “Other” in Neo-Victorian Biofiction. In SEAC International Conference : THE (NEO-)HISTORICAL IN BRITISH LITERATURE AND VISUAL ARTS (20th – 21st CENTURIES), 17 - 18th October 2024, University of Caen Normandie, France. 2024.

@proceedings{2468199,
   author = {Valová, Jana},
   booktitle = {SEAC International Conference : THE (NEO-)HISTORICAL IN BRITISH LITERATURE AND VISUAL ARTS (20th – 21st CENTURIES), 17 - 18th October 2024, University of Caen Normandie, France},
   keywords = {Margaret Forster; Kate Pullinger; female servants; neo-Victorian literature; biofiction},
   language = {eng},
   title = {Unveiling the Ordinary “Other” in Neo-Victorian Biofiction},
   url = {https://neo-historical.sciencesconf.org/},
   year = {2024}
}

TY  - CONF
ID  - 2468199
AU  - Valová, Jana
PY  - 2024
TI  - Unveiling the Ordinary “Other” in Neo-Victorian Biofiction
KW  - Margaret Forster
KW  - Kate Pullinger
KW  - female servants
KW  - neo-Victorian literature
KW  - biofiction
UR  - https://neo-historical.sciencesconf.org/
N2  - While neo-Victorian literature is often concerned with stories about fame or infamy, deviance, and shocking Otherness, the genre also shows a keen interest in servitude. The servant character can be characterised by inherent invisibility, with their roles strictly prescribed and their freedom limited. Neo-Victorian narratives experiment with the issue of invisibility and ordinariness, portraying servant characters with multifaceted desires and natures. These experiments result in varied levels of development of the servant character, as will be discussed in relation to two neo-Victorian biofictional works: Lady’s Maid (1990) by Margaret Forster and The Mistress of Nothing (2009) by Kate Pullinger. The depiction of Wilson (Lady’s Maid) and Sally (The Mistress of Nothing) constantly emphasises these maids’ subordinate and marginal positions compared to their mistresses, who hold all the power. When portraying the overlooked working class, adding and fictionalising stories that have been insufficiently documented becomes crucial. It is evident that without their well-known mistresses, Wilson’s and Sally’s revisitations would not exist. However, a question arises as to whether, because of their mistresses, they can also not become pivotal characters in their neo-Victorian revisitation. This presentation argues that the Otherness of both protagonists is not only rooted in their subordinate working-class position but also in the suggested ordinariness and secondariness of their lives, reliant on their employers and suspended in indeterminacy that makes them liminal. This reliance is further emphasised by the stories told due to the servant’s connection to their more well-known employers. As a result, both Wilson and Sally represent neo-Victorian protagonists of what Kohlke categorises as biofiction of marginalised subjects, while the narrative also provides “skewed insights and revelations … into the (more) noteworthy personalities” (Kohlke 11), in this case, their mistresses Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Lady Duff Gordon. Kohlke, Marie-Luise. “Neo-Victorian Biofiction and the Special/Spectral Case of Barbara Chase- Ribouds Hottentot Venus.” Australasian Journal of Victorian Studies, vol. 18, no. 3, 2013, pp. 4-21
ER  -

VALOVÁ, Jana. Unveiling the Ordinary “Other” in Neo-Victorian Biofiction. In \textit{SEAC International Conference : THE (NEO-)HISTORICAL IN BRITISH LITERATURE AND VISUAL ARTS (20th – 21st CENTURIES), 17 - 18th October 2024, University of Caen Normandie, France}. 2024.

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