Moterų transgresija ir galios įtvirtinimas Angela Carter romane „Stebuklinga žaislų krautuvėlė“

Female Transgression and Empowerment in Angela Carter's Novel “The Magic Toyshop” The present paper examines the themes of female transgression and empowerment in British writer Angela Carter’s (post)modern novel "The Magic Toyshop" (1967) and aims to determine how the major themes in the novel unfold through the instances of magical realism, gothic elements and the rewriting of classical as well as biblical myths which problematize social normative modes of seeing reality. By identifying the obstacles to female empowerment through the modes of linguistic articulation, the paper provides an analysis of the power of language and its competence to control and discipline. Since "The Magic Toyshop" is a social critique of patriarchy through the focalization of a female character, it inevitably invites a feminist theoretical framework. Thus, the ideas provided by Jean Bethke Elshtain and the French Feminist school of thought, namely, Julia Kristeva and Helen Cixious, were chosen for the subject matter. The analysis section relies on the motifs of sexual awakening, exploration and depiction of subjectivity, victimization, and the influence of tyranny, small forms of resistance and protest that may lead to the formation of a challenging and rebelling construct of female identity. The Magic Toyshop is a parody of mysogynistic patriarchy in which women are undermined, therefore, the female characters face various obstacles ranging from outright victimization, financial dependence on men to abusive male discourse that threaten their autonomy and sovereignty. However, the latter obstacles subsequently lay the foundation for eventual female empowerment which is explored through the competence of language, meaning that female discourse incorporates a sense of community and grants them power