The Instability of Female Quixote Essay

By investigating the gender roles of the Victorian Era in Jane Eyre and looking at the more modern presentation of gender roles in The Eyre Affair, a clear understanding of these author’s intentions to expose the gender issues can be seen. Jane Eyre is a classic novel in which orphan Jane opposes societal expectations by becoming an intelligent,

Does deviating from one’s gender norms inevitably doom one down a spiral of moral corruption? Tim O'Brien, author of “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong” and Ernest Hemingway, author of “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”, certainly seem to hold this view, as evident by the fates of the major female characters in their respective works. The deviance of the major female characters in both works appears to corrupt not only themselves, but also pollute their partners, causing them to suffer injury or harm as a result. The degree of injury ranges from negligible, like Fossie’s demotion and broken heart, to fatal, like the bullet that rips through Macomber’s skull. It begs the question, are these stories meant to serve as cautionary tales for their female readers, or possibly for their husbands, so they may recognize gender deviance and stop it in its tracks before their wives transform into Margot Macomber or Mary Anne Bell? This essay will analyze what such characters say about pervading views of women, both in society and in literature.

Tabitha Gilman Tenney’s Female Quixotism is set in an unnamed town in Pennsylvania, United States during the nineteenth century. The plot focuses on a woman named Dorcas Sheldon, who renames herself as Dorcasina, and her quest for love. As the title suggests, Dorcasina’s character is much like Miguel de Cervantes’ character, Don Quixote. She has convinced herself that the dramatic stories that she reads in romance novels reflect how courtship and love should be in real life, and refuses to accept anything less than the floral language and obsession that the characters have for their lovers in her novels. Because of this, Dorcasina becomes the target of untrustworthy men who exploit her delusion in an attempt to marry her and thusly gain control of her fortune. Female Quioxtism is a satirical commentary on the social norms of nineteenth century North America, and emphasizes many views that people of that time held. An example of this is the character of O’Connor, the first man who embodies Dorcasina’s romantic ideal. Tenney uses derogatory stereotypes about Irish people to portray O’Connor as a manipulative and deceitful lover, preying on Dorcasina’s delusions for his personal gain.

The novel in which Jane Eyre stars in can be seen criticizing many aspects of those times such as the role and nature of women, child negligence and social hardships for those in a lesser class. Jane Eyre’s alienation from society allows for a greater reveal of the story’s culture, values, and assumptions. It’s presented through the use of gender, class and character conflicts throughout the story. On multiple occasions, Jane is judged for the presented factors reflecting the type of society Jane lives in and what the times were like at that time.

The novel had been considered by some people, mainly the higher ranked and important persons of the 19th centaury, as a criticism of ‘Victorian double morality’ meaning they felt it was presenting a false image of what went on in London. They may have also have felt that it was encouraging other people to do things considered wrong-like. This shows duality between the novel and the behaviour in London during the 19th centaury.

Sexuality has an inherent connection to human nature. Yet, even in regards to something so natural, societies throughout times have imposed expectations and gender roles upon it. Ultimately, these come to oppress women, and confine them within the limits that the world has set for them. However, society is constantly evolving, and within the past 200 years, the role of women has changed. These changes in society can be seen within the intricacies of literature in each era. Specifically, through analyzing The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, one can observe the dynamics of society in regards to the role of women through the lens of the theme of sexuality. In both novels, the confinement and oppression of women can be visibly seen as a result of these gender roles. Yet, from the time The Scarlet Letter was published to the time The Bell Jar was written, the place of women in society ultimately changed as well. Hence when evaluating the gender roles that are derived from sexuality, the difference between the portrayals of women’s oppression in each novel becomes apparent, and shows how the subjugation of women has evolved. The guiding question of this investigation is to what extent does the theme of sexuality reflect the expectations for women in society at the time each novel was written. The essay will explore how the literary elements that form each novel demonstrate each author’s independent vision which questions the

