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Victorian Society
Mid-Victorian social structure of England
Victorian standards and expectations
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More handpicked essays just for you.
Victorian Society
Mid-Victorian social structure of England
Victorian standards and expectations
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Paul Dooley and Winnie Holzman’s Post-its (Notes on a Marriage) is an accurate representation of how fast life actually goes by once one becomes an adult. The play begins with two maturing adults, Actor and Actress, in the beginning stages of a dating relationship, and they quickly develop into a dysfunctional family of three. The scenes then progress to a renewed relationship between Actor and Actress, and as time goes on, one proceeds to witness Actor, Actress, and Eugenia grow and mature. While one reads the play, one sees that Actor and Actress’s relationship takes time and communication for them to grow together.
The Truth About John Proctor and Elizabeth Proctor’s Marriage Marriage is one of the most beautiful ways for people to connect and show their love for each other. They make vows and promise to always take care of each other no matter what happens. However, marriages can be very deceiving. In Act II of The Crucible, Arthur Miller uses language to show how awful and broken John Proctor and Elizabeth Proctor’s marriage is.
In the nineteenth century, woman had no power over men in society. They were limited in their freedom, as their lives were controlled by their husbands. Some women did not mind this lifestyle, and remained obedient, while some rebelled and demanded their rights. “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, are short stories that exposes the lifestyle women lived in the nineteenth century. The protagonists from both stories, Jane and Georgiana, similarly lived a male dominated lifestyle.
It is common for people in everyday society to conform to society’s expectations while also questioning their true desires. In the novel, The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, the main protagonist Edna Pontellier is said to possess, "That outward existence which conforms, the inward life that questions." In other words, Edna outwardly conforms while questioning inwardly. Kate Chopin, uses this tension between outward conformity and inward questioning to build the meaning of the novel by examining Edna’s role as a wife, mother, and as nontraditional woman in the traditional Victorian period. Edna outwardly conforms to society’s expectations by marriage.
During the 19th century, women were overshadowed by the men of their household, therefore they had no sense of independence nor dominance. In Mary Freeman’s short story, “The Revolt of Mother,” the author presents Sarah Penn, a woman who takes a stand against her husband. In the beginning, the reader learns that Sarah is a hardworking mother and wife. She maintains the household work and meets her children needs. She is suddenly confused of her husband’s actions concerning their future.
Gilman incorporates the literary techniques of tone and diction to provide the reader with a clear understanding of how the narrator falls into the beliefs of society, while she is confined and oppressed by her husband’s diagnosis of her being “Nervously Depressed”. Gilman’s use of both techniques allows the work to come together as a whole, and demonstrates the idea that women are content with living in a world were men is seen as more intelligent, able-minded and higher in standard than woman,
During the short story they attitude portrayed by the men not only towards Mrs. Wright, but their wives, reveals their belief on their superiority. When first arriving to the scene of the murder, the women are automatically hit with scrutiny from the men like the following; “ ‘ Those towels get dirty awful quick. Men’s hands aren’t always as clean as they might be.’ ‘Ah, loyal to your sex,I see’”(Glaspell 149). When trying to stick up for why Mrs. Wright’s kitchen wasn’t clean , Mrs. Hale was shot down with the county attorney’s sexist comment.
It may skew her thinking and at times be subjective. The intended audience is someone who is studying literature and interested in how women are portrayed in novels in the 19th century. The organization of the article allows anyone to be capable of reading it.
In this section of Drama and Dramatic Poetry, my English class read “Trifles” and “POOF!”. “Trifles” is a one-act play that is dramatic and serious. In this play, the husband, John Wright, was found strangled with a rope in his bedroom and all of the evidence points to his wife, Minnie Foster. The question explored throughout the play is why she killed him. The story hints that she was a victim of domestic violence, but the audience cannot be absolutely sure because it does not outright say it.
Many women were in fact belittled by the ideal of true womanhood and exhibited characteristics such as submissiveness or piety. Gilman also employs somber diction throughout the story, such as “crawl”(55) and “creep”(58) to suggest that covert agency is the only way for women to improve their situations at
“Her eyes meet mine for a second. ‘I hate you,’ she mouths silently” (Anderson 5). This quote is one example of a young girl’s merciless high school society in the novel Speak, written by Laurie Halse Anderson. Laurie Halse Anderson was born in 1961 in Potsdam, New York and has since gone on to become a best selling author. She was also honored with the 2009 Margaret A. Edwards award and had her novel, Speak, become a finalist for the National Book Award (“Laurie Halse Anderson…”).
Kate Chopin’s short story “The Story of an Hour” is set in the late 1800s – a time when women were considered inferior to men. Women had traditional roles as wives and mothers. In this 19th century patriarchal society, Chopin shows us Louise Mallard, the main character, who does not comply with the female gender norms of the Victorian period. When Louise learns about the death of her husband, her reaction and the reaction of her sister and the doctor tell us a great deal about gender stereotyping during this time. Louise Mallard is described to us as “firm” and “fair.
The nineteenth century was a critical point in time for women, in regards to their roles in society (“The Role
Sentence Assessment Task Rhetorical Analysis: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” (Austen) Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen) Austen’s famous statement on marriage and equality continues to resonate in modern society. In comparison to today, the Victorian era significantly suppressed women’s rights (Hughes). However, Austen juxtaposes that idea by stating that it is the man, no matter how wealthy, who ‘must be in want of a wife.’
Buvanasvari A/P Palakrisnan AEK140003 ACEA 1116 Elements of English Literature Dr. Nicholas Pagan Paper #3 From “Marriage” By Marianne Moore This institution, perhaps one should say enterprise out of respect for which one says one need not change one’s mind about a thing one has believed in, requiring public promises of one’s intention to fulfill a private obligation: I wonder what Adam and Eve think of it by this time, this firegilt steel alive with goldenness; how bright it shows— “of circular traditions and impostures, committing many spoils,” requiring all one’s criminal ingenuity to avoid!