Genderl Roles in Literature

783 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Media Euripides main characters

Characters who violate social norms and expectations often create gender roles by illustrating how individuals should not act. In Euripides’ Medea and Disney’s “the Little Mermaid” the characters Medea and Ursula violate numerous social norms through their actions and, in Ursula' case her appearance. By doing this they create an image of what a woman should not be. The two are portrayed as lonely middle-aged women who have failed to nurture children, attempted to interfere with marriage, and ultimately act without male influence. In both works, Medea and Ursula’s actions are seen as wrong because of the reactions from the other characters, which is generally fear and discomfort. These reactions allow the audience to also see their actions as wrong and then create a definition of what is right. Although there are differences in the physical appearance of the two characters as well as their final outcome, the two women are portrayed, as everything a woman should not be e, i.e. jealous, childless, women who are independent and emotional.
Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” tells the story of a young mermaid Ariel, who wishes to live on land with her love, Prince Eric. She learns from a sea witch, Ursula that the only way she will be able to do that is if she is given legs. (Livingston18) In return for her voice, Ursula agrees to grant her legs but ultimately tricks Ariel by telling her if she does not kiss the prince after three days then she will belong to Ursula. (Livingston18) In the end, Prince Eric kills Ursula and marries Ariel. Unlike Euripides’ Medea, the director’s of the Disney movie chose to create a physical appearance that failed to comply with society’s expectations in order to create the ideal image of a woman. In the movie,...

... middle of paper ...

...tude of the chorus signify that her actions are not accepted. For example, Conacher states that the attitude of the chorus shifts after “Medea announces the awful means by which she plans to take vengeance on her husband.” (Conacher191) Similar to “The Little Mermaid” the opinion of the chorus in Medea corresponds with how these women act versus how women should act.

Works Cited
1. Conacher, D. J. "The Medea." Euripidean Drama; Myth, Theme and Structure.
Toronto: University of Toronto, 1967. 187-95. Print.
2. Grube, G. M. A. The Drama of Euripides. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1961. 150-57.
Print.
3. McDermott, Emily A. "Medea Teknophonos: The Sources." Euripides' Medea: The
Incarnation of Disorder. University Park: Pennsylvania State UP, 1989. 10-11. Print.
4. Murray, Gilbert. "The Medea." Euripides and His Age. London: Oxford UP, 1965. 50-
57. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Medea, by Euripides - Constructing Medea’s Compelling Persona

    1192 Words  | 3 Pages

    The use of offstage action is effective in constructing Medea’s authoritative persona. “Fe-oo! Fee-oo! Weep. Pity me.” These lamentations are passionate and emotional, exactly what many men of Ancient Greek society would expect of a woman. Suspense is built and the audience’s attention captured, focusing it on Medea and the moment of her on-stage arrival. However, when Medea does appear on stage she is calm and composed, dispelling the notion of a “wild woman”. “Ladies, Corinthians, I’m here./ Don’t think ill of me. Call others proud.” The Medea character has the power to command the audience through this presentation of her dual natures; she can be defined within the typical female gender role as emotional and passionate, yet she usurps masculine traits of rationality, resourcefulness and int...

    Read More

  • Euripides' The Medea: Medea and the Chorus

    292 Words  | 1 Pages

    The exchange that takes place between Medea and the Chorus serves several purposes in Euripides' tragedy, The Medea. It allows us to sympathize with Medea in spite of her tragic flaws. It also foreshadows the tragic events that will come to pass. Finally, it contrasts rationality against vengeance and excess. The Chorus offers the sane view of the world to the somewhat insane characters of Medea, Jason, and Creon. As the passage begins on page 176, the leader of the Chorus reveals that she has high regards for Medea despite the fact that she is "savage still." She acknowledges Medea as a foreigner and an outsider and yet is sympathetic towards her. This alliance is apparently based on female bonds rather than on any kind of national loyalty. Medea wastes no time before she begins lamenting and cursing those who "dared wrong me without cause." The Chorus tries to comfort Medea, hoping that this might "lessen her fierce rage / And her frenzy of spirit." They show real concern for her well-being, as well as for the well-being of her loved ones. This unselfish attitude is in stark contrast to the attitudes of the main characters in the tragedy, who all seem to be extremely self-serving. So in just a few short lines, it's already become apparent that while the chorus doesn't necessarily agree with the way that Medea is handling her situation, they are sticking by her and supporting her. This idea supports one of the important themes of the play: the battle of the sexes. Medea now has a chance to get a few things off her chest. She addresses the "Women of Corinth," reminding them that of "all things that live upon the earth and have intelligence we women are certainly the most wretched." She discusses the sad lot that women must deal with in marriage and again stresses the fact that she is an outsider, "alone, without / a city. Her speech is clever and compelling.

