Light Amidst the Darkness: A Feminist Analysis of Blindness in All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Subha M.
Full-time Research Scholar (Register number: 241131802005),
Department of English and Research Centre, Sree Ayyappa College for Women,
Chunkankadai, Nagercoil.
(Affiliated to Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli-627 012)
Email: liyamuthancy7779@gmail.com

Dr. N. U. Lekshmi
Associate Professor & Research Supervisor,
Department of English and Research Centre, Sree Ayyappa College for Women,
Chunkankadai, Nagercoil.
(Affiliated to Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli-627 012)

Abstract
As its female characters deal with the devastation caused by World War II, the book All the Light We Cannot See examines their emotional complexity, resiliency, and trauma. Anthony Doerr provides a moving reflection on the sacrifice, grief, and personal hardships that many women went through throughout the war, as seen through the eyes of women. The book tells the tale of Werner Pfennig, a German soldier, and Marie-Laure LeBlanc, a blind French girl, whose paths meet in the war-torn French city of Saint-Malo. The story jumps back and forth in time, alternating between their lives throughout the war. In addition to being an internal conflict, Marie-Laure’s eyesight increases her susceptibility to the mental and physical abuse she encounters daily. After her father is detained by the Germans, she leaves Paris and seeks safety in Saint-Malo. Her experiences reflect the difficulties that women with disabilities have in the real world, who are frequently and disproportionately impacted by exploitation and violence. The novel’s connection to gender-based violence and disability emphasizes the necessity for a feminist interpretation that recognizes how women’s gendered experiences and disabilities exacerbate their suffering throughout conflict. Doerr examines how women, particularly those with impairments, must negotiate and endure repressive structures through Marie-Laure’s blindness.

Keywords: War, Relationship, Displacement, Loss, and Identities.