Women's Roles In Viking Society

The Canterbury Tales displayed women as an ideology that women could not hold power and that beauty could be obtained by altering their appearance for women to become attributes for men. In this society, Chaucer is sympathetic to women while also realizing that men own women. The Wife of Bath went through five husbands, each giving her just what she wanted. All of her marriages taught her something different, either you get love or your give love.

It was common for men to outnumber women, which is what caused these laws to be put into place. “Shortage of women made them more valued than in Europe, and the Puritan emphasis on well-ordered family life led to laws protecting wives from physical abuse and allowing for divorce.” (George Brown Tindall, 113) Also colonial laws were formed to allow wives more control over property that they contributed or inherited after the death of their husbands. (George Brown Tindall, 113) Nevertheless, even with these slight improvements men were still seen as being superior to women.

She states that Stella and Stanley are not the only couple that deals with domestic abuse. She addresses the fact that their neighbors Eunice and Steve Hubbell’s relationship also has this element of violence, stating that, “there is an unnerving suggestion that violence is more common and more willingly accepted by the female partner in a marriage than one would like to believe” (Woolway, 1). Back in the 19th century, gender roles were prominent, and men were considered the “kings of the castle.” Women were considered to be subordinate to men, and in some cases would have to suffer in order to keep the man of the house happy. In the play, however, gender roles were not as prominent, because the story takes place in the 20th century, however, they still existed.

This is opposite of social norms in the nineteenth century because a woman having sexual desires was not natural, and she must be coerced into sexual acts by a man. Chopin writes a story where Calixta’s sexual desire builds without her really noticing it because a women having sexual desires is natural. Calixta is described as “greatly occupied and [does] not notice the approaching storm” (154). Calixta puts her needs and wants to the side to take care of her husband and son, but now she needs to do something for herself. In the late-nineteenth-century, women were thought to be happy with whatever their man could give them, Calixta wants more.

In the Victorian era, gender inequality was daily life. Men were most often the dominant power in a relationship whereas women were expected to be pure and innocent. In an era of arranged marriages, women belonged to their husbands and were attached to their households. However, Wilde has questioned these gender roles and created rather independent and powerful female characters in the play. Though Lady Bracknell and Jack have to give their consent as an approval of marriage to their wards, Gwendolen and Cecily, women show dominance over men in each relationship.

The play “Trifles” written by Susan Glaspell majorly mirrors the relationship between husbands and wives, and their attitudes towards resolving daily hassles. The men were looking for the “effects” while the women were concerned with “causes”. Mr. and Mrs. Hale were the closest friend of the family of Mr. Wright John and aware of the strain in their marriage. Mr. Hale’s superficial effort to salvage the situation caused more harm than the deep emotional insight of Mrs. Hale who tried to save her friend. Mr. Hale’s testimony showed how close he was to the family.

Between The Odyssey’s Penelope and Athena, and Cold Mountain’s Ada and Ruby, the pairs mutually work to better the situation with men journeying to the major characters, Penelope and Ada. Ada compares to Penelope as both have husbands away at war, but there is more than just that. Ada and Penelope both age and mature well in the arms of their comforters. Ada, by herself, was rather in need of help and would not be able to continue duties on her own. Penelope, on the other hand, managed to maintain the household even as her husband, Odysseus, left a mess in the palace.

The gender stereotype presented in this story is when the narrator who is unnamed, is restricted to being obedient to her authoritative husband. Instead of being a loving and passionate husband, John takes on a more commanding role advancing through the story. Another stereotype is that the males in the story are predominantly more erudite in terms of careers and professions. As the narrator states “My brother is also a physician… of high standing.” (130)

This was a time period where women were frowned upon and men were seen as superior, both mentally and physically. Women in Ancient Greece plays were usually played as servants, or mothers. They had such a negative connotation on them because men were meant to be the root of the family and women were known to clean and wait for their husbands to come back from war. Men were allowed to sleep with multiple people and it wouldn’t look atrocious (especially if you were a god), as if a women slept with multiple individuals, she would be treated and looked upon as unfaithful, un-loyal, would probably get a punishment, and would be frowned upon by every person in the

As so eloquently said by Andrew Carnegie, “Teamwork is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.” This quote is asserting the fact that in order for a healthy marriage to be successful, one spouse cannot have dominance over the other. The Wife of Bath was a well travelled woman who had a past of having several different husbands. Therefore, she had a noticeably refined view of marriage.

The Icelandic Norse during the Viking Age were clever craftsmen and navigators with strong religious, family, and character values. During the middle ages in Europe, any settlement would require farmers, traders, and craftsmen, to name a few. In Norse society Nordic women upheld those positions, acting more as equals. Norse enemies such as Christian monks saw them only as warriors, heathens, and bloodthirsty, a society of aggressive men with subservient females. This belief can be seen within the works of Christian writers of the Viking Age.