Modernism in Antonia White’s Confessional Autobiographical Narratives: A study of Woman’s Life in Twentieth Century

Abstract

      White’s modernism in her stories and diaries are due to her too personal and erotic language, which allows her to belong to the Avant-Garde period. She aimed at constructing the Modern female self and exploring its wounded psyche. White’s journey towards independence is decisive despite her suffering. In this study, White’s personal life has been transformed to a series of stories about herself. In her autobiographical novels and Diaries, she clarifies the patriarchal pressure on her that made her neurotic and not able to write for many years. Elizabeth Podniek’s study about White’s Quartet and Diaries is taken into consideration as a model of analysis. White’s creativity is shown through her memories of the past that enables her to present a highly modernist piece of writing.