‘Power and justice appear hard to reconcile’: The ‘grammar of difference’ in the travel writing of Dutch first wave feminist Welmoet Wijnaendts Francken-Dyserinck

Abstract

This thesis focusses on the ‘grammar of difference’ in the travel writing by Welmoet Wijnaendts Francken-Dyserinck (1876-1956). Wijnaendts was one of the leading women in the Dutch suffrage movement during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century and an outspoken feminist. In 1911 she traveled with her husband through the African continent, visiting many different colonies on their way. In the 1912-1913 they made a similar trip to the West Indies. Wijnaendts wrote about her travels to these colonial destinations and had her writing published in the newspaper and later in book form. These two books, Uit het Zonneland: Afrikaansche Reisbrieven (1912) and Drie Maanden in de West (1913), are the primary sources on which this research is based. The research applies two theoretical frameworks: the theory of ‘grammar of difference’ by Catherine Hall and the theory of ‘othering’ by Edward Said. Furthermore the research will apply the methods of discursive analysis and newspaper analysis. This thesis is made up of three parts. The first will focus on the history behind the Dutch first wave feminism and colonialism, as well as the theory of ‘double othering’. The second part focusses on Wijnaendts critique on colonial systems and how her critique relates to the Dutch ethical policy. The last part looks into her ideas on feminist issues and how she applies these ideas in a colonial context.