Jeanette Winterson's novel Sexing the Cherry questions concepts of time, reality, and history through its nonlinear narrative and blending of fantasy and real events. It follows the character Jordan as she travels between the 17th century and present day. The novel distorts linear notions of time by implying multiple realities can exist simultaneously. It also questions what can be known about history and the past given their subjective nature. By merging fantasy with real settings and people, the book further prompts reflection on the constructed nature of reality. Overall, Sexing the Cherry uses postmodern storytelling techniques to undermine common assumptions about time, reality, and our understanding of the world.

1. Sexing The Cherry
by Jeanette Winterson.
Presentation by Sarah Newton.

2. http://sideshow-circusmagazine.com/sites/default/files/events/metta-theatre-sexing-the-cherry.jpg

3. Autobiographical and Sociohistorical Context.
‘Even the most solid of things and the most real,
the best-loved and the well-known, are only hand-
shadows on the wall. Empty space and points of
light.’ (Winterson. 1990).

4. Jeanette Winterson (Author)
• Born 1959 in Manchester.
• Adopted by Jack and Constance Winterson.
• Went to Accrington High school for girls, then studied English at
St. Catherine's College Oxford.
• At 16 she fell in love with a girl.
• Jeanette found herself homeless living in her mini.
• First novel was ‘Oranges are the only fruit’
• Her love for literature ironically was born through the restrictions
on what she could read. (Dwyer. 2012)

5. Postmodernist literature
•Sexing the Cherry
•Distortion of reality
•Subjectification of time, reality and
history.
• (Muller. 2012)

6. https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQlZ1WiJKDwteS5CQC3-tUaPRwb5_coFYn8al9GBKrQh0SN8QVF

7. Time travelling through Narration
‘Thinking about time is like turning the
globe round and round, recognising that all
journeys exist simultaneously, to be in one
place is not to deny the existence of another,
even though that other place cannot be felt
or seen, our usual criteria for belief.’
(Winterson. 1989).

8. https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSGcj0CLfuEfyghIYoPLkxxB_-eW8HOBA-
9MPU7GMgEEA0YaaFHIA

9. ‘Either we are all fantasists and
liars or the past has nothing
definitive in it. I have heard
people say we are shaped by our
childhood. But which one?’(Winterson,
1989)

10. Lies
• Lies 1: - There is only the present and nothing to remember.
• Lies 2: - Time is a straight line.
• Lies 3: - The difference between the past and the future is that
one has happened while the other has not.
• Lies 4: - We can only be in one place at a time.
• Lies 5: - Any proposition that contains the ‘finite’ (the world, the
universe, experience, ourselves…)
• Lies 6: - Reality as something which can be agreed upon.
• Lies 7: - Reality as truth. (Winterson,1989.p. 83)

11. Leaflet (handout)
SEXING
THE
CHERRY
(By Jeanette Winterson)
http://www.nadinemuller.org.uk/wp-
content/uploads/2012/11/sexing.jpg

12. Time
‘Sexing the Cherry’ (Winterson, 1989)
evokes the question of time and
reality before the story even begins.
‘The Hopi, an Indian tribe, have a
language as sophisticated as ours, but
no tenses for past, present and
future. The division does not exist.
What does that say about time?’
(Winterson, 1989.)
This suggests that language
constructs the idea of time and in
many cultures formats time into a
linear form. The ‘Hopi’ tribe do not
divide time. Therefore, suggesting
that time is not linear but perhaps
there are many ‘times’ running
simultaneously. As the book unfolds
the concept of time is twisted and
changed to reflect these possibilities.
Reality
‘Matter, that thing the most solid and
the well-known, which you are holding
in your hands and which makes up
your body, is now known to be mostly
empty space. Empty space and points
of light. What does this say about the
reality of our world?’ (Winterson,
1989)
The question of reality provides
a framework for the which the
whole book is written.
The relationship between time scales
and reality are evident throughout the
book.
https://encrypted-
tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQlZ1WiJKDw
teS5CQC3-tUaPRwb5_coFYn8al9GBKrQh0SN8QVF
‘Every journey conceals another
journey within its lines: the path not
taken and the forgotten angle. These
are journeys I wish to record. Not the
ones I made, but the ones I might
have made, or perhaps did make in
some other place or time.’(Winterson.
1989.p.)
Various passages elude to the idea
that there are parallels in time and
reality which are only discovered if
that path is taken. Also, that the
alternative paths will run alongside
and can be accessed to see the
alternative reality.
https://encrypted-
tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSGcj0CLfu
EfyghIYoPLkxxB_-eW8HOBA-
9MPU7GMgEEA0YaaFHIA
‘In a night 2000,000 years can pass,
time moving only in our minds. The
steady markings of the seasons, the
land well-loved and always changing,
continues outside, while inside light
years revolve us under different
skies.’ (Winterson, 1989.p. 132)
The question of how time works and
the feeling of time are evident in this
passage as it describes how a minute
can feel like an hour depending on
the internalization of situation. But
also, how an hour can feel like a
minute. This puts into question
whether time can be accurately
measured or whether the real
concept of time is actually a feeling.