    Read More

  • Disney and Traditional Stereotypes

    1067 Words  | 3 Pages

    A little girl sits on the floor with her gaze fixed on the television screen in front of her, watching magical images dance before her eyes and catchy songs flow through her ears. Even though she had seen it at least twenty times before, she still loved The Little Mermaid just as much as she did the first time she watched it. As she watched it, she longed to be a beautiful mermaid with a curvy body and wonderful singing voice like Ariel. She longed to be saved by the handsome Prince Eric, and fall in love and live happily ever-after like Ariel did. In today’s society, women strive to achieve equality between the sexes. Despite the tremendous steps that have been taken towards reaching gender equality, mainstream media contradicts these accomplishments with stereotypes of women present in Walt Disney movies. These unrealistic stereotypes may be detrimental to children because they grow up with a distorted view of how men and women interact. Disney animated films assign gender roles to characters, and young children should not be exposed to inequality between genders because its effect on their view of what is right and wrong in society is harmful to their future.

    Read More

  • The Little Mermaid: Hans Christian Andersen vs Walt Disney

    2433 Words  | 5 Pages

    Although Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,” published in 1837, contains many patronizing nineteenth-century attitudes towards women, a value system that at least acknowledges the legitimacy of femininity shapes the fairytale. Unfortunately, Walt Disney’s 1989 film version of “The Little Mermaid” eliminates the values that affirm femininity in the original story (Trites 145)

    Read More

  • Defining the Great Dionysia

    1615 Words  | 4 Pages

    [reprinted in J. Winkler and F. I. Zeitlin (eds.), ‘ Nothing to Do with Dionysos? Athenian Drama in its Social Context,’ Princeton 1990]

    Read More

  • Gender Roles In Fahrenheit 451

    1067 Words  | 3 Pages

    “If women are expected to do the same work as men, we must teach them the same things.” The famous Greek philosopher Plato once said this, and society still has not fully fathomed this idea regarding gender equality. Fahrenheit 451 is a novel written by Ray Bradbury, set in a dystopian society. It touches on censorship, individuality and technology dangers, but the most prevalent recurring theme is based on gender roles and stereotypes. In the story, Guy Montag is a firefighter, whose sole mission is to burn books and any houses that contain them. Everything changes when he meets a young and insightful girl, Clarisse, who changes how he sees the world. Montag’s wife Mildred, is a housewife not only to him, but to an entirely fake family composed

    Read More

  • Bacchae Essay

    770 Words  | 2 Pages

    Euripides. Three Plays of Euripides: Alcestic, Medea, The Bacchae. 1st ed. New York: W.W. Norton, 1974. Print.

    Read More

  • Portrayal Of Women In Literature Essay

    403 Words  | 1 Pages

    community it is often women are treated that way, but it doesn’t mean they aren’t

    Read More

  • Medea and Lysistrata

    536 Words  | 2 Pages

    Medea and Lysistrata are two Greek literatures that depict the power which women are driven to achieve in an aim to defy gender inequality. In The Medea, Medea is battling against her husband Jason whom she hates. On the other hand, in Aristophanes' Lysistrata, the protagonist Lysistrata plotted to convince and organize the female gender to protest against the stubbornness of men. In terms of defining the purpose of these two literatures, it is apparent that Euripedes and Aristophanes created characters that demonstrate resistance against the domination of men in the society.

