preview

Feminist Synthesis

Decent Essays

By “essentialism,” Barry refers to the “pure essence of the feminine” which is assumed through Cixous’ concept of écriture feminine (128). This idea is one which identifies femininity as a “given entity which is somehow just mysteriously ‘there’” in a singular form, thus denying its existence as a social construct that is shaped and conditioned in unique ways across different cultures (128). Cixous presents it as “impregnable” to any form of conditioning, therefore characterizing the writing’s syntax with spirit that naturally emanates due to one’s physical existence as a woman (128). These “overarching generalizations” ultimately limit women to a very narrow identity category, consequently granting the ability to critique the concept’s

Get Access