We are pleased to report the results of research selected for the 2024 Eikei University of Hiroshima Research Promotion Project.
Our university is implementing the Eikei University of Hiroshima Research Promotion Project with the aim of promoting research activities and improving the quality of education at our university, as well as contributing to the resolution of social issues. We will report on the results of research project that was selected in FY2024 and have completed the research period.
| Principal Investigator | Professor UESUGI Yuko |
| Research theme | A Study of Comparative Literature on the Works of Sylvia Plath and Virginia Woof: Exploring Gender Issues Seen from the Viewpoints of the Two Writers Who Lived in Different Cultures |
| Research Result | This study undertakes a close textual analysis of the poetry and prose of American poet Sylvia Plath (1932–1963) and British author Virginia Woolf (1882–1941), aiming to elucidate the intersection of Anglo-American cultural paradigms and gender ideology through a comparative lens. By exploring the structural and affective dimensions embedded within their works, it critically engages with the multifaceted identities each author inhabits—”mother,” “wife,” “poet,” and “writer”—and investigates the ways in which their respective social positions inform their gendered discourses. Anchored in a comparative cultural methodology, the research foregrounds the historical and socio-cultural frameworks of the United States and the United Kingdom to examine how gender-related factors shaped the authors’ literary production. This contextual inquiry reveals insights whose relevance transcends historical specificity, inviting contemporary readers to reinterrogate conceptions of selfhood and existential agency in light of enduring human concerns. The single-author monograph of literary criticism currently in preparation aspires to further disseminate the universal humanistic values articulated by Plath and Woolf, underscoring their lasting significance in the broader terrain of literary and gender studies. The outcomes of this research are as follows: ＜Conference Presentations＞ August 5, 2024: Poster presentation at Eikei University’s IEP program (collaborative session with students) July 27, 2024: Presentation at the Chugoku-Shikoku Branch Meeting of the Japan Association of Comparative Culture (online) October 12, 2024: Presentation at the National Conference of the American Literature Society of Japan (held at Chukyo University) ＜Peer-Reviewed Paper＞ January 2025: Studies in Comparative Culture Vol. 158 pp.19-32 Title: “Comparison of the Works by Sylvia Plath and Virginia Woolf: Gender Viewpoints of the Two Writers in Different Cultures” |