‘That’s the male version. Now watch the other’,this statement encapsulates the underlying theme of Christa Wolf’s narrative Kassandra in which she radically inverts the Homeric, ‘male version’ of the Trojan War. Inspired by Ingeborg Bachmann, Wolf creates a female voice within a male-dominated society. She re-writes the mythos from the perspective of a female narrator, Kassandra, a Trojan princess and prophet, who upon the fall of the city is waiting for her execution in Mycenae and uses her last hours to deliver her retrospective account of the Greek-Trojan conflict. Thereby Wolf provides critique of the patriarchal order as well as the power relations dictated by patriarchs and so ‘scratches away the entire male tradition’.
This essay will discuss how both patriarchy and power relations in Kassandra are represented in an ultimately socially destructive manner. In order to achieve this, I shall first demonstrate that the patriarchy is depicted as a social construct predominantly resting on unconditional drive for dominance, elimination of female subjectivity and perpetuation of aggression. Subsequently, I will examine the representation of power relations in the context of gender, class and religion to argue that power relations based on the exclusion of women, manipulation, terror and misuse of religion ultimately lead to the demise of society as a whole.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Greece and Troy: different stages of patriarchy
- Drive for domination and hierarchical thinking
- Exclusion of women from the public sphere
- Mythical cult of the hero
- Representation of patriarchy: summary
- Gender power relations
- Class power relations
- Religious power relations
- Representation of power relations: summary
- Conclusion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This essay aims to examine the representation of patriarchy and power relations in Christa Wolf's Kassandra. It will demonstrate how both are depicted as destructive forces within the Trojan society. Key themes explored in the text include:- The destructive nature of patriarchal dominance and its impact on women.
- The consequences of excluding women from political decision-making processes.
- The deconstruction of the heroic ideal as a patriarchal construct.
- The various forms of power relations based on gender, class, and religion.
- The relationship between patriarchal power and social decay.
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The essay begins by introducing the central premise of Wolf's narrative, which is to challenge the male-dominated perspective of the Trojan War. It highlights Wolf's intention to explore the impact of patriarchy on both Greek and Trojan societies. The essay then delves into the representation of patriarchy in Kassandra, arguing that it is characterized by an insatiable drive for domination, the silencing of female voices, and the glorification of violence. It examines the different stages of patriarchal development in Greece and Troy, with a focus on the exclusion of women from the public sphere. The essay concludes by exploring the various power relations based on gender, class, and religion, demonstrating their contribution to the demise of Trojan society.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
This essay explores the themes of patriarchy, power relations, gender, class, religion, and social decay in Christa Wolf's Kassandra. Key concepts examined include the deconstruction of the heroic ideal, the impact of women's exclusion from political participation, and the destructive consequences of patriarchal dominance.- Quote paper
- Olivia Hillings (Author), 2014, The representation of patriarchy and power relations in Christa Wolf’s "Kassandra", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/275527
