Role Of Eve In John Milton's Sexism

Until the wave of feminism occurred in the 1970s, women’s societal roles were primarily that of caretakers of the home and mothers. Given the patriarchal society’s misogynistic views of women, any defiance from a woman was seen as rebellious. Geoffrey Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales creates characters that defy and uphold these diminishing views of women throughout various tales. In the first tale, “The Knight’s Tale,” Emily displays relatively positive feminine characteristics through her exhibition of courtly love.

Abigail blamed Tituba for witchcraft because Abigail did not want the blame and Tituba was an easy scapegoat since she is black. Abigail yelled at Paris, “She made me do it! She made Betty do it!”(1.905). This is just one of the victims of Abigail scapegoating. The main purpose, scapegoating, occurred more than vengeance did.

From the publication of East of Eden to today the rights and empowerment of women have escalated exponentially. Women are no longer obligated to follow the nurturing mother ideal; they can be independent and strong. Then, in the novel, East of Eden, some believe the author oversimplifies his female characters by filing them into either traditional, caring mothers or heinous villains. However, Steinbeck utilizes their simple, one-dimensional archetypes to show how complex his female roles truly are through subtle details.

This accusation of a woman being a witch meant that “their feminine souls made an explicit and aggressive choice to conjoin with the devil” (Reis, 94). Puritans believed they were not just manipulated by Satan, they willingly desired to be possessed by him. This was aggressive stance most Puritan men had towards Puritan women. Satan could get to their soul through their body because it was weak. With these women bringing Satan around it was easy now to understand why bad things always happened.

Throughout history, women have had to fight against stigma and stereotypes in society. In every era, from the ancient world to present day, females have been persecuted and taken advantage of due to their gender. In our previous set of readings, the female protagonists were strong characters who defied weak stereotypes, but were still viewed as lesser beings than men. In our second group of readings, where were written more recently, women saw a slight increase in their sovereignty. All depict women as powerful figures who use their wits to make a better life for themselves.

During the American Modernist period the first wave of feminism emerged during this period which many of its characteristics is seen in The House of Mirth. Women actively sought changes that would allow them to experience life as men’s equals rather than as their subordinates. Gender roles were rigidly defined, and women who resisted them were often ignored, and/or criticized. As a result of these and many other limiting factors, women, especially wives, were significantly dependent on men.   In Edith Wharton's Arguments with America, Elizabeth Ammons notes that:

”(Miller 100). At that point in time Mary Warren and John Proctor both tried to prove Abigail Williams and the other girls of faking it until, act 4 when she backstabbed John Proctor and made her own claim that John Proctor was satan. ”You’re the devil’s man.” (Miller 110). Mary knows what Abigail was always a threat and being on her side was an advantage, John Proctor was foolish for thinking Mary would keep her word and tell on the girls.

Abigail certainly abused her power once she realized, at the end of Act One, how powerful an accuser can be, she seized that role. Abigail also gained her power as women in Salem were the lowest class with few or no options in life. They usually worked as servants until they are old enough to marry. Abigail was also under the spell of John Proctor who took away her innocence when he committed adultery with her. As Puritans feared the opposition of god, Abigail’s accusations of witchcraft and the worshipping of the devil immediately grabbed the attention of the court.

Throughout the course of the nineteen twenties a woman’s role in society began to change. They started to become more independent and self serving. Although women were beginning to rebel during this time, Fitzgerald expresses the way women were categorized before the change within his novel. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald explores the subordination and derogation of women during the nineteen twenties. By doing so, he showcases them as unworthy, and does not give them proper recognition in how they were valued.

The role of women in “The Canterbury Tales” were as untrustworthy, selfish and vain and often like caricatures not like real people at all. A character that stood out and did not care on how she was looked at was The Wife of Bath. The wife appears to be more outspoken and independent than most women of medieval times, she became a symbolize for women and her character change the literature world. This tells us a lot about the roles men and women had to be in.

In the 1800’s and even the 1900’s women were not considered as equal as they are today, and misogyny was expected. Even still women are constantly fighting for equal rights, so the idea of men always having power or superiority over women hasn’t gone away. Considering that the two texts The Yellow Wallpaper and The Story of an Hour were both written in the early 1880’s, they have a very different approach to the men and women’s relationships that are present in the texts. In Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s, Yellow Wallpaper and Kate Chopin’s, The Story of an Hour both authors explore how the women in the stories have to hide their true identity, due to the influence of the men in their lives. The two writers each use similes/metaphors, a similar mood throughout the story and a great deal of imagery to outline

Women have been degraded over the millennials of human existence. They have been thought of as only beauty and childbearing, not for knowledge or leadership. In the time that the Arthurian Romances were written this mentality of women, by men, was at its peak. In the book of Erec and Enide, this degrading of women is especially noticeable because the beginning of the story is based on Erec finding his wife.

The Treatment of Women in Literature Since the beginning of time, women have always been considered less than or inferior to men. Although, the treatment of women has improved tremendously and women are seeing more opportunities than ever before, we still have a long way to go. Until recently, the majority of published writers were men and the depiction of women in literature was mainly one sided. No matter what time period or culture, women in literature usually take the back seat to men. The once popular TV drama series, Twin Peaks, which was created in 1990, and Joyce Carol Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?,” which was published in 1970, but was probably written in the 50s or 60s, are perfect examples of this.

In the colonial era, women did not have many rights, and people did not consider them as equals to men, especially in Puritan New England where the Puritan beliefs governed society. Society expected women to get married, have children, and obey their husbands; they considered anything outside of these limitations as radical confrontations to the law. The woman’s main contribution to society was to teach the young girls about the customs and appropriate behaviors of a woman (Jolliffe, Roskelly, 242.45). Strict barriers existed in a woman’s life, and if a woman were to break those boundaries, like Anne Hutchinson - a revolutionary Puritan spiritual advisor - did, critics accused them of being non-compliant and harmful to society. They considered

In traditional gender roles, even though it puts out each gender’s best qualities, it also prevents individuals from expressing their true selves and blossoming into beautiful people. Therefore, traditional gender roles will be disposed of in today’s society. In the story, Eve’s Apology, Aemilia Lanyer argues that Adam should be at fault, not Eve. Disposing of gender roles can more easily protect both genders equally and give them both a fighting chance when they’re accused.