Jellyfish in the Attic. On the Theory and Practice of the Creative Process

Abstract

Hélène Cixous’s Manifesto The Laughter of Medusa was first published in 1975 and immediately became one of the most frequently quoted texts on écriture féminine – women’s writing. How can the essay be perceived today and has the literary work of women become an emancipatory element or rather fell into a trap of an essentialism? Using the example of theoretical texts, my own work, and many years of experience in conducting creative writing classes, I critically discuss Cixous’s view. I refer to the theoretical works of Marguerite Duras, Izabela Filipiak (Morska), Katarzyna Bonda or Julia Cameron, trying to draw guidelines for women writers mentioned above and juxtapose them with the examples of their literature. I also reach for my own writing workshop and check, if the model of “a madwoman in the attic” by Sandra Gilbert and Susan Gubar is still valid in the 21st century.