The Oppression Of Women

Since the dawn of man, societal roles and behavior have differed between the sexes. Even in today's modern and progressive society, women continue to be judged more harshly than men for their behavior, particularly when it comes to sexual impropriety. Not only are a woman's actions judged more critically, but within the American society, we often see other women acting as a woman's harshest critics. This societal characteristic is all too pronounced in two literary works: "Daisy Miller: A Study", and "Roman Fever". In both stories, women are painted as the ultimate judge of morality; but the women, not men, seem to be the only ones judged and held accountable to society for their actions.
Throughout the years, women have been portrayed as…show more content…
Competitiveness within the women seems to push the women to judge what is right and wrong, based on jealousy and envy as much as religious and social morals. We also see this competitive spirit forming moral judgment and actions in Edith Wharton's story, "Roman Fever", where again, the focus is the moral decisions made by women and the male is blameless.
As the story unfolds we learn that both ladies, in their youth, loved Delphin Slade, and Mrs. Slade realized this and thought of Mrs. Ansley as a threat. For this, she had always considered Mrs. Ansley an adversary, "Would she never cure herself of envying her?" (Wharton, 1072)
The story evolves to paint the picture of a female competition in which Delphin is but a pawn, blameless and controllable by women. The women's energies were spent toward each other, but even Mrs. Slade held no resentment for Delphin and the role he may have played, she only hated Mrs. Ansley, "'I knew you were in love with Delphin - and I was afraid; afraid of you, of your quiet ways, your sweetness...you...well, I wanted you out of the way, that's all'" (Wharton, 1074). She felt that Delphin had no accountability for making his own decisions, she only blamed Mrs. Ansley. Mrs. Ansley reinforces this by confirming that upon receiving the "invitation", Delphin could not pass up the opportunity for intimacy, "'But of course he was there. Naturally he came-'" (Wharton, 1076). Men are once again painted…show more content…
In some respects, words written by Butler in 1886 still apply today: "It is a fact, that numbers even of moral and religious people have permitted themselves to accept and condone in man what is fiercely condemned in woman" (Butler).
Works Cited
Butler, Josephine. "The Double Standard of Morality", The Philanthropist, 1, (October, 1886). [Online] Available: The W.T. Stead Resource Site. < http://www.attackingthedevil.co.uk/otherworks/morality.html >. Accessed February 20, 2003.
James, Henry. "Daisy Miller: A Study." The Heath Anthology of American Literature. 4th ed. Volume 2. Ed. Patricia A. Coryell. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002. 280 - 319.
Wharton, Edith. "Roman Fever." The Heath Anthology of American Literature. 4th ed. Volume 2. Ed. Patricia A. Coryell. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002. 1067 -