Gender and the Degradation of the Female Body Gender is a concept that has been socially constructed to identify people as male or female, masculine or feminine. The concept is used as to regulate the way people live and is something that influences the representation of female bodies in novels. Gayle Rubin’s article, “The Traffic in Women” uses several theorists, such as Freud, Marx, Levi-Strauss and Engels to understand the role of the women and show how they are oppressed and weak in comparison to men. Angela Carter reinforces Rubin’s beliefs by sharing similar ideas of male dominance in her novel, The Bloody Chamber. She demonstrates how gender is a reflection of the body in stories such as, “The Snow Child,” “The Erl-King” and “The Tiger’s …show more content…
The birds signify the “system of relationship by which women become the prey of men” (Rubin 66). The text suggests that the birds are a reflection of all the women that the Erl-King has managed to lure in and imprison in cages. His actions reflect a kind of superiority and ownership over the female body. The female character is given several warnings to stay away from the Erl-King, such as from a bird at the beginning of the story that gives a call, “as desolate as it came from the throat of the last bird left alive” (Carter 85). The birds dying and melancholy tone is meant to keep people away from the woods and warn them of the dangers that lie beyond, yet she continues on ahead. Later on in the text, she even states how she “knew from the first moment [she] saw him how Erl-King would do [her] grievous harm” (Carter 90). The fact that she is aware from the start of the dangers of this stranger in the wood and still lets herself be sexually used by him demonstrates the passivity and feminine traits present in her character. Her femininity allows for the Erl-King to influence how the female body is displayed in the story, where it becomes something that revolves around beauty, appearance and sexual satisfaction. The story implies that because women are supposed to be dependent and accepting, men have the power to decide their faith. In which case, the Erl-King is already in the process of “weaving for [her]” (Carter 90) a cage, where she is meant to …show more content…
Rubin mentions in her article how “women are for men to dispose of” (Rubin 74), as they “are given in marriage, taken in battle, traded, bought, and sold” (Rubin 74). She explains how the result of females who conform to the ideal structure of the “perfect” women in being quiet and obedient to male figures only lead to a life of mistreatment and misery. Carter presents this submissive and innocent female character in her story by first introducing her father who “lost [her] to a The Beast at cards (51). This demonstrates the power that men have over women, where the girl’s voice and opinion in the transaction is considered insignificant and useless. The female body in this text is represented as an object, whose worth is dependent on her appearance. She is simply passed around and sold to pay off debt and earn rewards by obliging to the “master’s sole desire” (Carter 58) of “seeing [her] unclothed” (58). The Beast’s desires demonstrate the lack of respect and power given to the female character and it emphasizes how women are only seen for their appearance and sexual features. Hence, the female character in the story lives not for herself, but for the male
In this dissertation, ideological systems considered to limit the creation of Western female identity were explored through feminist discourse: Angela Carter’s The Passion of New Eve (1977) and Kathy Acker’s Don Quixote (1986). The former discussed the extent to which gendered identities are founded on biological difference and binary structures, looking at how these dichotomies work to confine female identity to a concept of fixed ideals. With reference to the work of Butler, Carter undermines essentialist views which limit identity, demonstrating through multifaceted and changeable characters that identity is constructed as opposed to determined. By engaging in multiple discourses, Carter’s characters reject conforming to regulatory norms, and are consequently revealed to be living out simulacrums, as Butler suggests all people do. The motif of the mirror was explored with reference to the work of Lacan and Mulvey, looking at how the novel presents female identity as contingent upon male desires due to society’s preoccupation with the phallus. Female identity is therefore constructed to appease masculine appetites, with the mirror revealing the discord between unified appearance and incoherent inner identity. The lack of female representation was discussed with reference to speech and narrative structure, with patriarchal systems of communication shown to exclude women from representation. Carter uses the dual perspective of Eve(lyn)’s narration to destabilize gender identity, revealing it as cleft and uncertain. Lee suggests that the incongruity of the narration also works to mount a critique of the role of the gaze, with the fact that Eve(lyn) narrates in retrospect hindering the reader’s ability to know whether the narrator ...
