In Emily Dickinson’s poem, “Wild Nights-Wild Nights!” the author’s rebellious attitude, form, and nautical theme illustrates the sexual engagement between two old lovers. Dickinson’s rebellious attitude is displayed throughout the poem, signifying that she vicariously lived through her poems. The form of the poem is chaotic and messy. The inconsistency of the rhyme scheme of the poem illustrates the speaker’s back and forth feelings of frustration and excitement for pursuing her lover. The author only ends a phrase with an exclamation point, emphasizing the speaker’s excitement for engaging in a sexual encounter with her lover once again.
When the war broke out in August 1914, thousands of women lost their jobs in dressmaking, millenary and jewellery making. Many were in the search for work and wanted to help in the war effort. The introduction of conscription in 1916 led to an increase in the number of women employed in all sectors of the economy. Women gained access to a whole range of jobs that had been previously preserved for men and many questioned whether women were fit to do the work. Although women proved themselves to be hard working and just as capable of doing work as the opposite gender, many also struggled due to the work being dangerous and the poor safety regulations at the time, as source A8 shows.
Both of these stories focus on the horrid state of women during the late 19th Century and subtley push for feminism. Before examining the specifics of feminist literature, we must explore the situation these women lived in. In her article "Women's Roles in the Late 19th Century" Dorothy Hartman writes, "It is evident from the conflicting opinions offered in literature of the period that women’s lives were fraught with tensions. How-to manuals, magazine and newspaper articles set high, if not impossible, standards for moral rectitude, cleanliness and cheerfulness. The realities posed by the sheer number of tasks to be completed daily, monthly and yearly stressed even the hardiest of women."
The poem, which explores the Woman Question (as it was referred to by contemporaries) dramatizes the modern woman's severe need for mothers--for nurturing political and literary female ancestors. In examining the growth and development of a woman poet, Aurora Leigh shows that women have crippled themselves by internalizing partiarchal or androcentric conceptions of themselves. When Aurora first rejects her arrogant beloved, she is not freed of the interiorized male constructions of women--she simply displaces Romney from the center of power, speaking of herself with images of male power in an attempt to feminize him. Only when both characters can break free from the conceptual structures opressing them, can she fully become the woman, wife, and poet that
Gender roles went through dramatic changes in the 20th century, especially towards the end. Vicki Ruiz illustrates a good example with her book, “From out of the Shadows” where she shares this poem “Rise Up! To Woman Rise up! Rise up to life, to activity, to the beauty of truly living; but rise up radiant and powerful, beautiful with qualities, splendid with virtues, strong with energies.” (99) When reviewing history, accounts men are dominant. When women are represented, they are depicted as passive, naïve, or “feminine,” but in all reality, the only women who experienced this femininity were of the property owning class which meant work was a necessity, not an option for working class women.
Women had few rights and were controlled by their husbands. Changing attitudes towards women in British society was an important factor in winning women the vote in 1918 however other factors were also involved. The peaceful actions of the suffragists and the violence of the suffragettes helped win support and publicity for women suffrage. The role of women at home in Britain during WW1and international pressure of introducing women’s suffrage also led to women receiving the vote by 1918. Changing attitude towards women in Britain society helped women achieve the vote in 1918.
As a woman in the Victorian era, it was the accepted reasoning that marriage was the career choice you made. This increased the difficulty of independence both financially and socially. In ‘The Adventure of the Speckled Band’ by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Helen Stoner is followed to Holmes’ house by her stepfather: “I traced her”. This portrays how little freedom Victorian women were granted and Also from this Sherlock Holmes tale is an example of how financial independence was rarely an option for a women of the Victorian Era. Miss Stoner states “At present it is out of my power to reward you for your services”.
Other novels I read include The Dead by James Joyce and Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy, both of which addressed the theme of materialism and wealth as factors to being regarded highly in society, and how this way of functioning in society leads people away from living a true and happy life. These novels were written decades ago. One would think that with these societal problems being recognized for so long, we would have made more progress than we have by now. Instead, activists such as Audre Lourde stand decades later, addressing the same issues. Lourde, what with being a middle-aged, black, lesbian feminist with children, faces much of this oppression, and finds herself frowned upon by society.
World War II had effects on everyone but it changed women’s lives radically, which lead into the second wave of feminism known as the women’s movement of the 1960s through the 1970s. The women’s movement is a varied social movement because it covers women’s family, sexuality, and especially their work (History.com). At the peak of this movement in the 1960s women sought to use law and legislation to overturn political and economical inequality. The women’s movement was influential in getting rid of the discrimination and harassment issues that women faced on the job. With the role of women changing in the 1960’s, more women were entering the workforce and with that increasing the frustration of women regarding gender inequality in salary,
Changes in the family and employment are also creating changes in girls' ambitions, which is supported by Sue Sharpe's research where she compared the results of interviews she carried out with girls in the 1970's and 1990's, where in the 1970's the girls had low ambitions and their priorities was love, marriage, husbands and children before careers. However, in the 1990's girls were becoming more independent women with a career based future, rather then dependent on their husband and his income to keep the roof over their head. Since then, the feminist movement has completely changed the stereotype of women from being a housewife and mother to also being the breadwinner role of the house with their husband. Women now are among the wealthiest and even