Reinscribing Motherhood: the Mother-Surrogate-Daughter Relationship in Edith Wharton’s Later Works
Date Issued
2010
Date
2010
Author(s)
Huang, Liang-Jung
Abstract
Abstract
This thesis examines the influence of Wharton’s mother and surrogate mother figures, especially in her ghost stories and late works. Wharton’s works in the 1920s, especially those written after 1925, reflect this tendency of a deepening understanding of women’s difficulties in motherhood. As Wharton writes the mother-daughter relationship, she negotiates with the maternal forces in her life and career as female writer, positive and negative alike. The daughter-surrogate mother structure embedded in the ghost stories enables the writer to explore the support of a female cooperation within haunting domestic space. In the non-gothic fictions, Wharton’s interest in the issue of motherhood has its affinity with her conflict with and memory of her mother. Through the exploration of the theme of motherhood in her writing, Wharton reconciles with the influence of her mother and achieves a deeper, more sympathetic understanding of women as mothers.
Subjects
Edith Wharton
Lucretia Jones
surrogate mother figures
mother-daughter relationship
female sexuality
motherhood
ghost stories
Type
thesis
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