The Goddess within: Recognizing the concept of feminist spirituality in Marion Zimmer Bradley's The mists of Avalon

• Main Author: Perez, Maria Ephrellen Pe
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2004
• Subjects: Marion Zimmer Bradley. The mists of Avalon; Femininity in literature; American Literature
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/4923
• Institution: De La Salle University

Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Mists of Avalon has become one of the very important landmarks and bastions of feminist fantasy it is, moreover, a retelling of the Arthurian legends through the perspective of the female characters, such as Morgan Le Fay (Morgaine), Igrayne (Igraine), Guenivere (Gwenhwyfar), and The Lady of the Lake (Viviane). What is most noteworthy about the book aside from its feminist portrayal of the original legend is how this portrayal was brought about: through the use of the women-centered Goddess religion as a device to empower the retelling's motive. My purpose is to delve into this device which has transformed the novel not only as one of the most significant Arthurian legend adaptations but as a source for any individual who would like to be enlightened in the field of feminist spirituality. Although the elements of fantasy are still present, the novel contains corresponding facts of the concept of feminist spirituality. Furthermore, this concept has brought a body of female divine aspects into a more concise light such as the Mother Goddess, the Earth Mother, the Maiden, the Mother, and the Crone. Symbols that have been engendered as female such as, for example, the chalice and the cauldron, are also included. Women characters have been empowered and highlighted male characters are stripped of their invincible images as portrayed in the original Arthurian legends, and, with the women characters, are made more human. I would like to identify and explore these representations in the text and then categorize them under tenets of feminist spirituality.