Who Is A Sympathetic Character In The Razor's Edge

Edna and Mrs. Mallard are both victims of the 1800s, they both show that by their displeasure in being married. Edna shows her displeasure in novel by frolicking around with other men, and by openly disagreeing with her husband which at that time was a social faux pas. Mrs. Mallard showed her displeasure by simply liking the fact that she was finally

Isabel has many character traits, but to narrow it down, I found three well traits that describe her. One trait would be that she is very stubborn. In the beginning of the story, after Isabel and Curzon reunited with Ruth again, Isabel became overprotective of Ruth. She was stubborn, and wouldn’t let Ruth go anywhere without someone with her. Although she is stubborn, there is a reason on why she is that way with Ruth. It is because she doesn't want to lose her again. In the middle of the book when Isabel and Ruth went to the camp to help out, Isabel showed a few ways she was stubborn. One example would be that she wouldn’t let Curzon’s friends tag along with them to hear what they were discussing, and she was too stubborn to let Curzon “kiss” her so that his friends would stop bugging him. In the end of the book, when Curzon came back wounded from the victorious battle, Isabel showed her trait of stubborn again. She wouldn’t let Curzon get up and do things like his daily work because she made him rest and heal. This shows there are many times in the book that shows her actions that prove her trait of being stubborn.

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).

Austen opens the novel by telling us, “It is a truth universally acknowledge, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”(7) The act of marriage during this time period an act of comfort rather than love. A woman married a man when it was ensured she would live a prosperous and wealthy life. Affection was not enough for women to marry; however, Elizabeth knew that in order for her to be happy, love must be there. In Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth was promised of a comfortable life by three gentlemen but turning all three down because her affection was

When he was pressured into playing the table tennis game with Larry and he made Francis cheat to win, “LaSalle was letting me win”. When Francis was forced to leave his girlfriend behind, betraying her and when he had confronted Larry, he was told to leave and wasn’t able to take revenge “Go Francis. Leave me here” Larry was powerful and like a father figure that Francis never had - hence why Francis always looked up to him until the time where he had been raped Nicole, even after he was obedient to his

Of all the couplets, this is the one that fits Isabel the best. She sees how almost all of the white people look at her with disdain, even though she was brought up like a normal girl, learning to read and have good posture. If only they would look past her coloring and see the real her instead of

8. How are the background characters such as the young lovers and the lady in black at the shore, significant in Edna 's story?The young lovers represent the love supported by the society Edna lives in, and the lady in black represents what society expects of a woman after her husband has passed. 9. In detail, explain how the flashbacks to Edna 's past function. How does her father compare to the other men in her life?The flashbacks show a time where she was really happy and talks about a time where she remembers just being a little girl and running through a large green field so she wouldn’t have to go to church, besides that she was a carefree person back then. Her father is different because he states his opinion about her actions instead of keeping quiet and he is more controlling. 10. How does the view of romantic love develop in the course of the novel? What is the doctor 's view of marriage and childbearing?The doctors view of marriage and childbearing is that that is what makes a happy family, and the romantic loves develops in person and goes on through Roberts letters to Mademoiselle Reisz 11. Can you think of an emotional attachment and/or a romantic obsession you have studied in a previous work? How does that incident or character compare with Edna 's emotional and romantic relationships?In Romeo and Juliet’s love in their story. Their relationship is similar to Edna’s and Roberts because they love each

as shown on pg 246, “In this quote she clearly states that she dislikes her lifestyle but finds no other way to escape this punishment then to run away. but she doesn’t only suffer from physical chains. Her mental chains affect her even deeper than her physical chains. She is bounded by her hope to find her sister Ruth who was sold away, evident on pg 132.” “She’s(Ruth) gone,’ Becky said ...’Where’...Sold ”. She also has a specific sense of freedom her from others. So even when she gets hurt over and over again Isabel takes initiative for her freedom. She spies for the rebel group, only to be betrayed by one of the higher-ups. Which later causes her to join the British cause who assured her freedom but is revealed to only take rebel slaves. She was betrayed twice and hurt more times then to be counted but yet she doesn’t give up that sense of freedom. She tries her

She made her a snack and was nice to her which was very unusual behavior for Madam Lockton. She was usually very cruel and always trying to break Isable down. Even though it was strange behavior she just saw it as a good thing, maybe she was changing for the better. Isabel slept so well that night just to wake up to the worst news she had heard in such a long time. “Where is she? What did they do to her?” “She’s gone,” Becky said. “Gone?” I repeated. “Gone where?” Becky studied her shoes again. “Sold.” pg 132 , Her sister had been shipped off!! Madam Lockton was in a good mood that night because she was happy to be getting rid of her sister. She knew Madam Lockton always hated her sister but her husband, Master Elihu Lockton always stopped her. I guess it made sense why she sold her now, her husband wasn't there to stop her. Isabel was outraged by this news she just went ballistic. Being told by Madam Lockton that she could have the night off and go to bed earlier but when she woke up in the morning she found out that Madam Lockton had sent her sister away. This is an example of injustice because Madam Lockton made Isabel feel like she was just giving her the night off out of the kindness of her heart but then woke up to the surprise of her sister being

