Literary Transformations and Women Who Rewrite & Within the White Whale

A literary transformation, simplified, is a rewriting of an existing piece of literature such as a novel, a poetry collection or a work of non-fiction. This is a genre of growing popularity, in particular with a focus on contemporary female authors rewriting ancient Greek mythology. This thesis examines these acts of rewriting. The products of this process have been termed 'literary transformations' as a result of the scattered terminology surrounding this creative act. In order to better understand the creative decisions that take place during the literary transformation process, two texts are analysed alongside my own creative literary transformation. The two texts selected were Alice Oswald's Memorial, a rewriting of Homer's Iliad, and Margaret Atwood's The Penelopiad, a rewriting of Homer's Odyssey. Three translations have been used for each of Homer's epics in order to eliminate any potential bias from a singular translator. The analysis aims to evaluate the faithfulness, innovation and alternative points-of-view present within each of these literary transformations. From Memorial we learn that literary transformations can occur across language barriers, whilst The Penelopiad teaches us that literary transformations can emerge from a desire for representation. Similarly, my own practice demonstrated that literary transformations can be exceedingly personal and vulnerable to change as the conditions in which they are being written change. The creative component of this thesis is a literary transformation of Herman Melville's Moby-Dick, where each chapter has been rendered into a prose poem with the aid of found poetry techniques. Overall, rewriting is an excellent way to engage both critically and creatively with historical works of literature, providing the author with writing constraints and found material. For the reader, a literary transformation provides alternative points-of-view to challenge their current perception of the original text and the opportunity to enjoy an expansion of the original work. However, the genre is not without its practical concerns. In response, topics such as copyright, cultural appropriation, and access and participation barriers have been explored in this thesis. There is a wealth of possibilities present in the practice of creating literary transformations and we have only scratched the surface of what can be achieved through this medium.