The Mirror and the Market: Surveillance, Femininity, and Abjection in Pig Tales.

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to explore the relation between femininity, surveillance and self- discipline ingrained in the lives of females, making them more submissive and weaker as depicted in the novel, Pig Tales written by Marie Darrieussecq. This study tends to help them gain agency by realizing their importance and self-worth. Utilizing theoretical lens proposed by Julia Kristeva in her theory of Abjection. The study delves into how females are treated as subjects of self-doubt in the neo-liberal world. Using a detailed textual analysis the selected text studies to demonstrate how the submissive females become a victim of abuse and manipulation at the hands of the male dominated society. The protagonist’s transformation into a pig is a critique on the individualized femininity and the female body as it reveals the bodily control culture rooted in the patriarchal society. The interpretation of the discourse through the lens of neoliberal beauty tradition reveals how the narrative acts as a satire on both the inherent practices of self-policing and surveillance in the lives of contemporary women.