Dangerous Liaisons

Women, especially were inclined to be criticized or ostracized if they did not follow society’s gender roles. They were thought to be mothers and the main caretakers of the family. At the time, women were seen as delicate and feminine. Their work was found in the house with domestic duties. Charlotte Temple, by Susanna Rowson describes the ideal women and was specifically targeted to “factory girls” who left their homes in the farms to work in the city (Rowson, xii). Mrs. Temple, Charlotte Temple’s mother, decided not to let her grief consume her and instead focused on making her husband happy and taking care of her father after Charlotte left (Rowson, 56). If a woman was not committed to one man, then she was not the ideal woman. Mademoiselle La Rue, Charlotte’s teacher, was far from a role model. She was scandalous because she “eloped from a convent with a young officer” and she even had to hide it to get a job at the school (Rowson, 26). Moreover, women with no financial fortune were unfit to marry. Marriage was a financial transaction and a man’s success required that he married someone wealthy. Montraville’s father explains to his son that he would be happy if his son were to marry a woman with a fortune, but if he was to marry a woman with no fortune he’d be sticking her into the evils of a small income with a potential

This is represented here when the king, “…entered the queen’s apartments and when she saw him, she complained aloud, fell at his feet, cried for mercy and said that Lanval had shamed her” (77). After the queen offers herself and attempts to throw herself at Lanval, he denies her because of his new fairy like lover. Once the king walks in the queen victimizes herself as soon as she sets eyes on him. Her ability to completely transform herself at the sight of her husband and manipulate his thoughts to her favor shows the power of women. In showing her weakness by falling to her feet and putting herself in a vulnerable position, she is ultimately taking the power into her own hands. With his wife in this state, the king feels an obligation to protect her by punishing whoever did her wrong. In reaction to the queen’s account of what Lanval has done, “The king grew very angry and swore on oath that, if Lanval could not defend himself in court, he would have him burned or hanged” (77). This is a significant act because it displays the control a woman has in a relationship, It also demonstrates how a dominant feminist character influences her male counterpart’s masculinity and gives it purpose within a

The Duchess of Malfi not only challenges the concept of absolute male authority by having a female main character who has a will of her own and disobeys this authority, but it also illuminates the problem of the mentality of the conventional male who unquestioningly accepts the doctrines of the patriarchal system. This system is created to ensure that males are imbued with nearly limitless power, especially over women. In her book Male Subjectivity at the Margins, Kaja Silverman quotes Gayle Rubin, who claims that women though women are seen as object to be exchanged, in the way that people would exchange gifts. Rubin goes on to note that “ If women are gifts, then it is men who are the exchange partners, and it is the partners, not the presents, upon whom reciprocal exchange confers its quasi-mystical power of social linkage” (36). The concept that men possess a “quasi-mystical power” simply because they are men, is part of what Silverman calls the “dominant fiction” that is the patriarchal structure.

Secondly, in this novel, the female characters rely heavily on men for support and survival. Furthermore, society views the female characters as delicate beings that can not survive by themselves. As a result, they need a man to protect, cherish and provide for them. In fact, all of the female characters have a male character to which they depend on. First of all, Caroline is unable to survive after her father’s death and as a result, marries Alphonse. Alphonse “came like a protecting spirit to the poor girl.” (Pg. 18) This simile compares Alphonse to a hero and Caroline to the weak and desperate women that she is portrayed as. Furthermore, Alphonse takes care of Caroline “as a fair exotic is sheltered by her gardener, from every rougher wind.”(Pg. 19) This metaphor describes Caroline to be a “fair exotic” who is treated like a possession rather than a capable human being. By making this comparison, Shelly alludes to the idea that the female characters are as delicate as flowers and they can’t survive without the male characters. This is true in both Justine and Elizabeth’s case. Justine is dependant on Victor to free her from the accusations.

While both texts give the view of women within each of these societies, the two texts are still infused with patriarchal thoughts and emotions. For instance, Amabelle’s story does give an accurate account of the destruction in the sense that she gives us an actual account of the tragedies—even in the story of one of the companions on her trip to Haiti being shot down right behind her (Danticat 201). Her account though focuses so much on Sebastien and his decisions that the text can almost be seen as an extension of Sebastien’s thoughts—only the thoughts are coming through the body of a woman. In the same token, the Mirabell sisters are consequentially important parts of the fight against injustice, but their fights become more focused on themselves than on their societies as a whole. Also, their rebellion decreases when their husbands are imprisoned and they are left alone. At

She shows her sense of superiority by belittling almost everyone in the house, and no one questions her about it because she does have some control. Madame Pernelle begins to reproach the household starting with Dorine saying, “See? A servant with an opinion . . . Were I in charge here, you’d be out the door” (I, i, 14, 16). Continuing to fling insults, she says to her grandson, “Just as I told my son, ‘Your son’s a brat. He won’t become a drunkard or a thief, and yet, he’ll be a lifetime full of grief’“(I, i, 20-22). Also, to her granddaughter she says, “You think that we’re beguiled by your quietude, you fragile flower, but as they say, still waters do run sour” (I, i, 24-26). Madame Pernelle’s rude comments show us that she has the authority to say these things aloud. Madame Pernelle also insults her step daughter-in-law, Elmire, when she says, “Behavior such as yours leads straight to hell” (I, i, 28). All of these remarks are very bold and unladylike for the 1700’s but this behavior resembles that of a men who speak quite freely and as vulgar as they please. Comparing her behavior to men’s is parallel to the theme of feminism in the play. Madame Pernelle is strong in character and speaks her mind as freely as she wants, giving us our first instance of

Great Gatsby Motif Essay F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, has many themes. One of his major themes is the gender roles between men and women. In the book men have the upper hand in almost every situation and are able to get away with things that the women are shamed for such as cheating. The motif of cheating proves the gender advantages that men have over women. The motif shows how what’s acceptable for men isn’t acceptable for women.

