Abstract:
Undertakes a feminist reading and a feminist literary approach to the work of Riana Scheepers. The gynocriticism of the Anglo-American feminist literary theorist, Elaine Showalter, as well as the popular myths and stereotypes that determine and define sex roles in society, were taken as starting point for this study on the central theme of the tension between vulnerability and the ability to defend oneself in Scheepers' female characters. The focus is on the female characters' struggle to survive in a male-dominated society. This struggle reveals itself mainly in their sex-love relationship, but also affects their position as women within the broader social context. As a result of the power imbalance between the sexes the female characters continually experience conflict and tension between their vulnerability and their ability to defend themselves against abuse and exploitation. The innovative aspect of Riana Scheepers' work is the way in which her characters gradually learn to defend themselves, becoming stronger and freeing themselves of the yoke of male oppression. This leads to a disintegration of the clearly defined roles of abuser and abused in the male-female relationship. As a result of this, her characters progress from vulnerability to the ability to defend themselves. This progress or development can be seen in the short story collections of Riana Scheepers Die ding in die vuur , as well as in her novel, Die heidendogters jubel .