13. NOTES: -
Autobiography/sociographical context
Brought up in Accrington
Birth mother was called Ann
Adoptive parents were strict Pentecostal evangelists
Raised to be a missionary
She was preaching on street corners by the age of 12
Was only allowed to read religious books
Rebelled against this and her adoptive mother burned none religious books.
Her adoptive mother instructed her adoptive father to beat her regularly, she was often locked out of the house
and in the coal house. When her mother found out about her first love she was reported to have said ‘why be
happy when you could be normal?’
Oranges are the only fruit was largely biographical
She draws on experiences from her childhood in her writing of Sexing the Cherry and the dog-woman, is based on
her adoptive mother. Also, can be seen are the religious references within this novel and the obvious rebellion
against the strictness of her upbringing.

14. Postmodernist literature
Sexing the Cherry: - Is the epitome of postmodernist literature as it pushes the boundaries of
realism and questions reality as in the second quote in the leaflet (read Quote)
Distortion of Reality: - verisimilitude is used by quoting specific time periods as we know
sexing the cherry was set in the 17th century and in various places alludes to actual events for
example the great fire of London (p 142-143) includes real people, like for example, John
Tradescant. This use of the real set alongside the fantasy makes the reader question the
distorted use of fantasy alongside the supposed reality of history, but history itself is a story
told and recorded from a persons perspective therefore Time, Reality and History are
subjective as each recollection is perceived and recorded or remembered from an alternative
angle. Historiographic Metafiction- the use of real history in fictional context. Winterson
acknowledges the fictional element of the book within the story. The fact time is mentioned
and distorted leads the reader to question the aspects of reality.

15. Lies: -
1) Past-social construction-‘lumber room’ of ‘memento’s. The past is only accounts of perspective and perception
rather than hard facts.
2) Relates to living as though the world is flat and linear-although its round, different sides, different times, different
realities occurring at any one time.
3) Sapir whorf hypothesis- language builds conceptions of time in relation to cultural habits-in turn the words past
present future present an image of what they are. Mention Hopi tribe.
4) Perception of reality-reality of the mind or the reality of living and existing which is the actual reality as we are living
both.
5) How can ‘finite’ be proved? If the end comes who knows it’s the end can anyone truly know. Maybe time runs on an
infinite continuum.
6) Reality is personalised-Jordan wasn’t sure if Fortunata was real or imagined. Jordan also found himself in the fog.
7) Get different people to read a quote each from the leaflet.
Conclusion: -
To sum up- Jeanette Winterson creates a reality out of fantasy which questions everything which generally people take
for granted- classic postmodernist book- the narrative takes the reader on a rollercoaster through time reality history
past present and future. Yet the story flows with an odd sense of ease which transports the reader into these parallel
corridors of fantasy… or is it reality??

16. Handout: -
‘Lies 1: - There is only the present and nothing to remember.
Lies 2: - Time is a straight line.
Lies 3: - The difference between the past and the future is that one has happened while
the other has not.
Lies 4: - We can only be in one place at a time.
Lies 5: - Any Proposition that contains the ‘finite’ (the world, the universe, experience,
ourselves…).
Lies 6: - reality as something which can be agreed upon.
Lies 7: - Reality as truth.’ (Winterson. 1989. P. 83).

17. BIBLIOGRAPHY: -
Butter, M. (2017). Historiographic Metafiction : The Encyclopedia of Twentieth-
Century Fiction : Blackwell Reference Online. [online] Blackwellreference.com.
Available at:
http://www.blackwellreference.com/public/tocnode?id=g9781405192446_chunk_
g978140519244636_ss1-12 [Accessed 9 Feb. 2017].
Guides, S. and Cherry, S. (2017). Sexing the Cherry
Analysis - eNotes.com. [online] eNotes. Available at:
https://www.enotes.com/topics/sexing-cherry/in-depth
[Accessed 9 Feb. 2017].
Jaggi, M. (2017). Profile: Jeanette Winterson. [online]
the Guardian. Available at:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2004/may/29/ficti
on.jeanettewinterson [Accessed 9 Feb. 2017].
www.BookRags.com. (2017). Sexing the Cherry Summary.
[online] Available at:
http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-sexing-the-
cherry/#gsc.tab=0 [Accessed 9 Feb. 2017].

18. Winterson, J. (1989). Sexing the Cherry 1989. 1st ed.
London: Vintage.
Winterson, J. (1990). Sexing The Cherry - Jeanette
Winterson. [online] Jeanette Winterson. Available at:
http://www.jeanettewinterson.com/book/sexing-the-
cherry/ [Accessed 9 Feb. 2017].