Narration of Age: Writing The Midlife in Women’s Personal Writings

(A Cultural and Comparative Study between Arab and American Women Writers)

Abstract

This study seeks to shed light on autobiographical narratives that focus on the subject of middle age by comparing Arab female writers with Western female writers, specifically American female writers. Some of the questions raised in this study relate to women’s writing approach to the subject of age: Is it a narrative that challenges the norms of writing about the self? Does the autobiography specializing in the subject of age show distinguishing marks between Arab female writers and their American counterparts? And have female writers taken a similar narrative path towards the subject of age?

 This study presents a comparative study of a number of personal narratives in Arabic and American texts. The attempt is to read these texts closely in order to reveal the ways in which female writers deal with middle age in terms of similarities and differences in their autobiographical narratives and gender awareness. This study observes some similarities between Arab and American female writers, especially with regard to the writer’s approach to the concept of writing autobiography. It also notes the different attitude toward gender solidarity as it is expressed significantly in American women personal narrative; an attitude that reflects the position of Arab women which is still governed by social issues determined by society, such as the roles assigned to women. This study also recommends further investigation and research into women’s narratives and into the manifestations of gender awareness among women writers and its reflection in their narrative and poetic writing.