Meaning is socially constructed.
Texts have more than one interpretation
Texts are commodities (products of society)
Truth is relative, highly dependent on arbitrary categories of difference, esp. those based on “sex” and “gender”
Look for systems of containment; for evidence of repression, oppression, suppression, subversion, & rebellion in texts by women; study women’s unique ways of understanding and writing about the human condition.
*Territorialism
Possessions (objects of desire) are metaphors for who we are or how we wish to be perceived—aspects of the “self.”
Possessions may be tangible or intangible (my car or my idea, e.g.)
They occupy mental space: cognitive, affective, and conative.
These spaces strongly resemble territories—with rights of ownership, markers, boundaries, rules of “in” and “out,” defensive strategies, etc.
Look for territorial behaviors; determine the “object(s) of desire”; what aspect of self is in play? Who owns the object? Who wants it? Why? Identify the territorial act: acquisition, management, or defense? How does this information improve our understanding of the text?
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