Is female passion dangerous, or is it a form of empowerment?

Fay Weldon’s ‘Letters to Alice on First Reading Jane Austen’ (1984) through the form of an epistolic novel, serves to enrich a heightened understanding of the contemporary issues of Jane Austen’s cultural context. In doing so, the responder is inspired to adopt a more holistic appreciation of the roles of women inherent in Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’ (1813). Due to the examination of the shift of attitudes and values between the Regency era and the 1980s, the reader comes to better understanding of the conventions of marriage for a women and the role education had in increasing one’s marriage prospects. Weldon’s critical discussion of these issues transforms a modern responder’s understanding of the role of a woman during the 19th century.

This literary study will define the historical construction of submissive female gender roles in the domestic sphere in Simone de Beauvoir’s “The Existential Paralysis of Women” and in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility. Beauvoir’s article defines the suffering that women endure as servants in the home due to the overarching construction of submissive gender roles in the “masculine world.” This construction of gender role relies on male-based institutions that have educated women to believe that are inferior as an innate biological fact, yet these

As the novel begins we are shown Edna’s life before her escape from society’s standards. At the beginning we are shown that Edna is valued by society because of her physical appearance and is portrayed as a housewife married to a wealthy husband. On only the seventh page of the novel we are shown the lack of individuality women had during this time period. We are first introduced to Edna and Edna’s husband, Leonce. Leonce creates the income for the family as well as viewing his wife more of a possession rather than a partner. Leonce notices Edna is sunburned when she has come back from swimming and views her as “a valuable piece of property which has suffered some damage” (7).

In the 21st century, many women, myself included, take for granted that we can wear whatever we desire and say what we want, in public, without the fear of being thrown in jail. However, that was not always the case. While the fight for the continued advance of women’s rights rages on, women of the 19th century lived a very different life than the one, us women, lead today. The feminist agenda was just emerging on the horizon. One particular woman was preparing to do her part to further the cause of women’s rights: Sarah Willis Parker. Parker was better known by her pen name, Fanny Fern. After facing and overcoming extreme adversity, she made the decision to start writing. To understand how truly ground breaking Fanny Fern was, we need to understand that in a 1997 edition of an anthology of American satire from colonial times to present, Fern was the only woman writer from the 19th century in that text. Her satiric style and controversial subject matter was just what the oppressed needed to gain some support and give them a voice.

> After a night of sex, Vivian is ready to leave in the morning. It is perfunctory for her to have sex then leave, but she has a nice breakfast that awaits her. She is not used to being treated as a person. Edward, ever concerned with work, needs a “date” for the upcoming week for the sake of appearances. He wishes to employ Vivian for the next week as his “date.” He says that he is paying her three thousand dollars “be at [Edward’s] beck and call.” Here he is treating Julia like a prostitute. The nature of their relationship is pendulous, moments of a nascent love to moments of business and concupiscence. Vivian needs new clothes to replace her questionable and inappropriate attire in order to ensconce in the upper class. She is shopping on Rodeo Drive, the Mecca of haut-couture, but while at a store she encounters women that will not wait on her because of the way she is dressed. Because of the prejudice she

In the 1700s women were supposed to play the role of doting woman standing by her man virtuous and loving. However, one can say that gender power dynamics could easily be turned when the idea of sex and prostitution in placed in the dynamics. The two texts to support this thesis will be Eliza Haywood’s short story Fantomina: Or, Love in a Maze. Being A Secret History of an Amour between Two Persons of Condition, and Lady Mary Wortley Montagu’s poem “The Reasons that Induced Dr. S to write a Poem called ‘The Lady’s Dressing Room’”.

