| Frank O'Connor (1903-1966) is a well-known Irish writer in the twentieth century and is best known for his varied and comprehensive short stories. The Frank O'Connor International Short Story Award was set in memory of him in 2005.Frank O'Connor's depicts the native lives in the middle and lower classes in the post-independent Irish society. He deems short story protagonists "outlawed figures wandering about the fringes of society" and his own work demonstrates his sense of how new generations of outlaws and fringe-figures were brought into being by the narrow strictures of the New State. His work reflects the fixed and prescribed role of women as mother, and also gives voice to the marginalized figures who keep struggling away from domesticity. Though many critics have been focused on the themes such as loneliness or nationalism, study on the female characters through feminist theory is not given enough weight to. Feminism in Ireland has played a major role in shaping the legal and social position of women in Ireland.Through the lens of feminist theory, this thesis argues the female characters' marginalization is influenced by Irish nationalism, Catholic doctrines and patriarchy, and concludes that while depicting the submerged figures, O'Connor also empowers women to break the conventions.This thesis is divided into three parts, including introduction, body part and conclusion. The body part contains three chapters. The first chapter will explore women's prescribed role as mother and wife under nationalism in patriarchal society. The second chapter will analyze female characters' marginalized situation under the Catholic Church. The third chapter, centralizing on women's awakening thoughts and behaviors, will elaborate from four respects:women's pursuit for self-fulfillment, women's opposition to Church authority, teenage girls'strong self-awareness, and women's awakening in sexuality. It draws the conclusion that though O'Connor is trying to empower women, he is still trapped by deep influence of nationalism and restricts women within household. |
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