The Importance of Being Earnest and The Rape of the Lock

What is the true role of women in life? Is it to surpass men and soon become equal to them? Or is it to remain in the domestic role which society has placed upon them? Whichever it may be one thing that is agreed is that, the “woman’s question” can be agreed upon in many ways by popular literary authors of the 17th and 18th century. The “woman question” is a phrase, which is used within the 17th through 18th century, which spoke about the ever-changing role of women during the time era. Though all women did not agree upon such phrase, it still defined the change which. Such Change was introduced to society by the industrial revolution which brought a swarm of new jobs for women thus, taking them out of their normal household day to day routine and the suffragette movement which fought for woman’s right to vote thus making their equality to men closer to reach. A woman whether it is in the early seventeenth century or even as early as 2013 has always been the same, domestic life. This has meant that though after the industrial age and after women have obtained the right to vote, they are still seen in the same position as always, a homemaker, mother and wife. This can be seen in Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock (1712) and Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest (1895), which, though written two centuries apart, dramatize their concerns about the “woman question” in the contemporary 17th and 18th century societies and make it seem like it is a woman’s case to change herself not societies, thus they stating that they themselves s women are holding themselves back and remaining in the fantasy of a domestic life which has been enforced upon them since birth.

During the 17th century the men were seen to hold the patriarch...

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...the new times brought change to this thus women were able to step out of the mold of a women, wife and mother which society had placed upon them. Though the literary works were written two centuries apart, they both dramatized their concerns about the “woman question” in the contemporary societies. Thus because of this they made it seem like it is a woman’s case to change herself not societies. Therefore, finally stating that they themselves as women are holding themselves back and remaining in the fantasy of a domestic life which has been enforced upon them since birth which is clearly seen in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest. This is because though the time might have changed the women in the play just dreamt about a domestic lifestyle with their significant others unlike Belinda from Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock who just wanted to have fun.