From Silence To Blast

Carol Shields (1935-2003), one of the most distinguished Canadian womenwriters, published three poetry books, four collections of short stories and nearlyten novels in her life, and was honored with plenty of awards. Unless, her lastnovel, is considered as Shields’s most explicitly feminist work. The novel centersaround women characters of three different generations (Norah, her mother Reta,and her grandmother Lois), and depicts the psychological and behavioral changesof the three women characters at three different stages---before, during and afterNorah’s transformation, and profoundly reflects Shields’s feminist views. Fromthe perspective of feminism, this thesis analyzes the process of women characters’identity reconstruction from silence to blast in Unless, by which Shields revealsthe marginalized and voiceless state of women and emphasizes her feminist ideathat women must have their own voices.This thesis is divided into five parts. The Introduction introduces Shields’sliterary accomplishments and the literary value of Unless; then it reviews thedifferent interpretations of the novel by foreign and domestic scholars; finally itbriefs the development of feminism and the framework of the thesis. The body ofthe thesis comprises three chapters. Chapter One analyzes the unconsciousness ofthe voiceless and excluded state of the three women characters. Through theanalysis of the society in which the women characters grow up, this chapterreveals the reasons for their unconsciousness of their voiceless state and the factthat women continue to be marginalized in society. Chapter Two presents thepsychologies of the women characters as they gradually realize their excludedstate in the patriarchal society and the process of their painful pondering over their situation and their self-reflection. Norah’s transformation from a positive andintelligent girl to a panhandling mute awakens the women. They gradually realizetheir voiceless status, so they fall into endless nervousness and anxiety. ChapterThree explores the three women’s decisions after painful thinking. They challengethe patriarchal society by making their voices heard in different ways. TheConclusion briefly summarizes the thesis and puts forward the conclusion: throughthe depiction of the three women characters’ experiences, Shields points out thatwomen must make their voices heard in order to change their marginalized andvoiceless state.The present study of Unless from the perspective of feminism can help thereader not only have a better understanding of Shields’s feminist views, but alsorealize the absence of women culture (women’s living state and mentality) incontemporary culture. And at the same time, it also puts forward Shields’s advicefor marginalized and voiceless women---giving their own voices.