Slučaj Kamenskaja: žensko tijelo kao lokacija rodnih prijepora
Case Kamenskaya: Female Body as a Location of Gender Controversy

Summary/Abstract: This article is based on the literary analysis of a detective novel Confluence of Circumstances by Russian author Alexandra Marinina as it problematizes the portrayal and identities of its protagonist, investigator Anastasia Kamenskaya. With the aim of outlining not only the position of female characters in Russian detective fiction but also the Russian society’s attitude towards women in the police profession, this article traces some of the most influencing elements of patriarchal politics that have found their way into literature, subtly reinforcing its system and contributing to its continuance. Questioning whether the novel’s characters and plot subvert or confirm traditional gender roles and stereotypes is central to the analysis as is observing the portrayal of female body which bears witness to women’s true experience, their position in society and the understanding of themselves on a more intimate ground. In attempting to define the level of subversion of patriarchal norms, the article refers to the theories developed by Kate Millett, Eva Figes, Iris Marion Young, Sandra Lee Bartky, Judith Butler and others. The analysis shows that regardless of the gender role reversal visible in a number of characters’ relationships and regardless of the protagonist’s actions revealing femininity as a social construct, the general understanding of the female body is still based on patriarchal beliefs. The heroine herself shows extreme lack of confidence in her capabilities and views her body as a fragile encumbrance rather than the medium for the enactment of her aims. In other words, she perceives her body the way women subtly disciplined by patriarchal apparatus often do. Since this nullifies her subversive actions, it can only be concluded that patriarchal politics still dominate the discourse of Russian popular literature.

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