Search For Self-identity Via Isolation

Peter Handke (1942-) is a famous writer, translator and literary theorist in Austria, meanwhile an important film writer and regisseur. His literary works enjoy an important position on the stage of the contemporary German literature, but less domestic Germanists pays attention on him. This paper aims to attract more attention on this talent writer. Two novels of Handke. in which the protagonists are women, were published in 1970s-A Sorrow beyond Dreams:A Life Story and The Left-handed Woman. The writer builds up two main female figures that have opposite characters and destinies because of the different living environments in these two novels. On the foundation of the theory of existential feminism of Semone de Beauvoir(1908-1986), this paper concentrates on searching for the female view of Peter Handke, the reasons leading to such view and its orientation by the way of comparing these two women. In aspects of the living environments, the attitude towards the social character of wife and the situation that the women are viewed as "the other" the two women are compared. From the analysis of the comparisons it is found that Peter Handke creates these comparisons deliberately for the purpose of impacting that the only way for the women to search for themselves is isolation. Peter Handke breaks through the fetters of "the female myth" and describes a tragic mother in the real life and an independent Marianna who dares to break the rules and to challenge the man authorities. Through these two female figures Peter Handke shows not only the sympathy and sincere care to the women who are under the compression of men, but also the criticism to the male authority. The reasons why he has such female view lies in that on the one hand after witnessing the misfortune of his mother Peter Handke realized the resource of the women’s misfortune and felt responsible for this and that on the other hand the feminist movement in 1970s developed into the second summit, under this influence Handke began to focus on the destiny of women and reflecting the reality of the society. In conclusion, Handke expects a more equal and harmonious relationship between women and men and is full of confidence for the future of women.