Salvation in Doris Lessing’s Shikasta: essentialist-postmodern feminist perspective

The cities in Doris Lessing’s Shikasta mirror various status of mind, from being totally harmonious due to following the outer space’ Master Plan to exposed to destruction because of not being able to absorb beyond rules. These cities of mind are either totally annihilated or completely liberated. The annihilation is caused by ignorance of the world within and individuation whereas liberation is resulted from focusing on the internal world and interconnectedness . The traces of both demolishment and freedom of mind are found in essentialist as well as postmodern feminist thoughts. The methodology appropriated in the paper entails depiction of lack of cautiousness of the internal world and individuation as the main causes of ruination of the diluted cities of mind practiced in postmodern and essentialist feminist respectively. The paper later illuminates how dwindled cities can regain harmony intuitively and interconnectedly . By utilizing the prescriptions of both essentialists and postmodern feminists on the way of self-development, I depart from other critics who examine Lessing’s self-liberating insights through purchasing merely postmodern themes and not investing on essentialist’s dignity. This departure is significant since I reveal that both are needed in recomposing the cities of minds in Shikasta

Keywords:

Postmodernism , Essentialism , Language , Individuality , Intuition , Interconnectedness