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Who Is Melia In The Ruined Maid

Decent Essays

In Thomas Hardy’s poem, The Ruined Maid, the maid is ‘ruined’ from past behaviours which have led her to become an ostracized victim of the Victorian society. The term ‘ruined’ in the Oxford Dictionary can mean broken down, neglected, as well as un-cared for (Oxford Dictionary), while in the poem, being ‘ruined’ refers to the maid being impure, labelled, and unworthy. The inscription of language and imagery, as well as the ideas of social class, permanence of labelling in society are used in this conversation poem to answer why Melia has been ruined.
The language between Melia and the first speaker are very different, as if they come from different classes. The friend communicates with slang, “and now you’ve gay bracelets and bright feathers” (Hardy 6) while Melia responds with appropriate phrasing. The fact that the first speaker once knew Melia suggests that Melia …show more content…

Melia’s ostracized life is demonstrated through the depiction of language and Victorian morality views; the relationship between labelling and Melia’s ‘ruined’ self is established within the time that the poem was published. Thomas Hardy being a late Victorian poet furthers this ideology of ostracized women in the Victorian era with the use of his inscription. In the Victorian era, it was considered socially acceptable to have women who had premarital sex publically shamed by wearing certain garments and acting a certain way on the streets (Prostitution of Young Females in London). People who behaved toward the act and semblance of prostitution were then scorned because it was a symbol of impurity and tainted life (Prostitution of Young Females in London). Premarital sex was one of the worst things that a woman could do because they would ‘ruin’ their chances of achieving a normal life. Melia’s life was then ruined because of prostitution or pre-marital sex which led her to such

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