American Era Sexism

Since the first major outbreak of female dominance during World War II, in which women gained power and credibility by filling in the void created by men in the workforce who had to leave their jobs to fight in the army, women all over the world continue to struggle for equality and demolish traditional patriarchal dynamics apparent in society once and for all. Despite their decades of endeavor to prove themselves more worthy than mere housewives, women, ultimately, are pushed back down to their conventional “place” in society simply because of an invincible prejudice that men are better, stronger, and more fit to hold power. In recent events, however, those who shockingly go against these norms have caught the attention of society and have

The sexism evident during the era develops different standards for men and women as while amiable men are described as polite, rich, and handsome, there is no mention that a man must paint or sing well, or speak five different languages.Women, on the other hand, are expected to “have a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing, [and] all the modern languages to deserve the world” and be deemed accomplished (Austen 35). These achievements are not for their own sake, but only to attract a good man as a husband. Elizabeth is well conscious of this shallow identity of females, and yet, she blatantly prefers to cultivate her knowledge and her mind instead by reading and admits that she does not have a knack for singing or playing the piano well. She understands that a woman does not practice playing the piano for hours to enjoy herself, but because it is what society says a woman should do. Elizabeth openly disagrees with society’s guidelines to spend her entire life just to fulfill the qualifications needed to become an outstanding candidate as a wife, and chooses to live for herself and to be an educated and fully developed woman that she wants to

Most people during his time accepted the fact that men were innately superior to women, and that this inequality between the genders was acknowledged as reality. So, when Mr. Collins conceitedly proposes to Elizabeth, he, of course, has no doubt that she will unhesitatingly accept this marriage. However, Elizabeth is against this conventional view of women, for she is very confident in her own sense of intelligence and judgment, and proceeds to coldly reject Mr. Collins’ offer, going as far as to telling him to consider her as a “rational creature” rather than an “elegant female” (Austen 105). Although Elizabeth is poor and practical and realizes that her marriage with Mr. Collins would have been the best for her and her family’s financial stability, she believes that she stands equal and has as much say in her marriage as Mr. Collins, therefore should be free to choose her own spouse. Somewhat of a romanticist, Elizabeth desires a marriage based on equality and mutual respect and love between husband and wife, something that she prioritizes above financial security. Likewise, her turndown of Mr. Darcy’s first marriage proposal further emphasizes her aspiration of a meaningful marital relationship. A consensus with him would offer extensively more stability than with Mr. Collins, yet