Memory, silence and resistance in Gayl Jones’ Corregidora and Eva’s man -

Abstract

Framed by Black Feminism, trauma theory and memory studies, this thesis investigates the complex relationship between memory, silence and resistance in Gayl Jones’ two novels Corregidora and Eva’s Man. It explores, in a comparative vein, the ways in which the novels’ protagonists, Ursa and Eva, who share a similar history of sexual, racial and social violence, cope with their individual and collective memories and their fragmented personal histories. This study argues that Ursa, by means of communicating her painful memories, manages her trauma in a more constructive way than Eva, who chooses silence and murder to face male oppression and domination. By giving voice to her traumatic memories, Ursa manages not only to work through her pain and trauma, but also to define herself against sexist and racist discourses. Eva, on the other hand, ends up participating in her own destruction, as she internalizes her own objection, suppresses her voice and falls into a self-imposed silence. In its comparative study of the way the two protagonists deal with their memories, this thesis is inspired by phenomenological approaches that tie memory to the body. As such, memory is characterized as having a physical dimension, in the sense that it can be translated corporeally into lived space through physical acts that stem from traumatic experiences and from memories of those experiences. Focusing primarily on sexual acts of aggression and resistance as corporeal and intercorporeal manifestations of the protagonists’ unconscious body memory, this thesis shows how Ursa’s act of resistance is informed by her understanding of the importance of speech and action whereas Eva’s is not. It is actually through this violent act, mediated by modes of speaking and listening, that the protagonist of Corregidora manages to unwrap a disturbing family secret and rewrite her traumatic history. As such, she reclaims her agency and subjectivity, in the spirit of the Black Feminist tradition.