Women’s Apocalypses: Apocalypse, Utopia and Feminist Dystopian Fiction

Abstract

This thesis discusses the relation between biblical apocalypse and feminist dystopian fiction in terms of motifs and possible functions. Biblical depictions of the end have often been criticized for their violence, misogynism or lack of human agency, especially from a feminist perspective. Nevertheless, apocalypses might also function in positive ways. Biblical apocalypses were often written in situations of distress, such as oppression under Roman rule, and often criticize the ruling order or provide consolation. The imagination of the end of the world and the subsequent revelation of a better world to come can put present circumstances in a different perspective. Besides discussing the development of the apocalyptic genre and its characteristics, this thesis provides some insights in the relation between apocalypse and the utopian tradition and the important role of religion and apocalypse in feminist dystopian fiction. The analyses of the feminist dystopian novels of Margaret Atwood, Octavia E. Butler and Naomi Alderman show how contemporary feminist writers both critique and engage with apocalypse in different ways in order to address issues like sexism, racism and classism. Even though in these novels, religion is often imagined as an oppressive force, forms of religion also function as a source of hope or resistance. Additionally, although the discussed novels are very different from biblical apocalypses and criticize them in certain ways, they also employ apocalyptic motifs in order to empower women and to critique the social order, so that a more utopian world might be reached.