The Construction Of Female Images In David Williamson’s The Removalists-From The Perspective Of Feminism

David Keith Williamson is an outstanding representative of the "New Wave Theatre" movement,and the most prestigious and most popular playwright in contemporary Australia.The Removalists,published in 1971,is considered as the most successful work of David Williamson,which has brought praise to him from both domestic and international audience and critics.It won him the Australian Writers’ Guild AWGIE Award for best stage play and the British George Devine Award.The Removalists profoundly reveals the violent behaviour that existed in Australia,which is a microcosm of Australian society in 1970s.At the same time,the different characteristics and experiences of the two female actors in the play truly reflect the life and growth of Australian women in that era.Based on the second feminist movement in Australia,this thesis attempts to analyze the female characters in the play.In the help of textual and discourse analysis,the thesis summarizes David Williamson’s view on the second feminist movement in Australia and explores the factors influencing his characterization.Through the analysis,this paper believes that the two female images shaped in The Removalists is a reflection of his feminist view and Williamson’s understanding of drama’s writing conception.In this play,through depicting the different characters,behaviors and the control of the destiny of the two female images,he portrays the process of Australian women’s oppression and resistance,and satirizes the "Male Chauvinism" in Australia.The play reflects his criticism of the seemingly decent modern Australian society and his view on the second feminist movement.Meanwhile,the formation of this viewpoint is closely related to the influence of Australian writers during the same period,the social background of feminist movement,his writing conception and personal working experience.