The word ‘my’ emphasises the fact that she is his possession. Another interpretation would be that CW doesn’t have a name as women were seen as inferior. Therefore needs to deserve a name. This links with sexism in the 1930’s as women were the inferior and the weaker sex. This is because women were not cut out for jobs like working on a ranch like the other workmen, and therefore were seen as incapable.
It makes no sense to try to do too much” (77-85). In this excerpt, Ismene is portraying her beliefs that women are weak and that it would be useless if they (women) “try to do too much”. It disheartened me when I read this passage, because Ismene is basically telling her strong-willed sister that it would be pointless to fight against Creon; instead, they should yield to Creon’s orders. It is evident by this excerpt that not every woman reacts the same way toward sexism. Some, like Ismene, may internalize those demeaning values and live by them.
‘During Jane Eyre, theme of appearance and reality is the cornerstone of the novel’ During the novel, Jane has appeared to suppress her feelings of being an independent woman. Although, this is what Jane appears to want in reality. Feminism at the time was not very good and not very up to scratch. Women were seen as an ornament for men, and men believed that women should do what they say. They were almost treating women like children.
Kate’s quote “I by thee have watched” shows Hotspur having a bad nightmare and shows that he has got doubts about this rebellion. The passage seems to suggest that Hotspur does not care about Kate and her feelings as the war he is about to embark on takes priority. It also gives us a view of the role of women in marriage. Despite the general impression that women were not equal to men in Shakespearean times, Kate does not appear to be intimidated by Hotspur. Whilst the tone in which she speaks to him express concern, she also speaks to him in a bold and assertive tone.
This parody, set in the early nineteenth century, shows the constraints of culture in England, and the tendency to judge others, but not one’s self. In Jane Austen’s Emma, the protagonist influences others into making decisions that fit her beliefs, because of her lack of perception to other’s beliefs, and her disposition to think highly of herself. Emma’s lack of perception that a person could possibly think different than she, ultimately leads to several great mistakes that affect the lives of others. From the start of the novel, Austen explicitly states the character flaws of the perceivably perfect Emma: “The real evils indeed of Emma’s situation were the power of having rather too much of her own way, and a disposition to think a little too well of herself; these were the disadvantages which threatened alloy to her many enjoyments” (4). This revelation made by Austen hints at the future: though Emma appears to be consistently right, her opinions do not always have other’s best interests at heart.
What is the dramatic purpose of Vittoria’s trail scene and how does Webster achieve his intended impact on the stage. During Jacobean times women are often constructed through absence and silence. Women are seen as insufficient beings in not being men and therefore are often represented through silence and absence. In the Jacobean society, the position of women was irregular, their rights often varied with marital status but, even within the confines of the domestic space, the position of women was still unclear. Throughout The White Devil, Webster presents his leading female character Vittoria as elusive, Vittoria’s absence from the stage for much of the play and often present on stage only due to the fact that she is continuously accused of being a ‘whore’.
Austen reveals Elizabeth’s character as an example about how she wanted to have her own self independence during that time period. Elizabeth is very out spoken for a young lady as herself, most of the ladies during that time period wasn’t fond of Elizabeth and her wild manner, as she wasn’t fond of people in the upper class behavior towards those in a different class. Mr. Darcy in the beginning of the novel was referred as a “bitterness of spirit...and shockingly [rude]”pg. 15 chapter 3. Mrs. Bennet thinks “[Elizabeth] does not lose much suiting his fancy; for he is a most disagreeable, horrid man, not at all worth pleasing” pg.
Education, employment, and politics are all barriers where women were held back from the full development of their faculties. In the 19th century women were denied political equality, robbed of their natural rights, and handicapped by laws and customs at every turn. Trained to dependence with no assets of their own women were left to bear the attitude of being less intelligent and able to make political decisions than men. While they have freely accepted a deferential position to men they have also refused to look toward a future of tradition and domesticity. The campaign for women’s suffrage had a sincere beginning
However for both Bronte and Austen, relationships were unconventional for their time, as neither of the women married. Austen’s novel was much more widely accepted, as the heroine does not condone the inappropriate relationship that begins to form between Isabella and Captain Tilney. “His behaviour was so incompatible with a knowledge of Isabella’s engagement” Austen is satirical and ironic Cathy and Heathcliff’s relationship becomes strained and unobtainable because of the pressures society imposes on Cathy to marry for status and weath. Their family and society forbid Cathy and Heathcliff’s love throughout the novel. Critic Suzanne Birkett suggest ‘She later marries Edgar and comes to feel that she is imprisoned by society’s rules.’ As although Cathy has made a wise choice in marrying Edgar because ‘He will be rich’, her forbidden love for Heathcliff still hinders her when Heathcliff once again returns in chapter ten.
There was inequality between men and women in society. It is therefore possible to read Wuthering Heights as an extraordinary critique of the social conditions for women since, Victorian women writers had been largely prevented from writing social or political criticism in their novels. The rural setting of wuthering heights can be seen as indicative of the position of women as isolated from culture and modern industry. A women’s sole purpose was to marry and reproduce and if a women were to remain single, this would result in social disapproval and pity. This could explain some of the reasons for the choices Catherine and Isabella make, as women of the late 18th century.