Exceeding the Monotony: A Feminist Reading in Eavan Boland's "Anorexic" and "Menses"

Abstract

     Ireland was unjust to its women. For many years, Irish women were marginalized, their voices were silenced, and they were absent from history, culture, and even literary works. Ireland is viewed as a woman not only by colonialists, but also by the Irish themselves. Female writers struggle to get recognition. The Irish literature has always been dominated by men. For centuries, the literary world revolved around male voices. In addition, Irish poetry ignored the role of women and did not address their experiences and daily lives. As a result, the women's role was entirely passive. Boland attempts to create a special space for Irish women. She tries to rectify Irish poetry that was, for a long time, male-dominated. Boland opposes the stereotypical images of Irish women presented by male poets in their writings. Those men have portrayed the Irish women as static entities who play no active role in life or society. In her "Anorexic" and "Menses", Boland addresses sensitive issues concerning the Irish women. Such subjects have always been overlooked in Irish poetry. Male poets have never addressed feminist themes or daily experiences that express the reality of the ordinary Irish women