A Feminist Reading Of The Crimson Petal And The White

Michel Faber, who is hailed as the thriller master and successor of Dickens, is one of the most important contemporary British writers and he has obtained many literary awards. Such as Neil Gunn, Ian St James, Macallan... His masterpiece The Crimson Petal and the White(2002) is set in Victorian England and recounts the story of Sugar, a prostitute of 19 years old. The novel is generally well appraised by critics, calling it “supremely literary” and depicting the quality of the writing as “dizzyingly accomplished”.i This thesis devotes to analyze The Crimson Petal and the White(2002) deeply and systematically with feminist theory. Following the feminist critical theories and methodology, Faber reveals a recalcitrant woman who has strong feminist spirit in Victorian period in Britain. It expresses the acclaim to the women’s pursuit of independence and freedom, the critique to the patriarchy.The thesis approaches the story from the feminist perspective. It consists of four parts: the introduction, three main chapters and conclusion.The introduction briefly surveys the author Michel Faber and his representative works in addition to the current studies about the novel, and then it goes on to explain the significance of the study, the methodology and the theoretical framework.The first chapter talks about the subversion of two opposite female images, Sugar and Agnes, they represent two types of women that men in Victorian era crave for, but the author subverts the two binary oppositions that men impose on women. The symbolic angel Agnes becomes a “mad woman”, but the prostitute Sugar turns into a savior of freedom. As a result, female image belongs to their own instead of depending on the male gaze.The second chapter interprets Sugar’s pursuit of independence. From economic independence to spiritual independence, the heroine struggles for survival and yearns for escape into a better Life. For the economic independence, she works as a prostitute, and then, she acts as mistress, at last, she become the governess. For the spiritual independence, she releases herself in art and literature, strengthens her self-confidence and self-reliance constantly.The third chapter discusses Sugar’s pursuit of freedom. The heroine strives to get freedom of herself, and meanwhile, she helps the others who are in restriction to get the freedom. For her own freedom, two parts are discussed: 1. Spiritual freedom 2. Physical freedom. For the aide to others, she helps Agnes to escape from the fate of being sent to asylum; she helped Sophie who is kept far from her mother to get maternal love and be free from the oppressing family circumstances.The fourth part is the conclusion, according to the vivid portrayal of Sugar’s power and struggle for independence and freedom behind the repression, Faber gives an expression of sensitive feminist theme, which summarizes the clue of the novel: It is necessary for women to fight and resist the oppression from the patriarchal society and obtain the independence and freedom, which is an oblique reference to modern women.