Lockton and Isabel are the same is that they both have very strong spirits, and are very brave. Mrs. Lockton is strong in the way that she stands up to her husband at times and will take the risk of being beaten to state her opinion. Mrs. Lockton is not like most women and does not just sit back and comply to her husband's commands. To do this and be rebellious Mrs. Lockton has to have spirit and be strong and brave. If she was not brave she would never rebel against him or question his power over her. If Mrs. Lockton was not brave or did not have any drive she would be a lonely house wife and would do nothing but bake all day. Isabel is very similar in this way as she has drive, bravery and spirit as well. Like Mrs. Lockton, if Isabel did not have any spirit she would not care about her enslavement and would not be trying so hard to escape it. For Isabel to rebel she had to have even more bravery and be even stronger. “I walked up two steps. ‘Did you sell Ruth?’... I took another step. ‘Answer me, you miserable cow, Did you sell my sister?’ ‘Stay away from me.’ she said. I rose another step… ‘One more step and I can have you hung.’ Madam whispered… Madam grabbed a painting from the wall and throw it down on my head… I ran out the door for the first time.” This cite shows how dangerous it was for Isabel to be disobeying madam, yet she did anyways and would do anything for Ruth and her freedom. Isabel had to be brave for Ruth as well, and had to

She married Leonce not because she loved him but because she could not refuse his admiration and persistence. This marriage thrusts Edna into a foreign culture. She questions her role as a mother because she is different from the typical Creole "mother-woman." Edna defies the central perception that women are mothers first

Elizabeth is also a caring and kind mother, perhaps a bit overprotective as she meddles into Rennie’s love life and forces his first girlfriend, Allegra, to leave. The action may be questionable, but she did it with a justified reason: because she wants Rennie to find love that is not ephemeral and based on secrets, but on a strong, open foundation, just like with her and Gerald.

Léonce, a middle-aged businessman, is Edna’s husband. Too obsessed with his concerns over money, he uses this money to buy love from his family but fails to see his wife’s unhappiness. From the very beginning, Léonce is represented as a very rich man, busily reading a newspaper for the latest market news while smoking a cigar (a symbol of wealth when compared to a cigarette). He views his wife as a “valuable piece of personal property” rather than a human being with emotions and prefers that she conform to society’s ideals for a woman, much like Adèle Ratignolle does (2). Constantly leaving her side to attend business matters, Léonce unknowingly leaves Edna vulnerable to the passion of Robert and seductive nature of Alcée.

One important theme that marriage in Victorian England suppressed, almost entirely, was the advancement of women. Mrs. Mallard, as all women had no illusion of grandeur, to her it was marriage and family that would bring fulfillment, that would give her status, a home, and a place in the world. “Marriage, of course, restricts freedom…and although Brently loves her ‘tenderly’”, her attitude toward marriage reveals that she is only irritated by this display of affection and equates it with a loss of freedom. She views her husband’s constant love as a powerful will bending hers in a blind persistence. “Whoever marries, or even loves gives up large areas of freedom—usually willingly” (Berkove). However, Louise sees that the love she was receiving was equal to oppression because it was not asked for, because she had not consented to it. In her mind she decides that it is a crime for anyone’s life to be dominated by another’s intentions, whether these intentions be for good or evil. Her husband, the short story claims, loved her dearly, yet Louise was unable to feel in control of her life.

Mrs. Rowland, the protagonist, is portrayed as the stereotypical nagging wife. While a flat character, she is very realistic. Her level of diction implies her lack of education, she is also bitter towards her husband. Her bitterness is not unfounded. Alfred is of no help, "Heaven knows I do my part-and more-going out sewing every day while you play the gentleman and loaf around bar rooms with that good-for-nothing lot of artists from the Square" (Jacobs 1211). Mrs. Rowland's husband is adulterous and can not hold down a job. Mrs. Rowland loves her husband, although she does not like the way he treats her. She exhibited love by continually enabling him, paying the rent, providing food, and cleaning up after him. She regards Alfred's depression as laziness. "Not that I've got any doubts about your being lazy enough to stay in bed forever" (Jacobs 1211). After learning Alfred's lover Helen, is pregnant, her frustration and disappointments only intensify.