Fringe writers Salman Rushdie and Mo Yan receive more attention in consideration of applicability and relevancy of the problems they cover in their works. The aim of this article is to analyze the common and the different in representing the image of a mother in the novels «The Moor’s Last Sigh» by Salman Rushdie and «Big Breast, Wide Hips» by Mo Yan. In a departure from the traditions of androcentric society the both writers depict the images of high-powered and strong-willed women, who adopt a role of a family leader. Taking into account that both in Salman Rushdie’s and Mo Yan’s novel story is set on the background of dramatic social changes that leads to shift of gender roles. At the same time motherhood turns into an essential component of a woman’s «socialization». We consider the essence of a social status, societal order, family peculiarities for a woman’s identity formation. We analyze the literary means used by the writers in order to reveal the evolution of female characters. Their work requires deeper analysis both in the context of world literature, and in the light of attention to marginal literature. The important task is the research of female characters’ evolution in modern literature.