There is plenty of opportunity for interpretation in Carter’s writing, particularly in her book ‘The Bloody Chamber’ which is commonly considered to be her masterwork, brimming with intertextualities and ambiguities. Some may find her work to be excessively violent or savage, perhaps even alienating. Yet others may have found this no-holds-barred approach to be exhilarating and refreshing in comparison to other authors of her time. In her re-writing of Perrault and Beaumont’s classic tales, Carter proposes a reading of several well-known stories with intent to unveil through a feminist perspective the ideological content they present. “The Bloody Chamber” is her take on the tale of Bluebeard; “The Werewolf” is her variation of the tale of Little Red Riding Hood; and “The Snow Child” is a very brief but equally powerful story based on the tale of Snow White. Whilst some may find her writing to be ‘grossly repellent’ and most certainly did at the time of its original publication, it remains clear that there are numerous aspects of intertextuality within her writing which delve beyond the face value of her work, that there is much latent content within every story in the collection.
The two main approaches to this type of criticism are very different, but help make distinctions in the text. Essentialists focus on the biologically determined sex of a character in literature, while others focus on constructivism or the qualities determined by society as strictly male or female. Constructivists argue that patriarchal gender roles harm women’s confidence and assertiveness, promoting stereotypes and false binaries. Gender constructivism favors the idea that gender and sexual categories are a societal construct that prefers men and restricts women. The application of this literary criticism to a text looks into the character and their relevance to the plot. Focusing on how the character promotes or rejects the imposed gender roles is a significant part in the use of this lens (Hildreth January
In the late 19th century and early 20th century, idea for the equality of women began to ignite a fire within the world. Women wanted to fight oppression and have a chance to experience the same rights as men. However, although suffragettes would not fight fire with fire until a couple of decades later, the idea of escaping societal roles and gain freedom within society and marriage possibly inspired literary works during this time period. These issues of the inequality between men and women in marriage and society plays strong roles in literary works. In “A Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen, “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell, and “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman all have something in common: the women are oppressed by the men and society, and ultimately pull away from their societal roles and break free.
Society’s gender roles have been changing and evolving, though not necessarily a positive change. Women’s expected and defined role have changed and broken by women who refuses to follow their expected roles in society and decide to rebel against the norm. The pages of history have their own evidence of evolution of these female gender roles into the roles they are following now. Susan Glaspell’s “Trifles” and Henrik Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House” both contain a female protagonist and make us observe and understand how society in their period of time expects of them and their roles. Both these plays let us rethink and compare a female’s role in their period of time with our modern time through points and events that led them into realization of their roles and identity.
The story can be analyzed using feminist criticism perspective. Feminist criticism is “" the ways in which literature (and other cultural productions) reinforce or undermine the economic, political, social, and psychological oppression of women"” (Brizee & Tompkins). When reading a text one can find how women were treated in contemporary times. It can be expressed in many areas listed by Brizee & Tompkins. Moreover, Delahoyde also gave more details on the subject when he said “Feminist criticism concern itself with stereotypical representations of genders. It also may trace the history of relatively unknown or undervalued women writers, potentially earning them their rightful place within the literary canon, and helps create a climate in which women's creativity may be fully realized and appreciate.” Women had been undervalued and taken for granted. Many things they do are not as...
“There are only two types of women— goddesses and doormats.” Pablo Picasso used this quote to describe how he saw the woman of his era, and for the most part, this interesting quote is somewhat correct when looking at the role of women in literature over the years. The woman either goes above and beyond for others without thinking of herself, or she stands firm in her beliefs and is respected for her actions and looks. In sum, the woman is either overlooked or is adored and cherished. There are still many people who continue to belittle and degrade the woman’s role in the twentieth century. Over the many different periods in time and the several eras, the roles of women in literature have changed in the eyes of numerous authors. However,
...present powerful characters, while females represent unimportant characters. Unaware of the influence of society’s perception of the importance of sexes, literature and culture go unchanged. Although fairytales such as Sleeping Beauty produce charming entertainment for children, their remains a didactic message that lays hidden beneath the surface; teaching future generations to be submissive to the inequalities of their gender. Feminist critic the works of former literature, highlighting sexual discriminations, and broadcasting their own versions of former works, that paints a composite image of women’s oppression (Feminist Theory and Criticism). Women of the twenty-first century serge forward investigating, and highlighting the inequalities of their race in effort to organize a better social life for women of the future (Feminist Theory and Criticism).
