[PDF] De lanimal à la divinité: le dragon dans la littérature médiévale

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gendered spatial boundaries, we may suggest that the association of the transgression of spatial norms for women desirable characteristics in young women. In more concrete terms, the tale seems to support the view that good women deserve the protection of men whereas bad women, who also happen to expose themselves to dangers by travelling far away from home for evil purposes, deserve severe punishment. In that sense, the dichotomous representation of women in this context highlights the idealized form of femininity which girls and young women are encouraged to internalize. It is mainly expressed in the definitions of the desirable roles and behaviour for the young women in the tale and the condemnation of the actions and the characteristics of the bad women.

163 two other girls cross the boundaries of their

ents. Indeed, the two

164 In that sense, the

who authoritatively killed their peacocks. On their way, the younger sister is turned into a goat after drinking water from a lake. The elder sister never stops taking care of her goat sister and carries her on her back throughout the way. Soon after, she meets the son of Andriambahoaka who wants to marry her. The elder sister first refuses, saying that her goat sister will be a burden to him. However, when the son of Andriambahoaka promises to take care of her little sister as well, she accepts to marry him. It is then that the owners of the land remove the curse from the water and the younger sister retrieves her human form. The sisters then pay a visit to their Tananarive: Imprimerie luthérienne, 1962. Pp. 102 ʹ 104.

164 " Lasa nandositra ho any an-tany lavitra, mba tsy ho hitany intsony. » Ibid. p. 103. (Translation mine).

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parents who are happy to see them again. The tale ends with a moral for parents to be careful with the way they treat their children. The tale obviously teaches young girls that travelling far away from their home and challenging the authority of their parents expose them to danger they are left alone and helpless in the middle of nowhere and result in severe punishment: the transformation of the younger sister into a goat. Yet, the two girls in this tale cannot be put under the category of bad women in the same sense as the one articulated by Andrea Dworkin in her description of the characterization of women in fairy tales. Hence, the argument about the dichotomous spatial boundaries does not seem to be relevant here. On the contrary, the female protagonists in this tale are the poor victims of girls, who are helpless and powerless, are helped and rescued by male characters. What is even more striking is the fact that the owner of the land only decides to remove the curse when the husband, she exchanges with the owners of the land who merely confirm that the water turns those who drink from it into animals without attempting to help the desperate girl. This suggests that the elder sister only gains visibility and the right to be helped when she is married to an important man from the village. In that s of the boundary rules serves to reinforce their helplessness and dependency rather than allowing e heroines are always in danger but most of the time, they are rescued in

165 The characterization of the elder sister further supports this

165 " Les héroïnes sont toujours en danger, mais, la plupart du temps, elles sont sauvées in extremis. » Jacqueline

jeunes filles malgaches du XVIè au milieu du XXè siècle. Imarivolanitra: Editions Antso, 1996. P. 62. (Translation

mine). 102
view. The elder sister is portrayed as a very emotional young woman who cries in most situations: she cries for the peacocks, for her sister who is turned into a goat, and even while she is also caring and loving towards her goat sister and displays a marked capacity to forgive her parents. All these qualities go in line with the idealized form of femininity conveyed by the son, which further reflects one of the defining characteristics of Malagasy folktales, that is, the representation of the family. Finally, the crossing of spatial boundaries by the female character in the tale

166 is slightly different from the pattern previously presented. In

imposed on the heroine, rather than being the result of a desire to break the rules by exploring forbidden territories. The tale relates the story of children thrown away by their parents as in the case of Hansel and Gretel. The two children, Ifaramalemy and Ikotobekibo, are lost in a forest after their parents throw them away because of their infirmities: the girl, Ifaramalemy is crippled and the boy, Ikotobekibo, is too fat. Ifaramalemy and Ikotobekibo settle on a place, the greedy Ikotobekibo forbids his sister to hunt in the surrounding areas lest she catches any of his prey. In order to survive, Ifaramalemy takes the risk of trespassing the territory of an ogre, Itrimobe, where she steals food and other valuable goods. Upon discovering that his sister has However, being too fat and after eating too much, he is unable to flee when Itrimobe is on his way home. Ifaramalemy thus advises her brother on how to kill the ogre before she flees. In the end, Ikotobekibo succeeds in killing the ogre and the two children inherit its wealth. It is Tananarive: Imprimerie luthérienne, 1962. Pp. 147. 103
childbearing. This tale features only the crippled female character, Ifara, who steals food from her as his wife, which he readily does. Ifaramalemy gives birth to a son and later succeeds in killing of her son whom Itrimobe wants to eat. The heroines in these two tales actively strive to survive and strategically manage to kill tempered by their characterization as heroines who present the conventional characteristics that are associated to the idealized form of femininity, namely humility, forbearance, and the inclination to protect the weak and the vulnerable. Both are victims of male oppressors, which points to Raewyn n men, hegemonic masculinity, and hegemonic pattern in its entirety may be quite small. Yet the majority of men gain from its hegemony, since they benefit from the patriarchal dividend, the advantage men in general gain

