Women In Edith Wharton's The Awakening And The House Of Mirth

Kate Chopin uses self experiences of feminism that she faced to create her novel “The Awakening”. "she experienced a revival in the latter part of the twentieth century because of her concerns with women 's issues, especially their freedom from societal (particularly masculine) mandates” (Timko). Kate Chopin was recognized more in the later part of the twentieth century because of concerns she had with the women 's issues for their freedom and the social aspect of their male partners. With the concerns that Chopin had for the freedom of the women and the social part of their relationship with men and had decided to show her concerns through the novel. especially her concern with women 's issues.

How come it 's always the women who are fighting for a stable and painless life? Why is it always the women who have the choice to live by suppressed under the society’s expectations or face the consequences of going against it and gaining nothing? Women equality has been an issue for a long time and it is dragged even to the present time. Fitzgerald, in his novel “The Great Gatsby” portrays women in two manners which are submissive and assertive but also showing how they both have desires for a comfort and stable life. Gender roles in society mean how certain genders are expected to act, speak, dress, groom, and conduct themselves.

From this moment on she is forced to choose between exploring her femininity and doing what she can in order to provide for herself. These features and typology of character are represented the best by two famous writers: Tennessee Williams and Margaret Mitchel. Despite their different artistic visions the two authors have created representatives of the Southern Belle. Blanche DuBois from A Streetcar Named Desire and Scarlett O’Hara from Gone With the Wind are the characters in charge of depicting the tremors of the Southern woman affected by the changes in society.

Not only were they expected to reside in the home but women were also tied down through marriage with the expectation of blindly following their husband without challenging their authority. Kate Chopin’s short story, “Story of an Hour”, uncovers the chilling truth of how women were perceived to have longed and enjoyed marriage during the 18th and 19th century when in actuality many felt confined, trapped and imprisoned due to what society and men wanted them to do. The story reveals that the impending pressures of having to become a good wife and mother along with patriarchal societal oppression oftentimes pressures a woman into experiencing a psychological breakdown that can result in fatal consequences. Chopin begins the story with the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard, being told

In her narrative, Jacobs appeals to her audience’s sense of pathos through her use of metaphors, allusions, and figurative language in order to make the hard lives of female slaves prevalent. By comparing herself to an inanimate object through the use of a metaphor, Jacobs causes the reader to understand the fact that slaves were not viewed as humans, but rather as property. Jacobs lived her early years of life completely ignorant towards the fact that she was a slave. However, it was the loss of Jacobs’ mother when the former was only six-years-old that changed that forever.

In order to be able to fully understand Chopin’s message, readers must envision the tradition of the Victorian society in which Kate lived. This was a society that clearly defined the gender role. Looking at Louse Mallard, one of the characters in the book, the author uses a woman who suddenly discovered a new life after the death of her husband. Ironically, Kate depicts Louise’s independence as a doomed fantasy because such freedom was actually unrealistic for the 19th Century woman.

Susan Glaspell, the playwright of Trifles relays feminist drama in a fascinating and psychological way. This play introduces women helping women in confinement to find freedom. Confinement can tear a woman apart, but the desire for freedom from society is embedded deep in the heart of all strong women. Trifles was written

• was a female voice amidst the male writers and poets . • Regarded as the poet of domestic affections, and an advocate for women at the center of the cult of domesticity. • In many of Hemans ' works, a choice is made by several female characters to take their own lives rather than suffer the social, political and personal consequences of their compromised situations. The social context in which Hemans was writing was not largely conducive to the writing of women, as many modern readers might assume according to the poet 's success The general idea: "Indian Woman 's Death Song" Felecia Dorothea Hemans introduces an Indian woman who decided life was too difficult to handle it anymore since her husband left her for another woman.

From women being portrayed as property to enabling women to take a stance on their freedoms. “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin conveys the message of how the married 19th-century woman felt. Chopin provided an insight of how the females were powerless when it came to their independence, how women were joyful about the death of a husband since it was the only way out of a controlling marriage, and the amount of dread that the women endure during a marriage. Mrs. Mallard could signify most of the married women of the 19th century. Chopin’s story displays that women are human just as much as men and that they should not be treated as belongings, but rather as a human, especially in

(St. Vincent Millay 1-4). In this poem, readers can see that during this period, women were beginning to question and rebel against the expectations society placed upon them. As St. Vincent Millay points out, women were now enjoying their freedom, but society still expected them to return to a placid lifestyle once they got married. As a result of the aforementioned expectation, a crucial question arises: why must a woman abandon her freedom in exchange for marriage?

She told her story to Pheoby and at the end she says, “Still and all, she’s he own woman. She oughta know by now whut she she wants tuh do. ”(Hurston p 156)

Feminism is a range of political movements, ideologies, and social movements that share a common goal. It defines, establishes, and achieves equal political, economic, personal, and social rights for women. “This was also the perspective conveyed by the best know histories of the American women’s movement published prior to 1970, in which feminism effectively began in 1848 at Seneca Falls and the focus was on votes for women” (Offen 6). In Margaret Atwood’s novel The Handmaid’s Tale shows how women advocated feminism in order to increase a political ideal. However, people say that it is impossible to read the novel without being aware of the issues of gender and the aspects of feminism, that are central to it.

Society’s model was not what the women wanted to make them happy or feel good about themselves. It was time to change it and they wanted something different than what society had in mind for them. Many women saw this rebellion as a reason the celebrate. The model for these women was changed and they loved the thought of being their own person. “Many flappers celebrated the age of the flapper as a female declaration of independence .

Because the story was written in the late 1800’s, we can draw the conclusion that the gender roles were similar to that of the author’s time period. Similar to that of historical gender views, women in the story are expected to find fulfillment in the home, while the men hold positions as high-ranking as physicians. The narrator’s lack of a name also reinforces the notion that she is speaking as the voice of women collectively, rather than as an individual. There are many themes present in "The Yellow Wallpaper" depending on one 's own interpretation of the work. However, perhaps the most prevalent themes in the story is a woman 's personal fight for freedom within the confines of a Victorian mentality.

Imagine living in a society that restricts women from expressing themselves and acting as freely as they want. A society that places pressure on women to play the role of what women are supposed to be, which is the “mother figure or caretaker. ” Till this day society still view women at an ever low stature compared to men. Women are always restricted as to how they are allowed to express themselves as individuals.