| Popis: |
In “Illuminating the Sacred Feminine: The Role of Archetypes, Rituals, and Mysticism in the House of Night,” I examine the role of archetypes and rituals in the House of Night series by P.C. and Kristin Cast. I work with a plethora of feminist perspectives to address how the rituals and mysticism in the series seek to reopen dialogue with the feminine divine. The conflicting dichotomy of the monstrous feminine in the text is a cultural critique that favors reclaiming the images of the powerful female and goddess from the patriarchal distortions they have undergone. In the series Neferet is an archetype who embodies the patriarchal perceptions of the monstrous feminine. By contrast, Zoey is a powerful fledgling vampyre who protects those around her by following in the ways of her goddess. Methodologically, I engage both popular cultural material regarding the feminine divine and academic scholarship within several different critical theoretical approaches including those by Donna Haraway, and Carl Jung that, taken together, assist in my development of a new way of reading the role of ritual within the series. For instance, in The Triumph of the Moon, Robert Hutton explains that Robert Graves’ book The White Goddess is meant to be read as a literal representation of the goddess and that his presentation of the goddess placed her in direct opposition to the cultural expectations of English society. Margot Adler’s book Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-worshippers, and Other Pagans in America Today provides insight into the implications and experiences of neopagan ritual work. The conversations initiated through ritual and devotion enable the characters to surpass their perceived limitations and find empowerment. Carl Jung’s books are used to discuss the implications of the archetypes and divine feminine in the series. The challenges that Zoey and her friends face over the course of the series lend themselves to a more pressing truth. In order to embrace the monstrous and divine feminine and reframe them in a positive, more actuate light, we must first come to terms with the patriarchal Neferets that haunt our cultural imaginations. |