167 Indeed, Ikotobekibo is far from being an epitome

of the hegemonic form of masculinity, yet, thanks to the prevalence of patriarchal ideals which support the subordination of women, he, a weak male character who can hardly support and save himself, is the oppressor of the female character who is courageous and resilient. This ctions on her collection of food in his territory. Yet, when she manages to collect more food from him by advising him on how to kill Itrimobe instead of merely leaving and saving herself. It is

167 R.W. Connell. Masculinities. Berkeley, Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1995. P. 79.

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significant that unlike the clever and resourceful sisters who save the day in most tales that feature interactions between brothers and sisters,168 the sister, Ifaramalemy, in our tale leaves this task to her brother by merely advising him and letting him perform the heroic actions. In that sense, the female protagonist inevitably remains in the shadows of the male character. Similarly, the female protagonist in the second tale humbly pleads with Itrimobe to spare her life. At the same time, she presents the protective nature of a mother as she strives to ct acceptable as it does not 169

170 Instead, she is the kind and protective sister and mother who

naturally cares for and protects the vulnerable characters. Nevertheless, she is not the all- powerful rescuer of these vulnerable characters as she herself is the victim of male oppression who responds with humility and submission to male rules. In that sense, the dual characterization of the heroine enables the preservation of the desired feminine qualities in women.

1.3. Gender in the Fantastical Realm of the Female Other

So far, we have examined the representations of mothers and young women in Malagasy folktales with particular focus on their respective experiences in relation to the idealized form

168 In The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folktales and Fairy tales, Shawn C. Jarvis, a Professor of German at St.

Cloud State University whose work focuses on fairy tales by German women writers, says that in tales that feature

Folktales and Fairytales Volumes 1 ʹ 3. Westport, Connecticut, London : Greenwood Press, 2008. P. 870.

169 Andrea Dworkin. Woman Hating. USA : Plume, 1974. P. 41.

170 Ibid.

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as another category of female characters in Malagasy tales whose embodiment of the idealized

171 is the dominant fantastic female

figure in Malagasy folktales. Defined in Bernar indien. Mythes, récits, representations 172

173 In the same volume, Sylvia Andriamampianina, a Professor of

Comparative Literature at the

174
characterization a d175 On the descriptions, Malagasy sirens seem to present the same characteristics as the ideal female figures in Malagasy tales who attract men with their overwhelming beauty, their extreme kindness, and their innocence. However, they can also be unconventional female characters whose actions tend to undermine the gender order and involve the reversal of conventional gender roles. 176

171 The Malagasy word " zazavavindrano » is invariably used in the singular and the plural.

174 " Poétique et honorifique. » Sylvia Andriamampianina. " Sirènes malgaches : un flot de paroles. Les filles des

175 " Tentatrices diaboliques, symboles de duplicité et de perversité. » Bernard Terramorsi. Les filles des eaux

176 Gabriel Ferrand. Contes populaires malgaches. Paris : E. Leroux, 1893. P. 91 - 92. (Translation mine).

106

177 refer to t

abundant wealth and children, namely two boys and two girls. Before the marriage, she does not fail to impose a condition: the fisherman must never tell about her origin to anyone. However, under the influence of alcohol, the fisherman violates this taboo, which makes the with Razazavavindrano, who imposes the marriage to the fisherman who is speechless in front of

178 and immediately announces

179 Following this declaration, no

already reached the village. The couple has a child. Like the fisherman in the previous tale, the man in this tale also viola brothers as they threaten to kill him. Razazavavindrano eventually decides to leave him and return to the waters. She somehow remains one more day with the fisherman and the child and decides to leave the latter with its father, taking care to provide them with considerable wealth before her departure. She also allows them to visit her and promises to pay a visit to them at night as well whenever she longs to see her child. The tale ends with th parents and young sister, returning to the sea after meeting the child and its father. It should be silently acts in accordance with her instructions throughout the tale. For instance, she orders him to construct a fence before providing him with cattle, which makes the household rich

