Facets of the Feminine Psyche: The Romance's Psychological Landscapes, PART 2
possessing all the sensitive, nurturing qualities of the female," writes Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Thereby is answered a woman's deep psychological need for integration, both on a personal and cultural scale. While men have been seen to attain maturity through rites of separation, the feminine rite of passage is one of bonding, of niche-finding and filling. While men's blood-passage-rites are externalized acts and affectations, the blood-rite of a woman's passage into adulthood is experienced within her own body, on levels both physical and psychological. The Romance is most successful which deals with the melding of these two diverse approaches to life, as the hero and heroine pass to a mature bond.
For after all, Romance is focused on the development of an emotionally, psychologically satisfying relationship between a man and a woman. While pornography attempts only to convey the fleeting satisfactions of physical fulfillment, its inherent isolation from the deeper issues of love and commitment render it far less engaging. The allure of a Romance is in its focus on the resolution of emotional risk and conflict.
The women of Romance expect and sometimes even force their potential mates to change. This is a powerful message, and one eagerly embraced by readers who understand the value of a relationship that is grounded in both partners being responsive to and responsible for their emotions. The message of feminine empowerment is counter to much of what our culture teaches us from childhood, and yet it is a valid one.
The psychological landscape of the Romance provides an even playing field for male and female, a place where characters and the readers who live vicariously through them can try on varying roles. The questing Maiden becomes a competent Warrior and finds fulfillment as Priestess or Mother. The hero-Novice challenges his own Warrior capabilities, allowing the reader to explore her "masculine" energies before passing the Gatekeeper/Guardian's passage rite into full maturity.
In the course of this psychological role exploration, the Romance reader may learn and develop much within her own psyche, may take steps to deep changes. Or, she may simply revel in Romance's engaging depictions of resonant archetypal characters and situations. In the end and on varying levels, soul-level fulfillment is attained by both characters and reader.
The end of any good tale brings a sort of fall from the grace of its page-turning pleasure. However, the emotional lift a Romance reader feels when hero and heroine are at
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