A Critical Analysis Of Hilda Doolittle's 'Eurydice'

Women have been belittled by men since the beginning of time. This is demonstrated in the novels Oresteia by Aeschylus and Civilization and Its Discontents by Sigmund Freud. Men have always held the upper hand in society, politics, and technological advancements. Women have been purely sentimental sexual objects. Freud is keen to state that a man’s wish to fulfill his sexual desires is crucial. Women are cast as purely sexual objects, and, furthermore, as entirely unreasonable and illogical. In the novel Oresteia, we learn how women are sensitive, emotional, and exceptionally incoherent to men in the play. However, throughout the play the women, such as Clytemnestra, the king’s wife, prove that women are not pieces of meat. She is a great leader who is a remarkably strong mentally, and who can easily outsmart a man. However, women like Clytemnestra are a minority in these works of literature. Most women are perceived in literature as domesticated creatures who are irrational and emotional. Freud maintains a condescending attitude toward women, seeing them as mere objects, while Aeschylus helps reinforce Freud’s attitudes. By enforcing the gender roles in Greek society it is easy to reflect powerful female character who carry the mentality of a man, portrayals of "wrong womanhood" and solely displaying women’s sexual and family interests.

Sarah Ruhl’s play, Eurydice, is a devastating story battling love, grief, life, and death. Although it is set during the 1950’s, the play manages to encompass the ancient Greek myth of Eurydice and Orpheus. The three most evident themes of this play are recurring death, fleeting happiness, and the power of love. The main conflict in this play is ultimately about the painful choice that comes with death; this is often caused by the King of the Underworld. One of the most impressive parts of this play is the ability to change the way the play is perceived through design.

Despite the achievements of women in many different fields, society still attempts to limit women to certain roles. Furthermore, in the poem, women “… are defined […] by what [they] never will be,” (lines 19 - 21); once again, the author claims that women are defined by what they are unable to do because of gender bias. Instead of being given the chance to be influential, they are continually limited to staying at home or doing jobs “meant for women.” Finally, Boland tells the tutor that women “…were never on the scene of crime,” (lines 27 - 28). This serves as a metaphor for how women are never allowed to do important jobs; instead, they are left at the sidelines due to the repeatedly ignored restrictions placed on women by our gender-biased society.

"When you say Man," said Oedipus, "you include women too. Everyone knows that." She said, "That's what you think." These lines, from the ending of Muriel Rukheyser's poem "On Oedipus the King, Myth," comment on the significance of women both in the play and in society. Though the character of Oedipus suggests that women are equal, the issue of the true role of women is brought up in the poem, and is raised in Sophocles' play.

As the perception of women changes constantly, society is the only factor in creating their ideal image. These societal views are the basis of their treatment, with the expectation that it is beneficial for them. However, societal expectations of women in the Elizabethan and Victorian eras severely limit their freedoms and rights. William Shakespeare’s Othello and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein portray most women in their typical roles. Both authors depict the level of injustice in society’s treatment of women through the passivity of women causing their deaths, the silencing of vulnerable women and the portrayal of women as more humane than men.

In “It’s a Woman's World,” Eavan Boland utilizes several literary techniques to reveal the poem’s complex conception of a “woman’s world.” Boland sheds light on the static nature of a woman’s role in society, which sparks their desire to overcome the societal limitations that is put upon them by men. Through her sarcastic title, use of personification, and critical tone, Boland is able to expose both genders stereotypical responsibilities and to convey society’s desire to silence women’s outrage against their role in this world.

Patriarchal culture has dominated society throughout history. Males have control in many aspects of life and women have continued to fight for equal rights in society. There are many ways women have contributed to the fight for equality; some more physical and other less abrasive. Education and Literature gave the voice to a few women in a male-centered world. Poet Lady Mary Wroth captures the injustices experienced by women in the feminine narrative of Sonnet 9 from her collection of sonnets, songs, and lyrics entitled 'Pamphilia to Amphilantus. In this poem, Wroth explores the thoughts of elite women in the 1700s and uses aspects of her own cultural and historic circumstance to convey the theme of a religious patriarchal society.

An expecting couple awaits to discover the gender of their baby. The nurse announces that it’s a girl. The couple is extremely excited, but do they truly grasp the weight of what this implies? Gender is not simply a physical trait, as it affects nearly every aspect of a person’s life. Stereotypes repress the potential in all men and women. The same stereotypes are found throughout literature such as Medea by Euripides, Chaucer’s “The Wife of Bath’s Tale”, “Sonnets” by Shakespeare, “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and Frederick Waterman’s “The Best Man Wins”. A common thread between these pieces is that power can be gained by those who are suppressed by defying gender stereotypes and social hierarchies.