Ultimately, the evidence shown above reveals the many apprehensions and difficulties women endured during the 19th century, and the implications of their actions. Through the above examples, it demonstrates that women must show certain etiquette among European society despite personal heritage. As well as one being innocent and denying social norms, there are limitations and one should be cautious to personal decisions. Similarly, young women should be more vigilant towards warnings of others and adult figures that offer helpful advice even if their nature is to be ignorant to rules. Given these points, James emphasizes in the novella ‘Daisy Miller’ the taboo of young sexuality during the Victorian era, and the strict social conventions and

Contemporary society only recently changed so that women are no longer subservient to the men in their life. This now backwards way of thinking was enforced in many cultures around the globe for hundreds of years. In Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s story “The Yellow Wallpaper” and Susan Glaspell’s play Trifles, the role of a woman in the early 1900s is illustrated as submissive to the men around them. Both the literary works demonstrate the expected role for a woman in marriage and the limiting cage that this relationship can bring about. However, both works also show how the women have their own acts of defiance that can lead to their liberation.

Presenting literature to the public that is meant to be a commentary on social or political issues, masked under the guise of entertaining and fictional, is a tool implemented by authors and activists for centuries. While not all satire is as overt as Jonathan Swift’s suggestion that we eat the babies, it does not diminish the eyebrow raising suggestions that are conveyed once the meaning has been discovered. In Aphra Behn’s The History of the Nun and Eliza Haywood’s Fantomina, the established expectations of the female role within society are brought into question then directly rejected. These expectations establish that women should be deferential to men, morally unblemished, and virtuous at all times. Men, however, are not held to these expectations in the same way. The masculine roles assumed by Isabella and Fantomina demonstrate a private rebellion against the established patriarchal society as it warns against the under-estimation of women and proves that women exist independently.

Miss Emily does not care that she is setting a poor example for the younger generation because she wants companionship, and her contempt for the sexist conventions results in the insanity that, ultimately, causes her to achieve a relationship in the most grotesque

Adèle Ratignolle, Mademoiselle Reisz, and Léonce Pontellier, all contribute to Edna’s journey of self-discovery. These characters' actions guide Edna in her refusal to continue the unfulfilling life expected by Victorian Society. Unfortunately, most women struggle to overcome their societal roles and find themselves either fulfilled or

The 18th century was a time where there were very strong gender norms that were strictly followed. But in Eliza Haywood's Fantomina, those gender norms are challenged with the creation of a cunning, and manipulative female protagonist. We are given a text that empowers the main character, Fantomina, throughout the story and shows us a woman's power to exercise their control over men. As a women of a higher class, Fantomina would have been expected to follow a certain code of conduct and uphold a good reputation. However, her ability to deceive Beauplaisir shows her power over him, as well as her skill and intelligence.

At the beginning of the Victorian Period, both single and married women’s rights were limited. The changes during this era in the identity of genders are represented in the characters the author Wilkie Collins describes. For example, Marian Halcombe is characterized as strong and predominant. She is Laura’s voice when regarding to her husband and protects her throughout the story. Although Marian knows her role as a woman in society, she disapproves with the beliefs of the era. On the other hand, Laura personalizes the conventional quiet woman that obeys customs. To emphasize this, in Collin’s novel, he lets the reader know that Laura is marrying the man that her father approved even though he is now dead. When she marries, her rights legally belong to her husband and is treated with the laws and customs of the Victorian era. Throughout this period, the distinction between classes was also notable. Comparatively, The Woman in White presents how the middle class as Laura and her uncle refer to the working class, Fanny the maid. Even though Fanny has always been their maid and is the only person they trust, they only communicate with her at their convenience. Moreover, Mr. Fairlie does not even call the maid by her name, but refers to her as “Young Person”. Certainly, the Victorian Period was a significant impact in the novel where

Surprise! Women have sexual desires just like men do. Roles set for women in the 18th century demonstrated the constrictions women endured. The idea of sex, status, and character to a woman depended on what men thought of them. However Eliza Haywood’s Fantomina demonstrates what occurs when the gender power roles are reversed and women are the dominant gender.

Pride and Prejudice is one of the most popular novels written by Jane Austen. This romantic novel, the story of which revolves around relationships and the difficulties of being in love, was not much of a success in Austen's own time. However, it has grown in its importance to literary critics and readerships over the last hundred years. There are many facets to the story that make reading it not only amusing but also highly interesting. The reader can learn much about the upper-class society of this age, and also gets an insight to the author's opinion about this society. Austen presents the high-society of her time from an observational point of view, ironically describing human behavior. She describes what she sees and adds her own