    Read More

  • Ancient Greek Drama: A Comparison of the Euripides and Sophocles

    952 Words  | 2 Pages

    This paper aims to study two significant playwrights, Sophocles and Euripides, and compare their respective attitudes by examining their plays in respect to plot and character structures. To achieve this goal, the paper is organized into two main sections. In the first section, we provide a brief biography of both Sophocles and Euripides. The second and last section includes summaries of Sophocles’ Electra and Euripides’ Electra which were based on same essentials and give an opportunity to observe the differences of the playwrights. This section also includes the comparisons that are made by our observations about the plays.

    Read More

  • The Evolution of the Role of Women in British and American Literature

    1818 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Girls wear jeans and cut their hair short and wear shirts and boots because it is okay to be a boy; for a girl it is like promotion. But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading, according to you, because secretly you believe that being a girl is degrading” (McEwan 55-56). Throughout the history of literature women have been viewed as inferior to men, but as time has progressed the idealistic views of how women perceive themselves has changed. In earlier literature women took the role of being the “housewife” or the household caretaker for the family while the men provided for the family. Women were hardly mentioned in the workforce and always held a spot under their husband’s wing. Women were viewed as a calm and caring character in many stories, poems, and novels in the early time period of literature. During the early time period of literature, women who opposed the common role were often times put to shame or viewed as rebels. As literature progresses through the decades and centuries, very little, but noticeable change begins to appear in perspective to the common role of women. Women were more often seen as a main character in a story setting as the literary period advanced. Around the nineteenth century women were beginning to break away from the social norms of society. Society had created a subservient role for women, which did not allow women to stand up for what they believe in. As the role of women in literature evolves, so does their views on the workforce environment and their own independence. Throughout the history of the world, British, and American literature, women have evolved to become more independent, self-reliant, and have learned to emphasize their self-worth.

    Read More

  • Representation of Womens Roles in Society- Medea

    1102 Words  | 3 Pages

    Culture creates difference in gender through social issues such as marriage, education, childbearing and employment. Women in many of today’s cultures are represented by the roles they choose rather than have imposed on them, although sexism is an ongoing issue presented in everyday life. Medea has little choice on her represented role due to society in that period of time. She uses her manipulative ability and cleverness to get what she wants. Her life is made difficult due to society’s restrictions and is stereotyped into many things in which she is not. This clearly shows that women’s lives are represented by the roles they either choose regarding social restrictions or the roles they have imposed on them.

    Read More

  • The Portrayal of Women in American Literature

    2124 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Portrayal of Women in American Literature Throughout American Literature, women have been depicted in many different ways. The portrayal of women in American Literature is often influenced by an author's personal experience or a frequent societal stereotype of women and their position. Often times, male authors interpret society’s views of women in a completely different way than a female author would. While F. Scott Fitzgerald may have represented his main female character as a victim in the 1920’s, Zora Neale Hurston portrays her as a strong, free-spirited, and independent woman only a decade later in the 1930’s. In F. Scott Fitzgerald's, The Great Gatsby, the main female character, Daisy Buchanan, is portrayed by, Nick, the narrator, only by her superficial qualities.

    Read More

  • The Importance of the Role That the Chorus Plays in Euripedes’ Medea

    1154 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Chorus is very much an important part of Euripedes’ Medea, and indeed many other works written in the ancient Greek style. In this play, it follows the journey Medea makes, and not only narrates, but commentates on what is happening. Euripedes uses the Chorus as a literary device to raise certain issues, and to influence where the sympathies of the audience lie.

    Read More

  • GENDER ROLES IN LITERATURE

    557 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many people think that boys in our culture today are brought up to define their identities through heroic individualism and competition, particularly through separation from home, friends, and family in an outdoors world of work and doing. Girls, on the other hand, are brought up to define their identities through connection, cooperation, self-sacrifice, domesticity, and community in an indoor world of love and caring. This view of different male and female roles can be seen throughout children’s literature. Treasure Island and The Secret Garden are two novels that are an excellent portrayal of the narrative pattern of “boy and girl” books.

    Read More

More about Genderl Roles in Literature

Open Document