Shaping Girlhood : Patriarchy’s Impact on Girlhood in two Teen Chick Lit Novels

Abstract

In my thesis, I analyse two teen chick lit novels Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging (1999) by Louise Rennison and Mates, Dates and Inflatable Bras (2001) by Kathy Hopkins. I analyse their depiction of girlhood and discuss the role of patriarchy as an actor that shapes the main characters’ experience of it. I set my analysis against the backdrop of two competing feminisms: third-wave feminism and postfeminism. I analyse how postfeminist values have been instilled in the female characters though the discourse of Girl Power and how these values compete with the values of the Third Wave. The analysis and discussion are divided into three major categories: the Body, sex and love, and platonic relationships. First, I analyse how patriarchal society affects how the characters view their bodies and how their sense of self is tied to The Body. Then, I discuss how female sexuality is exhibited in the two chick lit novels and analyse how the opposite sex values the girls. Finally, I discuss the role of female peers and family in shaping girlhood. My analysis shows how strong the effect of the patriarchal society is in the shaping of girlhood in the two novels. The novels illustrate how strongly the female characters’ value as humans is tied to the way boys and men view them. Their girlhood consists of constant scrutiny over themselves and other people by peers, parents, boys, and the girls themselves. In my thesis, I argue that the postfeminist Girl Power movement has affected the girls’ ability to view the everyday sexism they face, but nevertheless, I claim that these teen chick lit novels showcase the struggles of third-wave girls in a patriarchal world.