Fay Weldon, The Life and Loves of a She-Devil

Gina Wisker (University of Brighton)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.09: English Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary Britain , 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Kerry Myler (Newman University), Jenni Ramone (The Nottingham Trent University)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1984

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

Fay Weldon’s The Life and Loves of a She Devil is a satirical critique of romantic fiction. The novel explores how one woman, Ruth defies her secondary role as a rather inadequate housewife and remakes herself. Ruth is a down trodden, silenced, invisible, huge and ugly housewife in a suburban backwater. Here women’s dreams (indicated by the name of her suburban road Eden Grove ) are meant to be satisfied by their wifely roles, but Ruth is an affront to the value system which celebrates passive, feminine, beautiful, dependent women. These culturally constructed women are the potentially lucky ladies of romantic fictions rewarded with tall dark handsome heroes and domestic bliss. Ruth fits none of the stereotypes, and h…

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1773 words

Citation: Wisker, Gina. "The Life and Loves of a She-Devil". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 30 March 2001 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=359, accessed 27 November 2024.]

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