A Feminist Stylistic Analysis of Characterisation in Doris Lessings A Woman on a Roof

Abstract

In her book Feminist Stylistics, Sara Mills (1995) argues that characters in texts are not simulacra of humans. They are merely words which represent men and women in accordance with stereotypes that are found in society. This study takes up D. Lessings short story A Woman on a Roof (1963/1990) and looks at the characterisation in it by using Mills model (1995) at the level of discourse. The aim of the study is to find out whether the representation of male and female characters in this story is gendered or not. The results of the study show that female characters are represented negatively while the male characters are represented positively. On the basis of these findings, it is recommended that these representational practices need to change in order to bring about a change in the thinking of the people.

A Pragmatic Analysis of Conversations in A Woman on a Roof in Terms of Grice’s Conversational Implicatures

“…Their reactions reveal attitudes shaped by desire, frustration, and societal expectations regarding gender roles. Previous scholarship explores themes of voyeurism, gender dynamics, and female empowerment through literary and feminist frameworks [3][4] [5][6][7] [8] . However, few studies adopt a linguistic approach.…”