Part of what I've been working on...
Apr. 20th, 2005 07:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
songofjoy02Freedom? Were they free? Okay, it's actually pretty stupid...but it's a common theme and easy to write a paper that works. If I really wanted to tell the truth, well, that would take much longer and...I'd have to start preaching.;-) But it's really interesting to see this all from a Christian perspective, realizing that what's missing is not something that any human or societal change is going to alter...it's a matter of actually knowing the truth. But of course that's not in my paper...=\ Oh, and this is the kind of thing that is what most likely causes some people to think I'm a feminist. By the way, it's not finished...
In the nineteenth century, several writers described the plight of women in society at the time in a way that demonstrated that their identities were almost solely determined by marriage. Henrik Ibsen, in his play Hedda Gabler, showed that Hedda had married for social acceptance rather than for love and that she felt constrained by her relationship with her husband the academic. Kate Chopin, in “The Story of an Hour,” described one woman’s taste of freedom when she thought her husband was dead. Charlotte Gilman, in “The Yellow Wallpaper,” described the life of a woman subjected to confinement for a nervous illness that her husband-doctor’s prescription exacerbated to the point of insanity. Ironically, all three situations ended in tragedy—death for two of the characters and insanity for the third. In each of these cases, marriage was the relationship that most constrained the women as all three sought freedom as individuals. Despite their efforts to obtain the freedom that they did not possess, not one of the three lived to enjoy the results of their efforts. Due to their marriages and societal expectations, it appears that none of them truly had freedom to make their own choices, yet all of them desired freedom; this reality is evident for each of them in their circumstances, desires, attempts to gain or experiences with freedom, and results of their pursuit of freedom.
The circumstances of each woman could not be directly attributed to her husband. Mrs. Mallard, in Chopin’s story, simply desired freedom from marriage, a relationship in which she was not in “possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being” (Chopin 932). Pondering the assumption of her husband’s death, she realized that she would be “[f]ree! Body and soul free!” (Chopin 932), rather than subject to a “powerful will bending hers” (Chopin 932). The story gives no indication that her husband was in any way abusive or particularly undesirable. In fact, Mrs. Mallard “had loved him—sometimes” (Chopin 932). While Hedda’s husband was by no means a romantic man and Hedda certainly was not in love with him, he seemed to be a decent husband, at least somewhat concerned about his wife, even if he did value his books more. The husband in Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” appears to have been a well-meaning physician who prescribed for his wife what he honestly thought was the best treatment for her depression, which seems quite plausible since his wife reports that her “brother is also a physican, and also of high standing, and he says the same thing” (Gilman 941). Despite the apparently positive intentions of each of the husbands, though, the women all felt some type of confinement, literally or figuratively. More than reflecting on the husbands themselves, these three situations show how society’s expectations then for women to be married confined women to an existence that rarely allowed them a taste of freedom.
In this time period, though, women were beginning to reject traditional notions of marriage. In these situations, none of the women actually tried to escape by divorce (which, perhaps, was not an option), but each one did desire to have some kind of freedom. Mrs. Mallard, in “The Story of an Hour,” was not necessarily seeking freedom, yet it was one of her first thoughts when someone told her that her husband was dead, the sensation that followed her immediate shock, for “she felt it, creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her” (Chopin 931). Dr. John’s wife did her best to convince herself that what she was doing in following her husband’s orders was correct and helpful, even though she often appeared to feel otherwise. She plainly stated, “Personally, I disagree with their ideas” (Gilman 941). Still, she looked daily for some means of escape. Hedda Gabler did not seek to escape her marriage through divorce, but she was quite willing to try to find freedom from the monotony of her marriage by toying with other men. This desire for freedom led the women to seek means of escape from the confinement of the lives that society had thrust upon them.
Gilman’s insane lady tried to gain freedom by scratching off the yellow wallpaper in order to find release in “creeping” (950). Chopin’s Mrs. Mallard felt like she was finally free when she heard that her husband had died (931). Hedda was seeking freedom through “choice,” which she still seemed to believe could happen when her friend Løvborg shot himself (Ibsen 613). She tried to facilitate his “freedom” as much as possible by providing the gun for him to destroy himself (Ibsen 606), by encouraging him to drink alcohol (Ibsen 593), and by destroying the book (Ibsen 606) that had given him the motivation to live because “Thea’s soul was in that book” and it had given him hope for a “future for [them] together” (Ibsen 606). In a way, though, she was also trying to find freedom by attempting to gain “power over another human being. To change his destiny” (Ibsen 595). When Løvborg committed suicide, Hedda initially saw it as a beautiful act of choice, “an act of deliberate courage,” that she could imitate in order to obtain her own freedom (Ibsen 613). However, none of these circumstances were what they appeared to the women to be.
Gilman’s sick woman thought she had found escape by scratching off the wallpaper, but she was actually insane. Chopin’s Mrs. Mallard thought she was free from marriage because her husband was dead, but he turned out to be alive, having “been far from the scene of the accident” (932). Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler thought that suicide was a choice that would give meaning to her life, but she did not kill herself until she felt like that was her only option. In all three cases, the freedom that they thought they had turned out to be an illusion, a promise left unfulfilled. Society in the nineteenth century did not give women freedom to make their own choices, except within the framework of a strongly patriarchal environment. If suicide and insanity are escape, then all three escaped; if escape must mean freedom, however, none of them truly escaped. The culture of the nineteenth century held them captive.
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.” The Bedford Anthology of World Literature: Book V. Ed. Paul Davis. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003. 931-32.
