"The Laugh Of Medusa" by Helene Cixous

Helene Cixous through her essay  “The Laugh of Medusa”, gave an abominable dimension to what was mainly understood as “ Feminism “ under women’s movement in 1975 France. Advocating new ways of thinking and writing about women and literature, it blatantly critiques patriarchal policies and now has become a staple piece of feminist criticism.

Cixous introduces the concept of ‘ecriture feminine’ or feminine writing which according to her, is a path that every woman should follow in order to liberate themselves from the clutches of the patriarchal bondage. Thus forming her central argument of the article on the power of 'written word' , she believes that women will set themselves free and will gain their long lost sense of identity.

She uses the myth of Medusa in the title of her essay and substantiaes it with the psychoanalytical theory to highlight women subjugation in her times. In the Greek myth, Medusa, the snake headed woman is killed by Perseus is paralled with a man's attempt to silence the voice of a woman by cutting off her sense of expression and anger thus deconstructing Freud's theory of "castration complex" in men .

Though a feminist writing in its totality, following arguements form the crux of Cixous's arguement.

1.Women have been repressed throughout the history.Helene explains with a beautiful example teling how a woman who let lose of her desires for once traps them back as she scolds herself and a feeling of guilt takes over her; " Time and again I felt so full of luminous torrents that I could burst.......I said to myself: You are mad! what is the meaning of these waves?..."

2. "Write! Writing is for you, you are for you; your body is yours, take it.......Write. let no one hold you back, let nothing stop you..." Thus urging them to take up writing as their voices."To write. An act which will not only "relise" the decensored relation of woman to her sexuality, to her womanly being, giving her access to her native strength..."." To write and thus to forge herself an antilogos weapon".

3.No writing that "inscribes feminity" except for her own , which unfortunately is under cover . It is afraid of ridicule to the extent that it almost cease to exist.

3."Woman for Woman", a heading under which author describes the woman as the creator and nourisher . A  hereditery relationship is drawn out as ,"There is hidden and always ready  in woman the source; the locus of the other. the mother too is a metaphor".

4. "It is impossible to define a feminine piece of writing but it will surpass the discourse that regulates phallocentric system and will be concieved only by subjects who are breakers of automatisms".

5."The Dark continent i neither dark nor unexplorable . It is still unexplored only because we've been made to believe that it was too dark to be explorable." Females were turned away from their bodies, shamefully taught to ignore them, to strike them witht that  stupid sexual modesty.

6. Flying is a woman's gesture as women have flied over and under"narrow passways" and "hidden cross overs".

7. Feminine text cannot fail to be more than subversive as it is volcanic and "leaves behind a blazing trail....because she is a giver......her capacity to depropriate unselfishely and her libido is cosmic". " Her Language does not contain, it carries" thus she is unafraid, adventurous and all encompassing and so is her language. " She is dispersible, prodigious, desirous and capable of others"." In one another we will never be lacking" thus putting forth the final idea that women's unity inspite of their different experiences, is their biggest strength.