Lilith : a mythological study
| dc.contributor.author | Smith, Tracey Louise | en |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2011-07-04T11:45:56Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2011-07-04T11:45:56Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2008-12 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10547/135243 | |
| dc.description | A Thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master Of Arts by Research in Creative Writing | en |
| dc.description.abstract | Lilith – A Mythological Study is the accompanying thesis to my creative piece, Chrysalis, a novel which centres on the protagonist Melissa and her possession by the demoness Lilith. My thesis is an exploration of Lilith throughout mythology, from her early incarnations in Mesopotamia, through Christian texts, to Jewish folktales, looking at how the various elements of her legend, namely as a succubus, demoness and child killer, have evolved. Here I also explore a number of other myths which portray demonised female figures, and compare them to Lilith, posing the question: is Lilith such an archetypal character that she sparks similar myths across the ancient world, or is it merely that strong women were easy to demonise in male-dominated religions? In order to answer this, I go on to study how Lilith’s femininity has contributed to her myth, and how women in general have been demonised by patriarchal and religious societies. Through this I also touch upon the subject of feminist representation by discussing the concepts of the ‘other’ and abjection, and how Lilith has become an icon for modern feminist movements. Finally I turn to Lilith in Chrysalis, and how I built her up as a central character to my plot. Also, I look at the genre of my work, teen fantasy fiction, and discuss its main themes through studying a number of comparable texts, before applying my findings, as well as more mainstream literary theory, to my novel. | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en |
| dc.publisher | University of Bedfordshire | en |
| dc.subject | creative writing | en |
| dc.subject | Lilith | en |
| dc.subject | mythology | en |
| dc.subject | myth | en |
| dc.title | Lilith : a mythological study | en |
| dc.type | Thesis | en |
| refterms.dateFOA | 2020-05-13T12:19:50Z | |
| html.description.abstract | Lilith – A Mythological Study is the accompanying thesis to my creative piece, Chrysalis, a novel which centres on the protagonist Melissa and her possession by the demoness Lilith. My thesis is an exploration of Lilith throughout mythology, from her early incarnations in Mesopotamia, through Christian texts, to Jewish folktales, looking at how the various elements of her legend, namely as a succubus, demoness and child killer, have evolved. Here I also explore a number of other myths which portray demonised female figures, and compare them to Lilith, posing the question: is Lilith such an archetypal character that she sparks similar myths across the ancient world, or is it merely that strong women were easy to demonise in male-dominated religions? In order to answer this, I go on to study how Lilith’s femininity has contributed to her myth, and how women in general have been demonised by patriarchal and religious societies. Through this I also touch upon the subject of feminist representation by discussing the concepts of the ‘other’ and abjection, and how Lilith has become an icon for modern feminist movements. Finally I turn to Lilith in Chrysalis, and how I built her up as a central character to my plot. Also, I look at the genre of my work, teen fantasy fiction, and discuss its main themes through studying a number of comparable texts, before applying my findings, as well as more mainstream literary theory, to my novel. |
