Elizabeth Bennet, though witty and intelligent, would have probably been viewed as an exceptional woman in her time, yet she still conformed to society's expectations of women. How is Elizabeth different from her sister, Lydia, and her mother? Explain. The regency era. A time when the banner of patriarchy flew over the bonnets of subjugated females.
In this century, “the ideal wife, by contrast, was chaste, silent, and obedient” (Greenblatt 124). She was a very strong-willed woman and in that day and age it was seen as a crime, even if it “involved nothing more than talkativeness” (Greenblatt 123). One of the reasons that Kate acted the way that she did was because of her background. Her own father favored her sister, Bianca, over her and she is made fun of by others. Dealing with people like this in life can make someone’s heart turn hard and calloused, which is what seems to have happened to Kate.
There are several things that a woman could not do in Stanton's time. These included the right to vote, the right to own property, the right to an advanced education, and the right to have her own money. There were also laws that prohibited them from gaining custody of their children after a divorce. Many women did not like this and fought hard to gain the liberty that they felt they deserved. Today, women have gained most of these rights.
A woman was expected to always remain loyal to her husband, even after his death. This held true even if the two were only betrothed and not yet married. A woman’s primary role in society was that of a wife, and then a mother. While they had no power in government or society, there are interesting points to the story in which women’s power can show through. For example, a
“Her refusal to have her marriage dissolved…freed her temporarily from certain wifely duties…gave her a chance to have a girlhood” (28). Unlike woman of the time, Bertrande’s clever insight uncovers the advantageous qualities of an unconsummated married. Bertrande further eludes societal norms in meeting her alleged husband, Arnaud du
Swain also states that “in this patriarchal world, women find space for private emotions and friendships flourish…within the fixed frame of gender stereotypes, complicity, generosity and passion among women explodes” (30). This being said, without that emotional intimacy that a wife should get from her husband, the wife would turn to other women and form an emotional bond with them in order to satisfy the craving for emotional stability and sanity. Out of these bonds, would come very strong friendships among married women, bonds that would last a lifetime and friendships that women would not find in their marriages with their husbands. Some critics
There is a debate of whether dramatist’s intended to present women as marginalised tools, as Shakespeare’s plays were written long before feminism existed. In the 1940s life for women was vastly improving; whilst men were out at war someone had to step up to their plates. However the consecutive cycle of women were portrayed as weaklings is highlighted by Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman where the few female characters are submersed to men. This is diverged from how both of Shakespeare’s plays, Othello and The Taming of the Shrew, undermine women due to the element of how society was run. Women were expected to be obedient and it’s certain that both playwrights present this in their plays.
However, this period where so many great changes had been made in the church, in literature, and in all other artistic areas, women took a big step backward in their fight for equality. Women were thought of as property, owned first by their fathers, and then their husbands. This is only true, however, for the upper-class. Commoners during this time were not affected by the new social reforms. Lower class women still could own properties and shared many responsibilities with their husbands.
The Wife of Bath: Elizabeth Cady Stanton or Ke$ha? What do all women want? Well I think the easier question is, what don’t women want? Now ask a guy to go and figure out what is that women want, and you may as well be sending them on a journey through hell; and that’s basically what the Knight was put through in Chaucer’s, The Wife of Bath. When the Knight finally does find out what it is that women want, he is told that it’s power over the husbands, that’s a pretty feminist statement for a time when women were still considered property.
Many of these women were married very young, out of high school or just out of college, and they never really were on their own. They were used to being financially dependent on their husbands and did not know how to support themselves after a divorce. Since the divorce laws in those days also favored the men, many women opted not to take up an already lost battle. However, a lot has changed since those days. Not only is divorce more accepted today by the society, but also women are much more financially liberated.