Sweet Maidens or Evil Witches? A Post-Jungian Study of Women’s Archetypal Images in Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur and the Epic Part of Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Department of English Language and Literature, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran

Abstract

The present article conducts a comparative analysis of the images of women in Thomas Malory's Le Morte d’Arthur and the epic part of Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, with the aim of addressing two key questions: how does Hillman’s concept of archetypal images illustrate the major images of women presented in Le Morte d’Arthur and Shahnameh? And, how are these images treated similarly or differently in their respective contexts? Using James Hillman’s Post-Jungian theory of archetypal images, which emphasizes on preserving the individual details of the images, in contrast to Jungian archetypes that are reductionist and imprecise, this study explores the images of the women in Le Morte d’Arthur and Shahnameh both individually and in relation to one another. Based on a detailed examination of the unique characteristics of their images, collected from textual evidences, each of these women are categorized under the archetypal images of the daughter, the lover/wife, and the mother. The results of this study propose a comprehensive pattern, supported by various examples, for further detailed analyses of such archetypal images, as they open up new horizons for feminist studies by illuminating women’s multidimensional personalities. In addition, the major diversions from this pattern under the archetypal images of the sorceress and the warrior are discussed according to their respective contexts and societies as well.

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Literary Theory and Criticism
Volume 8, Special Issue
Special Issue
March 2024

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