The Revenge of the Invisible Woman in Joyce Carol Oates’s “Assassin”
The protagonist of Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Assassin” is an aging, physically unattractive woman who suffers from no longer being seen by men and takes advantage of her invisibility to seek revenge. She confesses in the first person to decapitating the Prime Minister—the only way, in her der...
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| Veröffentlicht in: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/jsse, |
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| 1. Verfasser: | |
| Format: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Sprache: | Anglais |
| Veröffentlicht: |
Journal of the Short Story in English
2024
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| Online Zugang: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
| Zusammenfassung: | The protagonist of Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Assassin” is an aging, physically unattractive woman who suffers from no longer being seen by men and takes advantage of her invisibility to seek revenge. She confesses in the first person to decapitating the Prime Minister—the only way, in her deranged mind, to assert her identity and even achieve the status of a heroine. At first glance, this woman who seeks to overcome male oppression by assuming the traditionally male role of killer could be perceived as a model of emancipation, capable of transgressing gender norms and challenging the dominant power, echoing the quest for visibility and recognition of the woman writer in a literary world dominated by men. However, Oates’s grotesque portrayal of the protagonist, the irony that runs through the story, and its parodic dimension call into question the existence of true empowerment and cast doubt on the author’s feminist intentions. |
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