The Individual vs. Society in Mrs. Warren's Profession

Lucy Stone orates, “Is it a wonder that women are driven to prostitution?” (382), as an attempt to show that because females are restrained from high paying jobs favored by men, they are put in conditions that force them to ignore morality. The female’s values are being thrown away to gain money and support their families. These values that have been set by society can get pushed to the side as well because they are prioritizing their families first. Still, none of that would occur if they had the rights to pursue a specific career and earn a place in the workfield. Lucy Stone’s audience acknowledges the self esteem and state of mind women share when deprived of their rights.

A picture of a naked woman overshadows the stage, subconsciously focusing your attention to the themes of prostitution and exploitation of women. This shows the fate women faced in society at that time. Mrs. Warren is a very colorful character gaining knowledge through life experience rather than a college degree. She is a very smart woman who is able to survive and make a profitable living in a man’s world. She made some hard decisions growing up as a child., as a result, she chose to be a professional prostitute.

They are more than just household workers, caretakers of children and materials of pleasure. Women are underestimated because they show off a gentle and very caring side making others think that they can be easily fooled and that they cannot progress. The greatest challenge of women empowerment is changing the stereotypes that have existed in many cultures. For example, female genital cutting shows the discrimination of women. This practice is offensive to human rights and should be eradicated.

Ladies, stop giving the 78 cents back. Women fought for their individuality with the intention for equality. Women are used for the consumption of all sorts, either for property or to sell beauty. Society inflicts detrimental ideals upon women, resulting in mental and physical trauma. In "The Necklace", Madame Loisel is described as a beauteous woman who was cheated out of the potential life she should have had, because of the fact that she was beautiful yet not part of the higher class.

Introduction In The Second Sex, Simone De Beauvoir had said that, “One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman” (1989 [1953, 267]). A “woman” is the product of the collective morality of the society that she lives in. she is also a product of the patriarchal institutions and her lack of access for power and resource in general. A woman’s body is stigmatized and her choices, which in some cases don’t fit the morality of that mescaline society, will be shamed and attacked. This limitation of women’s humanity generates negative emotional energy and less sense of worth; which lead them to support the same institutions that are dehumanizing them.

Sue Bridehead’s nature and way of life conflicts with what society prescribes her to be as a woman, as she tries to balance living happily without social pressures infringing on her individuality. Unfortunately for Sue, as Mill’s essay explains, the customs of society are so engrained within its people, not even Sue can abscond from what is expected from her as a woman. J.S. Mill and Sue Bridehead converge with the belief in natural law and equality of the sexes, in the rejection of marriage as a social reform, and on the detrimental effects of social pressure on a woman. Sue Bridehead embodies many of the characteristics of Mill’s ideals about women, though as Mill’s essay explains, Sue is also a product of her society, and unable to escape its pressures, in her breakdown, forfeits her individuality and independence to ease her anxiety and guilt.

Montagu's text is self-redeeming, giving the speaker confidence that sympathy from the public is on her side, and hinting at retribution for her husband (Montagu ll. 80). The agency permitted by the existence of the text moves to ensure that “The lips condemn me, but their souls aquit” (Montagu ll. 68).

She does all of this in secret to pay off the loan to Krogstad. At first, Nora gives off the impression that she is a “spendthrift” and an airhead, but she proves herself to be a woman of perseverance and determination. The men’s struggle for dominance also reveals her marriage’s flaw. Torvald treats her like a doll he needs to take care of and show off to others. He underestimates her ability, similar to how society doubts that women can do more than just sit still and look pretty.

Clearly, the victimization of the story's heroine, Lily Bart, by the elite social "set" she associates herself with illustrates Wharton's disdain for the rigidity of this society against the individual. Lily is, at first, an example of the collective society she is a product of; however, as she finds herself being victimized for embracing individuality, a metamorphosis of her character takes place through an internal struggle over the faults of her external world, leading to her discovery of the truth and the loss of her innocence. Common associations with the word "innocence" are freedom from legal guilt, or someone childlike. Obviously, Lily is not a child, and the law in this country states that all individuals are innocent until proven guilty; unfortunately, society believes exactly the opposite, and treats suspected individuals accordingly. Even when one is brought to trial, it is hardly ever a fair court mainly due to preconceptions and prejudices.

If women were unable to marry, they turned to prostitution as an alternative out of economic necessity. The medieval society felt the need to stigmatize and exploit the single women for prostitution. The Victorians saw prostitution as a “social evil” and refused to accept it in their society. Prostitution was tolerated in a Shah 2 sense, but seen as big nuisance in the streets. Society was disturbed by it, but did nothing to change the problem.