177 Charles Renel. Contes de Madagascar. Paris : E. Leroux, 1910. P. 187 - 190. (Translation mine).

plus comme femme. » Ibid. (Translation mine). 107

180 on their

revelation of her secret. young female characters who attract their male suitors with their beauty. However, the tales are also characterized by the reversal of gender roles, which offers another facet of the le as the breadwinner by providing him with wealth that requires no major effort on his part. The authoritative attitude of the

Terramorsi precisely describes th

181 This description highlights the dual characterization of

the fisherman in the tales under study. Terramorsi rightfully points to the f infantile attitude of a young 182 The satisfying woman a child when he breaks the rule, that of keeping her secret.183 Sylvia Andriamampianina

180 " Porte notre enfant et suis-moi. » Ibid. P. 189. (Translation mine).

(Translation mine). 108
omen of the seas are sensitive and vulnerable but inflexible after all. By imposing a conditional union to a man, by providing him

184 These two authors thus underline the powerful position

of the zazavavindrano, which, as we have stated earlier, may be a threat to masculine hegemony. strong sex ren185

186 While these

authors mainly emphasize the childish nature of the fisherman and his relationship with the maternal world [whereby] water evokes the strong memory of the amniotic fluid, of foetal

187 we argue that the characterization of the fisherman as passive and weak also connotes

power. Nevertheless, instead of being revered for her power, the zazavavindrano is marginalized in both tales. Being the elusive and mysterious creature, whose unknown origins fear and fascination, and above all, she arouses in these people, including the fisherman, the retrouve manque et déréliction initiaux.»] Ibid. (Translation mine).

sont des femmes émancipées de la société phallocratique. » Sylvia Andriamampianina. " La légende de Remiry,

185 " Le sexe fort rendu faible. » Ibid. (Translation mine).

définitive. » Ibid. (Translation mine).

Sylvia Andriamampianina. " Sirènes malgaches : un flot de paroles. Les filles des eaux dans les parlers

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desire to unravel the mystery o is perpetually marginalized and fails to be fully integrated into the human world. It should be noted that social integration here refers to the acquisition of the status of an ordinary woman, that is, being a wife and a mother.188 Terramorsi explains the reasons for the failure of the

189 He a

mixed couple is provoked by a man who talks, that is, one who wants to relate something rare 190
motivated by the need to put into wo betra when she says that it refers to a

191 Commenting on the tales that feature

192 The fact that the fisherman violates the taboo or breaks the promise to keep the

2010. P. 24. (Translation mine).

rare (donc hors langage) à une cause commune. » Ibid. (Translation mine).

191 " Manque de respect de leur différence. » Sylvia Andriamampianina. " La légende de Remiry, fille des eaux de

inconnaissable. » Ibid. (Translation mine). 110
escapes from marital [life] and phallocracy, [and] her hybridity is a power which emancipates

193 it is undeniable that her power is far from being acknowledged. Instead,

her power, which inspires fear rather than respect, leads to her marginalization. And insofar as this marginalization prevents her from fulfilling her desire to be integrated into the human world, namely the desire to be a wife and a mother, she can be perceived as a victim.

194 but she is also a victim in that she is prevented from fulfilling her desire to be

integrated into the human world. She is a victim of alienation. The fact that the

195 The delay of the departure also suggests

a reluctance to leave. In that sense, the departure in this tale seems to be the inevitable

consequence of the violation of the taboo, which the zazavavindrano must accept against her will. Otherwise, why would she leave more wealth for the man, instead of punishing him and making him poor as before? Similarly, why would she refuse to completely cut the ties, and instead allow the man to visit her or promise to visit him and the baby as well? beautiful and very young girl of the waters is looking for a handsome young man to start a tout joug. » Ibid. p. 390. (Translation mine).

195 " Aie bien soin de notre enfant. » Charles Renel. Contes de Madagascar. Paris : E. Leroux, 1910. P. 188.

