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CRITICAL
JOUISSANCE: JOURNEYS BEYOND THE BED WITH
HÉLÈNE CIXOUS
Cecily Davey, University of St. Andrews
Cecily Davey holds an MLitt in Women, Writing and Gender and is currently a PhD scholar and tutor at the
School of English, University of St Andrews. Her thesis is entitled ‘Bloodsong: Dream, Memory and the Body in
the Fictions of Hélène Cixous’ and her research interests include 20th - 21st century women's writing in English
and French, memoir, feminist literary theory and bodily imagery. Read more at: http://standrews.academia.edu/CecilyDavey
ABSTRACT
This article will propose that the symbol of the bed plays a central role in the writing of Hélène Cixous, from her
earliest works onwards. Over the course of her continually evolving oeuvre, however, the associations which
this object carries vary considerably. Each of the texts discussed in this article presents a different view of what
the bed symbolises. Whereas her first essays link the bed with sleep, silence, passivity, and death; her later
writing focuses on the bed as a scene of rebirth. The diverse representations of the bed in Cixous’ work raise
several questions. How does this transition from death to rebirth take place? Why does this transition happen?
And what does it suggest about the larger conceptual shifts taking place within her work? It is the aim of this
article to answer such questions by discussing a selection of texts that depict the bed in contrasting ways,
including her celebrated essay ‘Sorties,’ ‘The Laugh of the Medusa,’ ‘Coming to Writing,’ and ‘The School of
Dreams.’ By reflecting on Cixous’ often conflicting representations of this object, this article will consider how
the ambivalent symbolism of the bed may be seen to offer valuable insights into the wider evolution of Cixous’
oeuvre.
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This article will propose that the symbol of the bed has played a central role in the writing of Hélène Cixous,
from her earliest works onwards. Over the course of her continually evolving oeuvre, however, the associations
which this object carries seem to vary considerably. Each of the texts which I will discuss in this article presents
a different view of what the bed can be seen to symbolise. Whereas her early works link the bed with sleep,
silence, passivity, and death; her later writing focuses on the bed as a scene of rebirth. This object becomes
closely connected with dreaming in Cixous’ writing, which represents for her an act of liberation, exploration,
and discovery. As a symbol of the world of dreams, the bed is thus transformed into a place where the desires,
voices, and creative forces of the unconscious can be expressed.
The diverse symbolism of the bed in Cixous’ work raises several questions. How does this transition from death
to rebirth, from repression to liberation, from silence to self-expression take place? Why does this transition
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