Breathing In Out Of Matrophobia ——A Study Of Mother-Daughter Relationship In Jeanette Winterson’s Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit

Among the many controversial endeavors in Jeanette Winterson’s debut novel Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit,the mother-daughter conflict attracts particular critical attention.Different from previous studies on the topic,this thesis adopts the feminist theories of Andrienne Rich and Andrea O’Reilly.By placing the novel within the female literary tradition of matrophobia,this thesis aims to reveal Winterson ’s complex attitudes towards the mother-daughter relationship.As the novel both conforms to and challenges the female literary tradition of matrophobia,it not only regards patriarchy as the root cause for the mother-daughter conflict,but also offers some insights into how to improve the mother-daughter relationship.This thesis consists of three parts:introduction,body,and conclusion.The Introduction reviews previous research on Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit and introduces the theories of Rich and O’Reilly:patriarchal motherhood and empowered mothering are superimposed upon each other as they act like two sides of the same coin.On the one hand,patriarchy disciplines and oppresses the mother,inducing the daughter to develop matrophobia;on the other hand,despite patriarchy’s overwhelming power inflicted on mothers,mothers may still find certain space to question its control.By performing empowering motherhood,mothers can exert not only their own agency,but also their daughters,thereby forming the necessary alliance between them.In other words,the theories of Rich and O’Reilly see patriarchy as the root cause of the motherdaughter conflict and invite the mothers to improve their previous situation through achieving their own agency for the benefits of both their daughters and themselves.The body of the thesis,composed of three chapters,provides a close textual analysis of Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit.Chapter 1 takes a close look at the oppressive side of the mother-daughter relationship.It analyzes the ways in which the adoptive mother Louie suffers from the oppression from patriarchy in the church in terms of gender and class.Chapter 2 focuses on the perspective of the daughter and demonstrates how Jeanette develops matrophobia,and argues that it is caused by the misunderstandings between the mother and the daughter,represented by the daughter’s wounded narcissism and the disidentification with her mother.Therefore,this thesis maintains that patriarchal intervention is the root cause of the mother-daughter conflict.While both Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 discuss the ways in which Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit follows the female literary tradition of matrophobia,Chapter 3 intends to explore the aspects where the novel manages to break away from the tradition.This is demonstrated by Louie’s unconventional ways of mothering and its impact on her daughter by placing the working-class,foster mother within a socio-political context of England during 1960s-1980s.Despite Louie’s limitations and attraction to the middle class,she tries to fight against some of the principles instilled in her by the maledominated church.She adopts several forms of resistance by dominating her household,promoting education for women and alternative careers to marriage and childbearing,thereby positively picturing mothers and daughters as allies rather than enemies.