(Translation mine). 111
196
a changed status and without keeping the fruits of her journey, that is, her husband and her child. It means that it is not just the fisherman who is faced with lack at the end of the tale, but be integrated as a wife and mother in the human world. This reinforces our argument about the as a mother does not enable us to confirm our view about her crushed desire to be a wife and a mother. Moreover, the tale ends with her daughters following her, which means that the Hence, in order to further develop our argument about the victimization of the protagonist as a victim of male oppression in a more explicit way. This tale, whereby the man follows the woman, thus adopting a form of uxorilocal residence, has already been analysed in the previous sections. Our analysis underlined the fact that Rafarazanadrano manages to make her initial oppressor, Andriambahoaka, subdue to her will. This can be perceived as a threat to male supremacy since the man, who initially ruled this woman by forcing her to marry him and beating and insulting her when she refused to speak, is bound to follow her and comply with worth quotin

197 It can thus be asserted that in this tale, the

112
victim who resists by refusing to speak. Nonetheless, she is a victim who is forced into an unwanted marriage, one who cannot fight back when she is beaten and insulted by her husband. ambivalent character, being both vulnerable and dangerously powerful, presenting feminine and masculine characteristics at the same time, undoubtedly serves to highlight her alterity. But more importantly, her power as a threat to male supremacy is a source of fear and anxiety, which explains the various attempts to conquer her and the ensuing marginalization and victimization. It can be said that the common thread that binds the female protagonists in the three tales that we have studied is their victimization, which is closely tied to their alterity. Despite their differing characterization and story line, these women are in one way or another portrayed as victims trying to fend for themselves in order to escape male physical, verbal or psychological violence. No matter how subversive or powerful they can be, the lot of these women, as the Other, remains conditioned by male supremacy. This calls to mind Sandra

Gilbert The

Madwoman in the Attic.

on the universal devaluation of women, these authors write that both the subversive feminine symbols (witches, evil eye, menstrual pollution, castrating mothers) and the feminine symbols of transcendence (mother goddesses, merciful 113
of view to sta hegemony.198 In other words, women are constantly positioned as the Other who, to borrow the terms

199 The status of the

dual characterization. When they are characterized as vulnerable and powerless, they are the victims of male oppression. When they are portrayed as the powerful women who are free from any bondage, they represent a threat to male supremacy and are inevitably subdued by being marginalized or victimized. Moreover, as an ambiguous figure that stands between two realms (the human world and the sea) Ot200 ive creature that needs to be conquered, subdued and marginalized. We can conclude that the blending of several aspects of the idealized form of femininity such as beauty, kindness, sensitivity and vulnerability with masculine characteristics that denote p make her a complex female figure whose experiences are somehow perpetually conditioned by the ideology of male supremacy.

198 Sherry Ortner in Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic. New Haven and London: Yale

University Press, 2000 [1979]. P.19.

199Direct communication with Florence Binard. 13 March 2020.

200 Sherry Ortner in Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic. New Haven and London: Yale

University Press, 2000 [1979]. P.19.

114

1.4. The Other Women in Malagasy Folktales

This last section of the first chapter of our study, which deals with the various representations of femininity in a selection of Malagasy folktales, considers the cases of the female characters who do not fall within the categories of women that have been explored in the previous sections, namely old women, stepmothers, and adulterous women. We refer to experiences, roles and identities are different from those of the women in our previous analysis, but also because they can also be perceived women are portrayed as femininity (stepmothers, adulteresses) or their lack of the qualities required to fit into the category of conventional women (old women). Significantly, these women, in their dissociation from the idealized form of femininity, can be perceived as a threat to male superiority,201 which accounts for their negative representations. Nevertheless, we argue that the complex representations of the female characters in Malagasy folktales call for an in-depth analysis of their individual experiences despite their presumed alterity as a common feature. Thus, we intend to investigate the ways in which the women in our selection of folktales are depicted in their differing, often conflicting statuses and roles in the Malagasy context. Our approach to the representations of old women in Malagasy folktales recognizes the multiple and contradictory sociocultural perceptions of old people articulated by sociologists Toni Calasanti and Kathleen Slevin in Gender, Social Inequalities, and Aging. Developing their argument on the social construction of old age across different cultures and time periods, these

dominance of men over women. See R.W. Connell. Gender and Power. Society, the Person and Sexual Politics.

Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1987. P. 183. 115

202 In

other words, the perception of old people in various cultures and at different time periods arequotesdbs_dbs47.pdfusesText_47

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