In the process him trying to escape the doctors, Orpheus finds a scarf stuck in the elevator that he believes belongs to Eurydice. Upon finding this, he races up stairs in an attempt to meet her when the elevator doors open. Once he reaches the point where the elevator stops, he is very disappointed at what he sees. To his dismay, the woman he has been chasing up numerous of stairs is not Eurydice. At this point of the scene, I believe that Orpheus is traveling through the second river of the underworld, Acheron, which is the river of woe. Orpheus is in such despair when he realizes that the woman on the elevator is not Eurydice. His body language as he walks from the hospital is full of wretchedness. Benedito reaches out and holds his lifeless hand in support.

Being a young woman of this generation, I have come to realize the validity of a common bumper sticker quote: Well-behaved women seldom make history. Despite the fact that there is no verified initial speaker to this statement, the older I have gotten, the wider my eyes have become and the more of the world around me, I have seen in its full, vivid colors rather than the simple, crisp black-and-white of childhood. In my elementary days, being anything other than well behaved was downright frightening. The ever-bearing fear of disapproval weighed heavy upon my little shoulders, because frankly, speaking against adults was unforgivable and meant no rewards in the form of sweets or shiny foil stickers with terrible plays on words. But, I digress, the trueness of the statement solidified itself the older I got when the reality became clear; women are to be an object, a fixture, a malleable ball of clay left for shaping at the hands of the man she shadows. However true this may be, this paper, my last soapbox to preach observations upon, aims to reference: The Wife’s Lament, Beowulf, Paradise Lost, The Flea, and The Poetess’s Hasty Resolution to reiterate and further emphasize the use of, shift in, and development of gender roles. My primary focus resting upon the roles of women in literature throughout the time-periods discussed within the span of the semester.

Orpheus was an extremely talented musician who used his gifted talent of playing the lyre to sooth and empower everyone that heard. But after all of this time making others happy he was missing something in his life, in which he found out what that was when he met the wood nymph Eurydice. Hymen the god of marriage came to bless the wedding, but even he and the omens opposed the marriage. These signs came out true as Eurydice was stuck in the leg by a viper and banished the underworld. Orpheus couldn’t stand not having her and set out on a quest to go to the underworld and try to bring her back. He played his lyre soothing all of the horrible acts and beasts in his way. He sung with all his heart and got hades to allow him another chance to

The society always queries about the role of women and for centuries, they have struggled to find their place in a world that is predominantly male oriented. The treatment of women was remarkably negative; they were expected to stay home and fulfil the domestic duties. Literature of that time embodies and mirrors social issues of women in society (Lecture on the Puritans). But, slowly and gradually, situation being changed: “During the first half of the 19th century, women 's roles in society evolved in the areas of occupational, moral, and social reform. Through efforts such as factory movements, social reform, and women 's rights, their aims were realized and foundations for further reform were established” (Lauter 1406). Feminist poets like Emily Dickinson and Anne Bradstreet talked substantially about feminism in different lights in the past two centuries. They were very vocal and assertive about their rights and the ‘rights for women’ in general. While they might have been successful at making a good attempt to obliterate gender biases but still there are lot of disparities between the two genders. Nevertheless, their poetry reflects a deep angst.

Eurydice is about a newlywed couple, Eurydice and Orpheus, that was separated by the underworld of death. Eurydice’s father lived in the underworld and was writing her letters, but when it got into the wrong hands Eurydice grew curious of the where about of her father that led to her death well birth into the underworld. While down there her and her father formed a bond together that Eurydice later could not let go when Orpheus came looking for her. By the time Eurydice returns to the underworld her dad had double dip himself which drawn her to do the same to prevent the marriage to Man/Child, the ruler of the underworld. Before dipping she left Orpheus a letter apologizing for leaving him again. Moments later Orpheus had just

The myth of Eurydice is a sad story in which two lovers are separated by death. After his love dies, Orpheus journeys into the underworld to retrieve her, but instead loses her for good. Playwright Sarah Ruhl takes the myth of Eurydice and attempts to transform this sad tale into a more light-hearted story. However, despite humorous lines and actions throughout the play, the melancholy situation of the actual tale overwhelms any comicality present. Although meant to be funny, Sarah Ruhl's “Eurydice” can be seen as a modernized tragedy about two lovers who are separated forever by a twist of fate.

In the Middle Age literature, women are often presented or meant to come off as an unimportant character; which can also reflect on how the author wants the women character represent. Women are usually shunned, have no say or control in what they do; due to what men desire; like Ophelia and Gertrude did in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. But these female characters that I will discuss are women with power, control, and a voice. Majority of the female character’s appearances are made to represent wickedness, evil, or a seducer who challenges a man belief; and does not symbolize perfect women.