Reinscribing the spoken word in the selected works of Toni Morrison and Doris Lessing

Abstract

This thesis examines the ways in which Toni Morrison and Doris Lessing portray orality as an uncontaminated form of expression and as a representation of presence. Their appeal to 'authenticity' is transmitted through what they consider to be a tainted and unreliable system of writing. An overview of the historical and literary background of both writers shall be provided in order to explore the relevance of authenticity and strategic essentialism in their work. In subsequent chapters, the progression, correlation and disparity between orality and literacy shall be examined in the light of Walter Ong and Jacques Derrida, who have deeply influenced the writing of this thesis. The theoretical framework considers Derrida's views on deconstruction, Ong's psychodynamics of orality, Frantz Fanon's concepts on the coloniser and the colonised, Mishra and Hodge's interpretation of a 'fused post-colonial' and Diana Brydon's notion of 'contamination'. This thesis also analyses the strategies adopted by Morrison and Lessing in their attempt to 'textualise orality'. The Bluest Eye and The Grass is Singing shall be approached as texts which commemorate the authenticity of oral traditions in order to demystify the written word. The analysis of Beloved and The Golden Notebook illustrates the problematic nature of being able to represent and ascertain authentic origins. The final comparison of 'Recitatif' and 'The Antheap' shows a clear difference between the construction of n de-raced language occurring in the former short story and a language that privileges hierarchical structures in the latter. This provides a context in which to observe Morrison's and Lessing's contrasting styles and their approach towards essentialism. On balance, it seems that both writers actually get entangledin the manipulative processes they initially set out to rebuke since they use language to convey a message that is denied by its very inscription. Language may serve the useful purpose of trying to nurture a sense of pride in one's native origins and distinctiveness, but may simultaneously point towards the myth of such origins.