Haywood’s cautionary tale warns lower class women to beware of sexual misconduct as their bodies are more available to men. Carrie Shanafelt explains in her essay “Vicarious Sex and the Vulnerable Eighteenth Century Reader” how specific people risk more in reading pornographic novels: “namely, young, female, and lower-class readers” in the eighteenth-century (262). For example, Celia, one persona, is a young countrywoman who works as a maid at the inn where Beauplaisir lives during his stay in Bath. Haywood creates this low class character to warn readers of the potential for sexual assault because of their class and gender. Celia notes that: “Fortune in this Exploit was extremely on her side; there were no others of the Male-Sex in the House,

To quote author Chimamanda Adichie, “Imagine how much happier we would be, how much freer to be our true individual selves, if we didn 't have the weight of gender expectations.” However, the influence of gender is pervasive from jobs to the military, even extending to education. Men are generally characterized as strong and independent. Women, on the other hand, are supposed to be more feeble and domestic by societal standards. These distinctions have always been the case in the United States, from the moment people first crossed the Bering Strait into North America. It should come as no surprise, then, that the societal expectations placed on gender affect literary works. Gender often conflicts with the hopes and dreams of the characters and makes it harder for them to achieve success. The flawed societal gender constructions found in American literature are adversarial to characters in their search for fulfillment. The concept of gender roles obstructing success is ubiquitous in the many works, including The Great Gatsby, The Mystery of Heroism, The Scarlet Letter, A Raisin In The Sun, and The Death of A Salesman.

As a result of the abuse female characters have faced, it has become an objective for authors to prevent this. There have been clear strides recently, putting women as the protagonists, and not in a manner that has them dealing with persecution. The amount of strong, female characters is a large stride in the right direction to end the conflict regarding women’s roles in literature. However, this sudden influx of women in literature may lead to the reversal of the issue; the absence or abuse of men. While certainly literary equality is the end goal, to flip the issue would be just as bad and lead to sexism on the opposite spectrum. To truly mend the rift between genders, there must be no discrimination, the idea that an author is trying to use sexist undertones by not writing the lead as a female should not have to be an idea that readers think about when analyzing modern books. While even still there are issues of gender inequality in literature, there must be moderation from both ends for a resolution to be possible. The only way for equality to be achieved is with the absence of sexist ideals from all

Lope de Vega’s play touches upon several key components and ideas that were brought up in many of the other stories read throughout the semester. This included the role of gender and how men and women are viewed differently in the Spaniard town of Fuenteovejuna. Another topic included the importance of family, love, and relationships and their connection on loyalty, trust, and personal beliefs. The last major influence found in other literature and in Fuenteovejuna, were the political and religious references made throughout the play. Even though Lope de Vega didn’t make these views obvious, the reader could still pick up on their connotation and the references made towards these specific ideas. With all of this in mind, each of these

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.

Fiction is often thought of as being “fake” or “false” interpretations of real life. While the people and events that occur in fiction are generally imagined, the most successful of these works appeal to audiences as being realistic to some extent. An example of this imagined interpretation of reality in fiction is the portrayal of women. One association given to women of many genres is that of the needy damsel. With that said, examples of heroism and wit have grown over time, adjusting with the trends of feminism today. While women are often considered delicate and in need of protection in fiction, across the genres of gothic, science and mystery, there are also many depictions indicating the contrary.

enemies would be left to rot, but in his own reality, he is doing the only

One of the most interesting aspects of the book is how the narrative itself is thought of as unsuitable for women. The narration takes place on a small sailing boat, waiting for the ebb of the Thames to bring it out to

A novel is long narrative written by a novelist that describes fictional characters and events, usually in the form of a sequential story. The later, an Italian word used to describe short stories, supplied the present generic English term in the 18th century. The first significant European novelist is Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don Quixote, the first part of which, the first part of which was published in 1605. The term novel refers back to the production of short stories that remained part of a European oral culture of storytelling in to the 19th century. Fairy tales, jokes, little funny stories designed to make a point in a conversation, the exemplum a priest would insert in a sermon belong in to this tradition.