Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
12th International IDEA Conference: Studies in English, Antalya, Türkiye, 18 - 20 Nisan 2018
Margaret
Cavendish (1623-1673) is one of the most noteworthy figures in British science
and literature. She was interested in the scientific developments of the
seventeenth century and became the first woman to attend one of the meetings of
the Royal Society of London (RSL) and the first to criticize their ideas and practices.
As in the case of other female writers of seventeenth century, however,
Cavendish’s works did not get as much attention as the works of male authors.
Written six years after the establishment of RSL, The Description of a New World,
Called The Blazing-World (1666) was
one of those underrated works and it was initially criticized as being naïve
and illogical because of the ambiguities in its plot. It is true that the text
has contradicting elements, but its ambiguity cannot be associated with pure naïvete.
On the contrary, its disruption of rational thought and inclusion of fantastic
elements along with scientific explanations give it a rebellious outlook. The
plot of The Blazing World is
decentered and loose, unlike male utopias – such as The New Atlantis – which are focused on celebrating human progress.
The Blazing World is a complex,
multilayered, and hybrid text just as the hybrid creatures it contains. Their
chaotic structure can indeed be read as a resistance against and satirical
criticism of the scientific practices of male circles such as that of RSL. As
such, this paper argues that The Blazing
World undermines the utopian tradition established by male authors and
produces a chaotic subversion of the “rational and progressive” theories and
practices of seventeenth-century natural philosophers.