Unlearning Sacred Motherhood: Ambivalence, Memory, and Female Autonomy in The Lost Daughter

Abstract

Elena Ferrante’s novel The Lost Daughter and its 2021 film adaptation directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal offer a disturbing yet deeply honest exploration of motherhood stripped of its idealised aura. Moving awayfrom the culturally sanctified image of the self-sacrificing mother the narrative foregrounds maternal ambivalence, female desire, and the psychological cost of caregiving. This paper examines how The Lost Daughter destabilises dominant narratives of motherhood by presenting motherhood as fragmented, contradictory, and emotionally taxing. Through the character of Leda, the text interrogates memory, guilt, and autonomy, exposing the silences imposed on women who deviate from normative maternal expectations. Using feminist theory and film -literary analysis, this study argues that The Lost Daughter Functions as a