Atwood presents the female characters as being both oppressed and dehumanised through how their freedom being stripped from them. An example of this is how they are no longer allowed to smoke cigarettes due to the potential harm it can cause their pregnancy. Woman are protected in Gilead however this also means that they must submit to the state-sanctioned rape by their specific commanders. In chapter five Aunt Lydia states that “There is more than one kind of freedom… Freedom to and freedom from.” The freedom to that she is referring to is the ability to make a decision, an example of this is evident through how Offred is given a chance to escape by the doctor, however she immediately questions herself by thinking “why am I frightened?” This implies that she is so accustomed to being oppressed she is almost scared to take the chance of freedom that is being handed to her. This portrays a sense of dehumanisation in terms of female characters as freedom is regarded as a basic human right.
By utilizing the Handmaids as a representation of the females in the Gileadean society, the author exposes the flaws of an anti-feminist society through objectification and the absence of agency. The Handmaid’s Tale illustrates women who are strongly objectified by men. An example of how Handmaids are objectified is through their names. The women are named after their assigned Commander; their name which consists of two parts is constructed with the prefix, ‘Of’, followed by the suffix of their Commander’s name. The main character’s Handmaid name is Offred, meaning that she is property of Fred.
The Second Sex: Mythologies and Contradictions, “What is a Woman”? Racel Robles Phiolosophy 327 Professor Conway Woman, Wife, Mother, Lover, Slut, Bitch…is this what a women is, what she is defined to? In andocentric society, women have been place in many lights, from the “good mother” to the “treacherous whore”. In The Second Sex, Beauvoir breaks down the construction of myths created by men in society to establish patriarchal “supremacy” over women. Such myths, Beauvoir explains, are derived trough literature and Social beliefs.
Issues of Women’s Liberation from the Oppression Found in Society and Marriages Sherry Heide ENG 125 Introduction to Literature Instructor: Louise Becker 09 January 2012 Issues of Women’s Liberation from the Oppression Found in Society and Marriages What is said of women suffrage is not always true today in America or other countries, what is the truth, is that it is based largely on the perception of the woman experiencing the suffering. Women throughout time have suffered from oppression in society and in their own marriages. Gender roles are not something we are but instead something we do. It is completely unnatural for women of today to be the money makers, everything to the children (taxi, disciplinarian, etc..),take out etc cook, housekeeper and so on yet still their husbands will is forced upon the entire family instead of taking his place with his wife as partners. Did the verse found in Genesis chapter 3 vs. 16 cause centuries of women's suffrage?
Caged by the Patriarchal Society Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and “Fragment of an Analysis of a Case of Hysteria” by Sigmund Freud, both show women who exist (one in fiction and the other in reality) about a hundred years from one another. These women have learnt to survive in a world where rigid structure, manipulation, deceit, and loneliness are caused due to the tight control exerted by the patriarchal society. Dora and Jane struggled to escape this cage that was exerted due to male dominance. Dora and Jane Eyre are both objects of manipulation of the patriarchal society who resorted to forms of male dictated “female hysteria” in order to escape the rigid handcuffs placed upon them. Both Dora and Jane are quiet young when they first encounter some kind of hysteria, or symptoms of hysteria.
Pope's gender ideologies deflate the power, intelligence and beauty of women while supporting man's violence and belittling of women. The symbolism of the lock of hair can be viewed with two different types of gender criticism, one that defies the patriarchy and one that feeds into the power of the patriarch. In Ellen Pollak's essay, "Rereading The Rape of the Lock: Pope and the Paradox of Female Power," Pollak maintains that the lock of hair is a phallic symbol and therefore it is cut off to reduce Belinda to femininity. The symbolic loss of the Belle's much-coveted virginity is realized in the form of a castration or literal cutting off of that body part of her associated most strongly with those 'masculine' attributes of the coquette - her power, skill, and pride (Singh 472). Julie Kristeva, author of "Women's Time" while not accepting Pollak's theory of castration believes that castration is unique only to men: "castration results in the creation of a sense of separation which is symbolized by the penis"(Singh 472).
The superficiality of life is constantly contrasted with the differing social structures within society in Katherine Mansfield’s The Garden Party and Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway with her continuing fear of aging and the new that constantly rocks her world. The challenges on the role of women and the place they possess in the society are constantly questioned as writers sought to shock their audience and show the world on how they saw it. Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler not only presented a woman that challenged and pushed the boundaries of society, but a woman who did not want to be the stereotypical wife “Angel of the house”.
He documents a complex woman’s struggle to cope, as she is suffocated by the male dominated society that she has been forced to subject herself to. The following essay will in particular discuss the relationships between the women of Hedda Gabler. Ibsen uses the themes explored in the play to examine and challenge the role of women in society. This is evident through the relationships that Hedda has not only with the male characters in the play but from those that she has with the two other prominent female characters in the play; Thea Elvsted, the delicate love interest of Ejlert Lövborg and Aunt Julie the benevolent aunt of Hedda’s new husband Jörgen Tessman. Both women are contrasting representations of Hedda.
In the article, “Controlling your reality” Paige Pfleger states “Reality television can also preserve old fashioned notions about sexual stereotyping. Women are encouraged to fulfill roles as “the slut” and are simultaneously devalued by doing so” sadly these are the types of stereotypes young girls and women grow up with (3). Little girls are told to act a certain way only for society to reject and humiliate them for it. In The Hunger Games Collins makes a point by sexually objectifying Glimmer, a career tribute, because she looks like the stereotype of sexy. In the novel Collins writes, “The girl tribute from District 1, looking provocative in a see-through gold gown…With that flowing blonde hair, emerald green eyes, her body tall and lush… she’s sexy all the way”(125).Collins makes it clear that society has a very specific image of what sexy should look like.
Carol Nguyen English Literature Q: Explore Carol Ann Duffy's reversal of traditional gender roles in her collection of 'The World's Wife' with a particular focus on the poems 'Little Red Cap', 'Mrs Beast' and 'The Kray Sisters'. Carol Ann Duffy challenges traditional gender roles through the satirical subversion of classical myths in her collection 'The World's Wife.' Duffy employs a critical feminist tone in order to place emphasis upon the female perspective and undermine societal perceptions of women within literature as 'cute but essentially hopeless.' She aims to invert the stereotypical gender roles by reinterpreting the archetypal 'female' through empowering the voices of the female character whom would usually be overshadowed by males. Although, it has been disputed that Duffy's poetry is misandrist due to her dismissive persona towards men.