Myth and Modernity: Feminism and Identity in Orhan Pamuk’s The Red Haired Woman

Abstract

This research paper examines the novel The Red-Haired Woman written by Orhan Pamuk’s is a complicated exploration of identity with a formation which impacted historical legacies, storytelling, the socio-political and socio-cultural dynamics of modern Turkey. The novel was constructed under this perspective of modern and traditional Turkey, the narrative interweaves the particular journey of the protagonist Cem, with wider societal problems. The formal character, the Red-Haired Woman, divulge her as a representation of female empowerment and battle within a patriarchal structure. This research paper will examine the themes of feminism and identity in Orhan Pamuk’s “The Red-Haired Woman”, emphasizing the novel’s use of myth to make social commentary on contemporary situations. The study clarifies Pamuk’s complex critique of gender dynamics and the development of identity in contemporary Turkey through a close reading of key lines and narrative elements.

This paper examines how Pamuk challenges standard Feminism and identity which focus on how myth intertwines with modernity along emphasize the intersections of personal and political identities by building the character’s experiences within the background of Turkish society’s. This study reinforces the complex interplay between individual agency and structural force to seek the complication of gender roles. By exploring the key quotes and examine the novel’s use of mythological references, this paper highlights Pamuk’s observation on feminism and identity through the influence of myth stories enduring the modern lives