Bloody chamber context

Question 1

1. When was ‘The Bloody Chamber Collection Published’?

Answer 1

1979

Question 2

What other text did Carter publish, alongside TBC? What did it explore?

Answer 2

The Sadeian Woman – a feminist re-appraisal of the work of the Marquis de Sade, consisting of a collection of essays analyzing his literature. Carter sees de Sade as being the first writer to see women as more than mere breeding machines, as more than just their biology and, as such, finds him liberating.

Question 3

Which fairy tale inspired ‘The Bloody Chamber’ title story?

Answer 3

Histoires ou contes du temps passé’ (Stories or Tales from Past Times) 1697 - Bluebeard

Question 4

4. Where did Carter’s interest in these stories originate?

Answer 4

Carter translated Charles Perrault’s ‘Histoires ou contes du temps passé (Stories or Tales from Past Times) in 1977 and was inspired to explore the latent content of these, and other, fairy tales as the beginning of new stories. She commented that ‘the latent content is violently sexual’

Question 5

5. Which fairy tale is the next two stories based upon and who wrote the most popular version of this tale?

Answer 5

Jeanne Marie le Prince de Beaumont 1756 – ‘Beauty and the Beast’ in Magasin des Enfants

Question 6

6. From which country did the legend of the Erl King originate? Who wrote a famous poem about the Erl King?

Answer 6

Germany, Johanne Von Goethe

Question 7

7. Who wrote Dracula and in which year?

Answer 7

Bram Stoker 1897

Question 8

8. Which other novel inspired ‘The Lady of the House of Love’?

Answer 8

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens – character of Miss Havisham

Question 9

9. Which fairy tale, also by Charles Perrault, inspired the wolf stories?

Answer 9

Little Red Riding Hood

Question 10

10. Angela Carter commented that

Answer 10

You know, sometimes when I read my back pages, I’m quite appalled at the violence of my imagination.”

Question 11

Equal pay act

Answer 11

12. The Equal Pay Act was passed in 1970 granting equal wages for women and men doing the same work.

Question 12

Virago press

Answer 12

13. In 1973, Virago Press was founded (Virago means a heroic war-like woman) – they championed female literature and 5 of Carter’s novels were published by Virago as well as her nonfiction work, The Sadeian Woman. She was also heavily involved with the feminist magazine ‘The Spare Rib’.

Question 13

Sex discrimination act

Answer 13

1975

Question 14

Domestic violence act

Answer 14

was passed in 1976 enabling married or cohabiting women to obtain a court order aimed at preventing further violence and to exclude her violent partner from the home.