Reviewing the Politics of Schizophrenic Alienation in Doris Lessing’s Selected Novels
Keywords:
Self-identity, Fragmentation, Consciousness, Schizophrenic IsolationAbstract
In this paper an attempt is made to focus on fragmentation of consciousness originating from organic sensibility of an alienated and appalled post World War II society in Doris Lessing’s selected novels. Lessing’s protagonists seem absolute victims of the postmodern schizophrenic alienation and fractioned self. She has generated unprecedented characters and vivid themes related to the second half of twentieth century through her novels. Lessing’s writing career, spread over six decades, covers an era marked by World Wars, Cold Wars, and an infuriating time of nuclear-arms race. She meticulously presents the gloom of the era after the World Wars in her works as she ventilates her fictional energy covering the aspect of alienation and estrangement. Lessing’s novels explore the alienation of civilization as well as of the consciousness of an individual. In her novels, the struggle for self-identity transforms middle class protagonists into alienated individuals. They endeavour hard till the end of their lives to achieve fulfilment in a fragmented society. This conflict moves these protagonists towards schizophrenic isolation
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