Thesis (M.A. (English Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2015 / This dissertation examines different modes of female subversion in the novel, The Madonna of Excelsior (2002) by Zakes Mda. Using feminist theory, the study explores how women in the novel transgress apartheid laws and how they use existing discriminatory laws to their own advantage. In addition, it illustrates how these women rise above those existing laws to establish their own subjectivity and independence. The Madonna of Excelsior is a novel set in apartheid South Africa where laws prohibiting sexual relationships between whites and blacks were in effect. Niki, the main character in the novel, transgresses these laws by having sexual intercourse with white men, one of whom eventually fathers her baby. Niki gives birth to Popi who is ostracised by the Mahlatswetsa community because of her mixed racial identity. In spite of growing up in a prejudiced community, Popi works hard and becomes an important member of the town council later on when apartheid gives way to black rule. Popi subverts apartheid and the prejudice of her community by accepting herself as a coloured person, by being active in the political affairs of the Mahlatswetsa community, by engaging with the community through her service at the library and during funerals, and by reconciling with Tjaart Cronje, her half-brother. Popi’s mother, Niki, also subverts apartheid’s discriminatory laws by having sexual relationships with Afrikaner men such as Johannes Smit and Stephanus Cronje. Through these affairs, she exposes the hypocrisy of the Afrikaners and the unfairness of their laws. However, Niki’s subversion goes beyond the use of sex and the body. In her marriage with Pule, she suffers wife battering and marital infidelity. In this instance, Niki subverts traditional expectations of women by leaving Pule and establishing an independent life for herself and her children. In giving birth to Popi and raising her as a coloured child, Niki exposes the double standards of Afrikaner morality. She subverts viii the judgmental attitude of the Mahlatswetsa community by withdrawing from the community and resorting to bee-keeping. In this isolated space, she finds healing. Other female characters in the novel, such as Maria, Mampe and The Seller of Songs, also subvert the apartheid system and their communities through their sexual escapades with white men and their service to the community. On her part, Cecilia Mapeta subverts apartheid by her direct rejection of illicit sex with white men and her pursuit of education. In contrast to her, Maria and Mampe use mainly sex and the body to ensure their survival in a racist South Africa. The Seller of Songs, like Popi, uses her service to the community to subvert its prejudice. In their different circumstances, the women characters in this novel employ different subversive strategies, all of which work ultimately to their advantage. On the whole, this study argues that female subversion in Zakes Mda’s The Madonna of Excelsior is effected through various media, including sex and the body, racial differentiation, education, silence, community engagement, political activity, and family reconciliation.

瑪格莉特•愛特伍《使女的故事》可視為是對童話故事的改寫，其採用了童話故事的結構及特色，並且印證了女性透過改寫可展現的顛覆力量。自從1970年代起，女性主義評論家對於傳統童話故事的批評主要可分為兩派，相對於早期評論家總是對童話故事中性別刻板印象的描述多所責難，後期的評論家漸漸傾向將童話故事視為是可提供重新詮釋或改寫的場域。對於小說作者愛特伍而言，童話故事中隱含了許多潛在的矛盾及反動的因素，而這些因素就構成了可供改寫並加以顛覆的空間。透過小說互涉的技巧，愛特伍不只是探究隱含在童話故事中的性別政治議題，同時也將其中的反動因子加以放大，並且加以改寫顛覆。 本文將探討《使女的故事》這本小說對於童話故事以及聖經的改寫以及顛覆。第一章介紹愛特伍、此小說及其與童話故事的關聯性。第二章著重在兩派理論家對於傳統童話故事的爭論（是與父權主義共謀抑或是可提供重新詮釋或改寫的場域），第三章則指出這本小說包含了哪些童話故事的特色，並且探究同時存在於基列政權與童話中的性別議題，也就是父權體制對女性的宰制與壓迫。而第四章分析愛特伍如何藉由突顯出隱含在童話故事中的反動因子，對童話故事以及聖經故事加以解構。最後一章以愛特伍對童話故事的修訂印證了女性重新詮釋或改寫所具有的顛覆力量。 / As a revision of the fairy tale, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale not only reveals its adoption of the structure and components of fairy tales but also demonstrates the subversive potential for feminist revision of the fairy tale. While classical fairy tales have long rebuked by early feminist critics as conservative and as reinforcing the gender stereotypes, there has been a critical tendency since the 1970s that the genre of fairy tale can be seen as a site of contestation, which offers the opportunities of reinterpretation and revision. Acknowledging that the fairy tale cannot be interpreted one-dimensionally, Atwood unearthes the underlying disturbing elements within classical fairy tales, which constitute the space for feminist reappropriation and subversion. Through the techniques of metafictional writing, Atwood not only explores the sexual politics in fairy tales but also highlights the subversive elements, exaggerates them, and revises the tales. This thesis will discuss The Handmaid’s Tale in terms of its revision of fairy tales and the biblical texts. The first chapter introduces Atwood, the novel, and its relevance to the genre of fairy tale. The second chapter will provide a survey of critical depute on classical fairy tales, such as Perrault’s and the Grimms’, as colluding with patriarchy or as a site of contestation. Chapter Three will point out that this novel can be viewed as a modern fairy tale or a revision of fairy tale in terms of some fairy-tale characteristics and that it explores patriarchal domination and oppression of women not only present in Gilead but also inherent in the fairy tales. Chapter Four will analyze that Atwood explores a subtext that she has found in the tale and deconstructs the dominant discourse of the fairy tale and the Bible. The final chapter will conclude that Atwood’s revision of the fairy tales reveals the subversive potential of feminist reappropriation.