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“Capacity for survival may be the ability to be changed by environment" - R.D.

This quote not only speaks to a woman's realizations gained through a quest, but it also speaks to how our perceptions, like people, are susceptible to the environment. When stigmatizing ideas exist recurrently in literature, perceptions adapt to match

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This is my companion novel. This nonfiction book follows the journey of Robyn Davidson as she travels to Australia, trains a pack of camels and embarks on a 1700 mile journey across the Australian desert. Through her travels, she ponders the socially constructed norms of gender and identity while interacting with the Aboriginal people. This rounds out the spectrum of gender in quest literature and attempts to unpack some of the same issues raised by the construction of the focal novel

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How do expectations differ for male and female characters in quest literature?

Finding your identity

How your journey shapes your identity

Are stories different for men and women?

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This is my focal novel. "The Alchemist" follows the journey of a young, Spanish shepherd who dreams of a treasure waiting for him by the pyramids of Egypt. He sells his flock and travels to Africa. Along the way, he meets spiritual guides that help him hear the "language of the universe" to better pursue his Personal Legend. He finds love and meets The Alchemist - an ancient man who gives him the wisdom necessary to achieve his goals.

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"I liked myself this way, it was such a relief to be free of disguises an prettiness and attractiveness. Above all that horrible, false, debilitating attractiveness that women hide behind. I puled my hat down over my ears so that they stuck out beneath it. 'I must remember this when I get back. I must not fall into that trap again.' I must let people see me as I am. Like this? Yes, why not like this. But then I realized hat the rules pertaining to one set of circumstances do not necessarily pertain to another. Back there, this would just be another disguise. Back there, there was no nakedness, no one could afford it. Everyone had their social personae well fortified" - R.D.

Davidson here is directly addressing the double-standard in gender norms and gender expectations that can be reinforced through inequitable narrative roles

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"The desert is natural - when you are out there, you can get in tune with your environment" - R.D.

This quote is indicative of larger realizations about the world and the universe the author comes to during her quest. It shows that women are equally capable of processing the deeper truths of questing

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This vine both satirizes the male reaction to women taking the lead role in narratives and speaks to the cultural significance of the disparity in storytelling. When female characters do drive the plot of quest literature, there is significant pushback against the reversal of societally-established gender norms

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Real-World Implications: the 2016 Election 

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Real-World Implications: the 2016 Election 

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This idea perpetuated in quest literature that women are unsuitable for difficult journeys or that they are unable to tackle issues on their own bleeds into the national political discourse. This article highlights some of the criticisms levied against female candidate, Hillary Clinton, that would not be levied against a male candidate with her credentials

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Donald Trump portrays Hillary Clinton as untrustworthy and unfit to lead the military

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"Whether your family just arrived or has been here since before the United States even existed, Hillary Clinton and I believe we are brothers and ... sisters, and we will be your champions," Kaine told supporters in Phoenix, according to a translation of his remarks provided by the campaign.

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This sculpture of a muse shows the woman as beautiful and distant, capturing the relationship historically shown between male creators and muses. The muse idea closely mirrors female roles in quest narratives: silent, distant inspiration meant to help the male achieve something greater

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This song romanticizes the idea of a woman who patiently waits at home supporting her artistic male lover as he pursues his dream, much as Fatima waits at the oasis camp for the return of Santiago. The section:
"You sacrifice so much of your life
In order for this to work

While I'm off chasing my own dreams
Sailing around the world
Please, know that I'm yours to keep
My beautiful girl"
best captures this sentiment

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City And Colour - The Girl (w/ lyrics on screen)

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Women as Quest Objects, "Slumdog Millionaire" 

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Women as Quest Objects, "Slumdog Millionaire" 

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In this clip, Latika (the love interest of the movie) is shown through lighting, color and cinematography to be an object of beauty and desire that must be fought for and earned by the male quester, Jamal

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SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE Film Clip - Latika At The Train Station

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"I'm a desert woman, and I'm proud of that. I want my husband to wander as free as the wind that shapes the dunes" - Fatima

Fatima rationalizes why she is willing to spend her entire life waiting on the return of Santiago, her love. Her identity is connected to the accomplishments of her husband and she has little-to-no individual agency in shaping her personal identity

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"If I am really a part of your dream, you'll come back one day" - Fatima

Fatima exists only as inspiration for the male protagonist to complete his quest. She abandons agency and personal growth to better serve her male counterpart

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''...but above all, I'm a woman" - Fatima

Fatima explains her tears by saying she is a woman first. As she is the only female character of significance in the novel, it seems that the novel is arguing that all women share this trait of emotionality. She rejects all other characteristics of herself and identifies solely as "woman" - a label that, in this novel, means dependent, supportive, docile and subservient