Consider the word “see” in line 606, as Lanval’s love enters the room she is immediately noticed. This prompt response to her entrance straightaway reveals the implications of her beauty and the importance it has on Lanval’s trial along with the male relation the females in this time period. Women are objectified to a certain extent yet also essential to the inner workings of society. This can also be observed in the context of this passage due to the fact that the queen made the accusations against Lanval and though they were lies the extensive reach of her authority is notable. Also consider the line 607 “The king who was well bred rose and went to meet her” (166). This line directly relates aspects of the chivalric code to a woman’s beauty due to the fact that the king was “well bred” he did not make her walk all the way to him and instead rose to meet

These Lais are strong and unashamed acceptance of adultery and Marie’s largest statement about marriage of the Medieval period. In Guigemar and Yonec, Marie uses female anger and the jealousy purported by the courtly romances to exploit marriage and the status of the medieval woman. Marie asserts in these lais that women are not allowed free-choice and the ability to voice their opinion than they should not be held accountable for being adulterous, if they have been good women in all other regards; as the two discussed heroines have

In Marguerite de Navarre's work The Heptameron, ten travelers share stories with each other while taking refuge in a monastery. Inspired by the work of Boccaccio, Marguerite’s work closely parallels the structure of The Decameron, but with three significant departures: within the group of travelers there is equal representation between men and women, the travelers promise each other to tell only true stories, and the travelers comment on the ethical ramifications of each story that is shared. Through these three stylistic departures from the traditional frame tale, Marguerite is able to challenge her audience with a distinctly proto-feminist dialogue. Because of her proto-feminist ideas, Marguerite and her self-inspired character Parlamente act as what Lewis Hyde would call a trickster, for as Hyde notes, “every group has its edge, its sense of in and out, and trickster is always there.” Within the context of gender roles and sexuality in Medieval European society, Marguerite is pushing against the edge of what is considered acceptable by casting an eye on the hypocrisy of her contemporary society’s view of adultery, making her a boundary crosser through her authorship. Specifically, by analyzing the consequences of adultery for men as opposed to the consequences for women, Marguerite’s trickster nature is revealed through her proto-feminist narrative as she points out the hypocrisy of traditional gender norms in regards to adultery.

In this turn of events, the maiden rescues the knight rather than the traditional knight in shining armour coming to the rescue of the maiden. Marie might have found it attractive that this gives all the power and strength to the woman rather than the man. Typically, the man has control of when he sees the woman or who knows about them, but in this situation, the woman has complete control. I give you all of my love at your discretion but in return you give me complete anonymity until she says otherwise and he will get all the riches. Lanval, a man with no friends or lovers due to his devotion to the king, took advantage of this situation. He fell in love with this woman but when he got in trouble, he was unable to tell anyone who she was until

Marie de France lived in a time when social graces were paramount to a good reputation, lordships and to securing good marriages. A woman was considered less valuable if she lost her virginity; a wife was subjected to her feudal lord, father, brother or son after her husband’s death. According to Angela Sandison’s article “The Role of Women in the Middle Ages”, this was because in the Middle Ages the Church and the aristocracy controlled public opinion and the legal system. These authorities of the times believed a woman’s place was in a submissive role to a man. In The Lay of the Nightingale, we will see how this social and religious hierarchy will impact the behaviors of the three people involved.

While the theme of love itself, may it be positive or negative, is reoccurring, Marie’s presentation of romantic relationships and their differing qualities can be considered a theme alone. In “Guigemar”, the relationship between the knight and his lady represents loyalty, and an ability to heal or cure. Yet, the relationship between the beast and his wife in “Bisclavret” demonstrates the selfish and traitorous behavior that can occur between partners, especially if one has proved to be adulterous.

This abuse of women is the impetus for wives “[to] pour [their] treasures into foreign laps” (87). However, when women try to escape the restraint of men, their husbands “break out in peevish jealousies”(88), which directly refers to the jealous rage building in Othello that is forcing him to “[throw] restraint upon [Desdemona]”(89). The confidence that Emilia exudes juxtaposes with Desdemona’s submissive relationship with Othello; Desdemona has fallen victim to his jealous rage. Emilia’s confidence suggests that she knows the strength of women better than Desdemona. The fierce feminist disposition of Emilia is solidified when she insists that “[women] have galls” (90). This marks a shift in the passage, as Emilia is now directing her rage towards her abusive husband, Iago, and not towards Othello because Desdemona does not have the “galls” to denounce

    Halfway through viewing Dangerous Liaisons, a remarkable contrast as well as a huge parallel came to mind.  The film's principal characters' treatment of their promiscuity was quite different from what we see today.  They were quite covert about their sexual relations, and often concocted cunning plans to assure the secrecy of their activities.  Today we find quite the opposite taking place on our news programs and talk shows.  It seems to me that the cause of this whole difference in treatment of sexuality is due to the advent of mass media.  That pre-Revolutionary French society was not completely different from today, however.  Like our treatment of the Clinton/Lewinsky scandal,