Over the centuries, writers have used literature to show the societal status and the mind sets of the people in their era. ‘Antigone’, a Greek tragedy, and ‘A Doll’s House’, a highly controversial drama, inhibit the same thematic approach, depicting the oppression and submissiveness of women in male-dominated society and how they overcome their obstacles with firm will, inspiring millions of audiences from then till now. By Antigone’s character, Sophocles portrays a figure through whom he can express his faith in feminism in the 4th century. Likewise, Ibsen’s concerns about the position of women during the 19th century are beautifully breathed to life in ‘A Doll’s House’ through Nora’s transformation from a doll-like puppet to a human. Both of the writ...
conceptualizations of gender in literature are situated in a culture and historical context ; the
In a society where the focus on equality amongst different races, religions and sexes continues to grow, it is no surprise that literature has begun to follow suit. Publishers have seen a rise in strong, capable female protagonists who overcome a variety of struggles to save themselves or others and both teens and adults alike rush to get their hands on this material. With such popular literary works to choose from, it seems strange that many schools continue to rely on somewhat archaic material that mistreats and degrades so many women. In John Steinbeck 's Of Mice and Men, for example, the only female character the reader interacts with is treated like a lower-class prostitute who is ultimately killed off due to her seductive behavior. Though Steinbeck 's treatment of women comes mainly from classic gender roles, his portrayal of female characters in Of Mice and Men is
In order for us to deal with how a consideration of femininity can effect our understanding of a literary text, we must also be able to grasp the notion of `feminism' and `Feminist Literary Theory'. A dictionary definition of `feminism' is: `the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of the equality of the sexes.' Although this leans towards feminism in the historical sense of the word, it still provides the grounds, or foundations, from which feminist literary theories were created. Feminists argue against the stereotyping and social construction of female norms, seeing them as created by men in order to establish their own sense of power. It is thought that while males suggest that gender is sex and not actually a construct, the female role will become much more passive, stereotyped and controlled.
Throughout history, women have struggled to become equals with men. Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House and John Steinbeck’s “The Chrysanthemums” share a theme to their readers: feminism. The two authors placed their female protagonists in male dominated worlds of the 19th Century Norway and 20th Century America. They used these characters to rebel against the passive role of woman during their time. This theme is promoted through the narration of Nora and Elisa’s marriages, an epiphany that arose from initial disappointment in a male dominated society, and the use of symbolism throughout both works.
All throughout the early part of history women were portrayed as the inferior sex, because at that point in time, women were seen as beings only born to have children. Men didn’t think that women were capable of being anything other than a typical housewife. It was unthinkable that women would actually need an education, let alone earn a living, or become a leader. These ideas are revealed all throughout classical literature. Rarely was a woman seen as doing anything but being dominated by males in some form, whether she was a man’s submissive devoted wife, a sexual object, or a woman being punished for wanting her freedom. We finally begin to see women trying to break free from these traditional expectations and barriers through the lives of Janie Crawford in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, John’s wife in “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Louise Mallard in “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, and Songlian in Raise the Red Lantern by Su Tong.
...r to the Beast during a card game. The father uses her as some kind of object and uses words like “pearl” and “treasure” to demonstrate how she is one. Carter uses these words to describe how the narrator is looked at for sale in the game the Beast and her father play as well. This shows shallowness of society's idea of a woman. According to society women were looked as dolls and they were winded up by their husbands and performed whatever tasks they wanted them to. Females appeared to not be able to think for themselves or be able to act upon their own natural instincts. Females also had to play this role of a doll by just using their appearance as a major feature in their marriage and doing what they were told by their husband without questioning it. In this story you see how the male gender has ownership over the female character and it was socially acceptable.