Gilman, Charlotte. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” The Bedford Anthology of World Literature: Book V. Ed. Paul Davis. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003. 941-53.
Ibsen, Henrik. Hedda Gabler. The Bedford Anthology of World Literature: Book V. Ed. Paul Davis. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003. 560-617.
Freedom?
In the nineteenth century, several writers described the plight of women in society at the time in a way that demonstrated that their identities were almost solely determined by marriage. Henrik Ibsen, in his play Hedda Gabler, showed that Hedda had married for social acceptance rather than for love and that she felt constrained by her relationship with her husband the academic. Kate Chopin, in “The Story of an Hour,” described one woman’s taste of freedom when she thought her husband was dead. Charlotte Gilman, in “The Yellow Wallpaper,” described the life of a woman subjected to confinement for a nervous illness that her husband-doctor’s prescription exacerbated to the point of insanity. Ironically, all three situations ended in tragedy—death for two of the characters and insanity for the third. In each of these cases, marriage was the relationship that most constrained the women as all three sought freedom as individuals. Despite their efforts to obtain the freedom that they did not possess, not one of the three lived to enjoy the results of their efforts. Due to their marriages and societal expectations, it appears that none of them truly had freedom to make their own choices, yet all of them desired freedom; this reality is evident for each of them in their circumstances, desires, attempts to gain or experiences with freedom, and results of their pursuit of freedom.
The circumstances of each woman could not be directly attributed to her husband. Mrs. Mallard, in Chopin’s story, simply desired freedom from marriage, a relationship in which she was not in “possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being” (Chopin 932). Pondering the assumption of her husband’s death, she realized that she would be “[f]ree! Body and soul free!” (Chopin 932), rather than subject to a “powerful will bending hers” (Chopin 932). The story gives no indication that her husband was in any way abusive or particularly undesirable. In fact, Mrs. Mallard “had loved him—sometimes” (Chopin 932). While Hedda’s husband was by no means a romantic man and Hedda certainly was not in love with him, he seemed to be a decent husband, at least somewhat concerned about his wife, even if he did value his books more. The husband in Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” appears to have been a well-meaning physician who prescribed for his wife what he honestly thought was the best treatment for her depression, which seems quite plausible since his wife reports that her “brother is also a physican, and also of high standing, and he says the same thing” (Gilman 941). Despite the apparently positive intentions of each of the husbands, though, the women all felt some type of confinement, literally or figuratively. More than reflecting on the husbands themselves, these three situations show how society’s expectations then for women to be married confined women to an existence that rarely allowed them a taste of freedom.
In this time period, though, women were beginning to reject traditional notions of marriage. In these situations, none of the women actually tried to escape by divorce (which, perhaps, was not an option), but each one did desire to have some kind of freedom. Mrs. Mallard, in “The Story of an Hour,” was not necessarily seeking freedom, yet it was one of her first thoughts when someone told her that her husband was dead, the sensation that followed her immediate shock, for “she felt it, creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her” (Chopin 931). Dr. John’s wife did her best to convince herself that what she was doing in following her husband’s orders was correct and helpful, even though she often appeared to feel otherwise. She plainly stated, “Personally, I disagree with their ideas” (Gilman 941). Still, she looked daily for some means of escape. Hedda Gabler did not seek to escape her marriage through divorce, but she was quite willing to try to find freedom from the monotony of her marriage by toying with other men. This desire for freedom led the women to seek means of escape from the confinement of the lives that society had thrust upon them.
Gilman’s insane lady tried to gain freedom by scratching off the yellow wallpaper in order to find release in “creeping” (950). Chopin’s Mrs. Mallard felt like she was finally free when she heard that her husband had died (931). Hedda was seeking freedom through “choice,” which she still seemed to believe could happen when her friend Løvborg shot himself (Ibsen 613). She tried to facilitate his “freedom” as much as possible by providing the gun for him to destroy himself (Ibsen 606), by encouraging him to drink alcohol (Ibsen 593), and by destroying the book (Ibsen 606) that had given him the motivation to live because “Thea’s soul was in that book” and it had given him hope for a “future for [them] together” (Ibsen 606). In a way, though, she was also trying to find freedom by attempting to gain “power over another human being. To change his destiny” (Ibsen 595). When Løvborg committed suicide, Hedda initially saw it as a beautiful act of choice, “an act of deliberate courage,” that she could imitate in order to obtain her own freedom (Ibsen 613). However, none of these circumstances were what they appeared to the women to be.
Gilman’s sick woman thought she had found escape by scratching off the wallpaper, but she was actually insane. Chopin’s Mrs. Mallard thought she was free from marriage because her husband was dead, but he turned out to be alive, having “been far from the scene of the accident” (932). Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler thought that suicide was a choice that would give meaning to her life, but she did not kill herself until she felt like that was her only option. In all three cases, the freedom that they thought they had turned out to be an illusion, a promise left unfulfilled. Society in the nineteenth century did not give women freedom to make their own choices, except within the framework of a strongly patriarchal environment. If suicide and insanity are escape, then all three escaped; if escape must mean freedom, however, none of them truly escaped. The culture of the nineteenth century held them captive.
Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.” The Bedford Anthology of World Literature: Book V. Ed. Paul Davis. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003. 931-32.
Gilman, Charlotte. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” The Bedford Anthology of World Literature: Book V. Ed. Paul Davis. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003. 941-53.
Ibsen, Henrik. Hedda Gabler. The Bedford Anthology of World Literature: Book V. Ed. Paul Davis. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2003. 560-617.
