We will analyse, in this essay, the differences as well as the similarities which exist between Jane Eyre and Incidents in the life of a slave girl written by herself. We will see that they differ in terms of genre, the period of history in which they find themselves, the way the characters are presented and so forth. However, they share some of the main values concerning womanhood, race and some other aspects of life which they both treat in different ways and yet they do so in a specific aim. Charlotte Brontë and Harriet Jacobs present to us two texts which are both based in totally opposite moments in history. While many differences exist between the two texts, they have several aspects in common.
The notion that a young woman must be either engaged or pursuing an engagement was a common standard for women in the 19th century. Women looking for an engagement, must uphold high standards with strong morals as well as being wholly pure of both body and mind. Jane Austen depicts the main characters of her novels as being strong individuals in the midst of these societal standards. These significant morals in Northanger Abbey, influence the characters, such as Catherine and Isabella, in how they make their decisions. Additionally, the main character Catherine Morland, a young lady, learns the ways of presenting herself in the best light possible.
Academy Award winning actress, Viola Davis, once said that the stories of ordinary people can be the most compelling. This is because most people are ordinary and so they relate to people like themselves in literature and art. In Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, Austen uses sarcasm, understatements and characterization of Catherine’s family to characterize Catherine as ordinary and plain. After describing the way Catherine looks, Austen explains that she only goes in gardens to create mischief.
Though at first the melodrama and overplaying of the imagination scenes may seem to be a typical blunder on the part of the movie makers, they are actually consistent with Catherine’s character and poke fun at the melodrama often portrayed in movies of similar genres to Northanger Abbey. This parody on other films mirrors Austen’s parody of the gothic novel. Still, on the whole, there is something to be desired when looking at how the gothic does and does not find its way into the movies. Though the imagination scenes certainly do portray gothic scenarios as Catherine perceives them, they poke more fun at overdramatized film adaptations of romantic and 19th century novels than they do at the genre’s themselves. Furthermore, the imagination scenes are
During Austen’s lifetime, she wrote many novels that throughout the centuries have become a staple in modern literature. Yet, “Northanger Abbey,” was not published till after her death in 1817 (Gale). Many of her novels such as “Northanger Abbey” to tackle controversial topics of her time such as gender roles, class, and imperialism (Steinbach). Austen uses symbols within her novel to allude to works that may have influenced her such as “The Monk” by Lewis and “The Mysterious of Udolpho” by Radcliffe. However, the reference to Pandora’s box and the Abbey both represent Austen’s perspective about class.
Sexist Young Goodman Brown In reading this classic tale from 1853 which was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, I became intrigued first by the theme of the 1800’s with shadowy undertones of biblical evilness. Although, in reviewing the story further I noticed a certain distinctive trends of old world flare that was unmistakable. These tones are of sexism which sadly marked the time period historically to such extent in which the structured confinements of gender responsibilities. Hawthorne orchestrates the underpinning of chauvinism within the very first paragraph “put his head back, after crossing the threshold, to exchange a parting kiss with his young wife.
- Austen’s emphasis of the subjective is anachronistic; most of her contemporaries emphasize the particular while she emphasizes the variable. - However, Austen’s setting of Pride and Prejudice in “contemporary England” does
Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey is a Bildungsroman, a coming of age story that focuses on the psychological development of the protagonist, Catherine Morland. This essay will analyse the language and narrative techniques of the extract, and discuss how it suggests vicissitudes in Catherine’s personal perspectives and relationships. In addition, it will discuss the ‘domestic gothic’ and abuse ubiquitous in ordinary situations. Furthermore, it will argue how Austen’s rhetorical techniques work to encourage reader interest as well as exercising perception when distinguishing between appearance and reality. Finally, it will conclude by briefly discussing the significance of the extract within the novel’s wider themes.
In the fourteen century, men were always the superior, head of the household, the breadwinner, but women were always inferior, they would stay at home, do the house work, cook, and never would have a job. Well, times have changed. Women are reaching an equal status to men in political, social and economic matters It’s part of the idea called Feminism. In many ways the Wife of Bath displays many characteristic of women in the 21st century. Instead of being directed by men, she views herself as an independent person.
In the Victorian era, women were forced to marry, as they needed the security of a man. However, Austen uses logos to question the real inequality in the Victorian era’s ideology, that a woman is incomplete without a man. This allows the reader to analyse the state of society from a different perspective. Austen also starts her sentence with an assertive tone further supported with her firm word choices, through using the words, ‘…truth universally acknowledged’. These words are important in her building ethos allowing her to deliver her controversial message.
Jane Austen lived in a period at the turn from the eighteenth century to the nineteenth century, which was a period of mixed thoughts, which conflicted all the times. Among all the conflicts, the most important one was the disparity in social status between men and women. Not only men’s status was in the center of the society but also common people thought it was right that men were much more important than women were. In those days girls were neither allowed nor expected to study much because they did not have to work for a living. They were supposed to stay at home and look beautiful in order to get suitable husbands.
In Jane Austen’s novel, Sense and Sensibility she discusses feminism through the challenges women may face in marriage. Austen’s portrayal of her characters Elinor and Marianne demonstrate the struggles and pressures women face. These challenges can be seen through primogeniture, Elinor and Marianne’s approach to love and marriage, and a man’s ability to ruin or help women. The familial succession of assets typically went to the first-born son or the next male heir. In the case of John Dashwood, he inherited Norland estate after the death of his father leaving his half-sisters and stepmother “to quit the neighborhood Norland” and move to a small cottage in Devonshire.
Introduction Undoubtedly, two female authors Charlotte Brontë and Jean Rhys went down in history with their novels Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea which gained the hearts of people, especially women who might see themselves in the destinies of the two women depicted in the novels, and might be inspired, amazed, indignant or resentful by Jane’s unyieldingness, adherence to principles, braveness, desire for love and Antoinette’s energy, exotic nature, and madness. Doubtless, the novel of Charlotte Brontë Jane Eyre belongs to the most published and most read novels within the English literature. Among the very talented Brontë sisters, Charlotte excels the most, but it does not mean she would overshadow her sisters. Her novel Jane Eyre was published
Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility is a great example of her works that looks at the role of women in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Austen shows us the gender roles inflicted on women during this time period and how they are perceived. We see the strict gender roles that women were adhered to and the struggle for identity as a woman. Central to this novel is the vulnerability of women and the expectations surrounding gender influence everything and produce define results. Gender definitely determines and structures the world in which these characters live.
During Jane Austen’s work on “Pride and Prejudice,” Romanticism started to reach its complex, and had strong influence on people’s life, but Austen chose to reject the tenets of that movement. Romanticism emphasized on the power of feeling, but Austen supported rationalism instead. She substantiated traditional principles and the established rules; her novels also display an ambiguity about emotion and an appreciation for intelligence and natural beauty that aligns them with Romanticism. Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” is one of her most well-known works and even though the text is hard to understand, I would recommend it for high students because to me, it is the most characteristic and the most eminently quintessential work of Jane Austen.
