Foucauldian archaeology, the study of discourse as a system of references rather than a thematic unity, provides an appropriate toolkit in studying Winterson’s discursive method. This thesis argues that Winterson’s reference and repetition are evidence of a poststructuralist project: she reconceives the unities of autobiography, history, and identity as networks of relations. Jeanette Winterson’s infamous use of intertextuality and self-quotation, often dismissed as arrogance, compels her readers to locate her works within an interconnected cycle. Exploring the relationship between storytelling, contingency and politics, the article illustrates how fictional accounts can help scholars reclaim contingency as a critical component of political understanding: it can help to illuminate vanquished identities and perspectives and in so doing bring to the fore alternative, unforeseen social and political possibilities. Winterson's preoccupation with storytelling challenges dominant representations of history and identity and in effect foregrounds different ways to perceive of political realities. Her novels adventure into a wondrous world where reality and fantasy combine and established patterns of knowledge are juxtaposed with what is conventionally deemed myth. To analyse the potentials and limits of storytelling to do this, the present article examines the fiction of Jeanette Winterson. Key here, I argue, is the ability of stories to inspire the imagination needed to render entrenched political patterns and practices contingent. Yet stories can help to not only construct political realities but also transform them. Stories help to provide structure and meaning in what often seems a random, haphazard world.
Storytelling is fundamental to human existence. This article examines Jeanette Winterson's novels to show how storytelling can hold transformative political potential.
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