The myth as an element of transgression in the postmodern novel: "Truismes" by Marie Darrieussecq

Abstract

This paper is a study of a novel published in the final years of the twentieth century entitled Truismes by Marie Darrieussecq (1996). It makes use of some narrative techniques characteristic of the postmodern novel. Through the myth of the metamorphosis the author reveals and deconstructs a series of clichés from the collective imaginary, and applied to women in Western societies. With a humorous tone, the subject matter addresses real issues also under debate in the twenty-first century, such as identity and social integration.