Disobedience was seen as a crime against their religion. Marriages were arranged to suit the family. Elizabethan women were expected to marry to increase the wealth and position of the family and then to produce children - preferably male heirs. There were no careers for women and there were no schools for girls, so the majority were illiterate. If a woman was born from a respected, high-status family, then she may be given the privilege of being able to receive home tutoring.
And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner' (Timothy 2:12-14). 'If they have any questions to ask, let them ask their husbands at home, for it is improper for women to speak in church meetings' (Corinthians 13:35). 'The women should keep quiet in the churches, for they are not authorized to speak, but should take a secondary and subordinate place, just as the Law also says' (Corinthians 14:34). These are each very clear examples of the restrictions of leading women in Christianity. While many churches continue to deny women certain human rights, it is very clear that without women, the Christian religion would be a vastly different community.
Assess the main problems facing Elizabeth at her accession in 1558 The English generally regarded a female monarch with apprehension, but in general England was still a male-dominated world. The things that made rulers great were thought only to occur in men and so women were generally looked down upon as rulers. Women were thought to be physically, intellectually, and emotionally inferior to men and, therefore, incapable of handling the rigors of public life. Men expected a female ruler to marry and hand the reins of government over to her husband and after the reign of Queen Mary they were not expectant of much from another inexperienced woman. An unmarried female ruler was inconceivable to sixteenth-century Europeans.
In truth, it was likely rare that a medieval girl would stand up to her father in regards to the suitor that he picked for her. It was likely even rarer that a girl would hit her own father. These are things seen as deeply disrespectful, and in the Middle Ages, respect for elders was important. Why, then, do we see Birdy doing both of these things even though she lives in the Middle Ages? The book is written for modern Americans, and modern Americans would find it in severe distaste to see a girl being blindly obedient to her father even when what he asks of her goes against her own wishes.
Neither Blanche nor Stella knows about the code, which reinforces this stereotype. Although Blanche partially goes against this image by having a full education and even a job prior to coming to New Orleans, she is almost broke when she arrives which suggests that women cannot gain financial stability without men. Although perhaps intentional to some extent, Blanche also conforms to this general image of women by not showing any interest to the paperwork of the plantation, referring to them as a “bunch of old papers” and handing them to Stanley to keep in his “big, capable hands” (Williams 141). Stella follows the general stereotype of the period of women
“Why did women win the vote?” Woman’s roles and statues were affected by Victorians view of women. They thought that women weren’t capable to do much and were constricted to very little. They had very little choice of what they wanted to do like choosing who they wanted to marry, what they wanted to do with the things (like money) they inherited and they couldn’t do much either like getting a full education, get equal pay, own property and couldn’t sue her husband as he owned her. Women’s roles were affected by Victorian views of women as their role was to look after the children, the family, and the home. Women were viewed as men’s property so they had to do whatever the husband wanted them to do.
Victorian women, were treated as second-class citizens. They had fewer legal rights than men and almost no political rights in particular, they were not allowed to vote. By law, a married woman is the property of her husband, and her possessions, even her children, belong to him. Influenced by the Bible, many people believe that men and women are born to fulfil different roles: men to command, and women to obey men and bear and raise their children. In the Victorian times, many people were religious at the time and still believed in tradition as well as religious beliefs.
I can’t recall many stories where they speak of women in any other way The medieval structure of fellowship society prevented women from claiming ownership to public authority. When they become a wife, she gave all her land to her husband, leaving a power in him and decreasing her power. Women were supposed to be submissive to their husbands and obey them, neglecting their own needs and desire to promote those of their husbands. In the Middle Ages public opinion and court system were under the control of the Church and aristocratic men who both agreed that a woman was to be like a servant to their husband and if they were single they had to obey their king, father, brother, or son, etc. The Church felt this way because they blame Eve for the failure of mankind and viewed all women to be an advocate of the devil.
Elizabeth is a character who defies the social conventions of marriage in the novel. Austen describes marriage as ‘the only honourable provision for well-educated young women of small fortune’ (Austen, 2008: 104). Austen also states that ‘however uncertain of giving happiness, [marriage] must be their pleasantest preservation from want’ (104). This idea of marriage, as seen by social conventions of the time, is embodied in Charlotte Lucas. Charlotte does not desire love or happiness, but asks ‘only for a comfortable home’ (106), and believes that ‘happiness in marriage is entirely a matter of chance’ (18).
His wife “neither had money, nor name to recommend her”, again suggesting her status as she had no ‘money’. Her name could have been made her because it was not said when she was first introduced. Their marriage is described as “kept the union from his father” suggesting that the marriage is kept secretly and has just opened up to the public. Bronte describes Frances as being “thin, but young and fresh-complexion, and her eyes sparkled as bright as diamonds.” Bronte uses the verb ‘sparkle’ to suggest the glisten in her eyes showing her innocence. The use of the simile ‘bright as diamonds’ emphasizes how much her eyes sparkle.