Essay about Feminism in Jane Austen - 1034 Words

Feminism in Jane Austen quot;I often wonder how you can find time for what you do, in addition to the care of the house; and how good Mrs. West could have written such books and collected so many hard works, with all her family cares, is still more a matter of astonishment! Composition seems to me impossible with a head full of joints of mutton and doses of rhubarb.quot; -- Jane Austen, letter of September 8 1816 to Cassandra quot;I will only add in justice to men, that though to the larger and more trifling part of the sex, imbecility in females is a great enhancement of their personal charms, there is a portion of them too reasonable and too well informed themselves to desire any thing more in woman than ignorance.quot; --†¦show more content†¦And it has been pointed out that Jane Austen makes an implicit statement by simply disregarding certain strictures of her era that may not be obvious to modern readers. For example most of Jane Austens heroines (Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice, Elinor Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility, Fanny Price in Mansfield Park, Anne Elliot in Persuasion, and even Emma Woodhouse in Emma) dont have anyone whom they can confide in, or whose advice they can rely on, about certain delicate matters. Thus they must make their own decisions more or less independently (for example, Elizabeth Bennet doesnt reveal to Jane, her sister and closest confidante, her changed feelings about Darcy until he has actually proposed again, and she has accepted). Similarly, in a letter of November 30th 1814 to her niece Fanny Knight, discussing whether Fanny should engage herself to one Mr. Plumtre, Jane Austen wrote: quot;...you must not let anything depend on my own opinion. Yo ur own feelings amp; none but your own, should determine such an important pointquot;. Such moral autonomy on the part of young women would by no means have been universally approved of in Jane Austens day, as can be seen from Sir Thomass diatribes in Mansfield Park, when Fanny Price is resisting his advice to marry Henry Crawford. Thus another novel writer, (Fanny Burney) hadShow MoreRelatedFeminism, By Jane Austen1314 Words   |  6 PagesIn the novel, Emma, Austen presents a view of feminism that, at this point in time is quite outstanding for her to do. Men were the dominant gender and in England women remained submissive to the men at all times. Women had specific roles in the household and in society. When the girls are young, they are expected to obey their fathers until they are grown and passed off to a husband so they are financially supported at all times during their life. Emma is a story about the everyday life of EmmaRead MoreJane Austen and Her Feminism1158 Words   |  5 PagesJane Austen and Her Feminism ---analyzing of feminism revealed in Pride and Prejudice Introduction It is universally acknowledged that Jane Austen was a major woman novelist in English; but it is also a truth that almost as universally ignored that Jane Austen was a feminist. By intensively reading her six novels (Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Northanger Abbey, Mansfield Park, Emma and Persuasion) and studying feminism, I have found some significant and fresh thingsRead More Feminism in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Essay1713 Words   |  7 PagesFeminism in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Jane Austen, the author of Pride and Prejudice, holds feminist views and uses the novel to show her opinions about womens issues. 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Also satirizes women would depend on marriage in exchange to make a living or money in that era. By the effect of society bourgeois, Emma has little self-arrogant. She is a middl e class that everyone could admire, â€Å"Young, pretty, rich and clever†, sheRead More Taking The Castle of Otranto as your example, outline the main conventions1454 Words   |  6 Pagesproperty, and their desire for something far more extraordinary and exciting than simply to be a domestic woman. The use of the supernatural by Walpole is so frequent and monstrous as to excite laughter rather than terror but for Radcliffe and Austen the supernatural is not visible but is an invisible hand that makes sure that good always triumphs and evil is always punished (Andriopoulos, 1999) . It is necessary to be aware of these Gothic conventions to be receptive too much of the humourRead MoreJane Austen s Pride And Prejudice1116 Words   |  5 PagesAccording to the Oxford English Dictionary, feminism is described as â€Å"the advocacy of equality of the sexes and the establishment of the political, social and economic rights of the female sex.† It emphasizes the many ways women have been suppressed, repressed, and oppressed. Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, is about Elizabeth, a young middle-class woman who falls in love with Mr. Darcy, a rich, prideful man whom she has sworn to loath based on a misguided first impression. Furthermore, it’sRead MoreFemininity in Eighteenth-Century England Essay1667 Words   |  7 Pagespertain to every English woman, as seen in Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice. The novel follows the Bennet sisters on their quest for marriage, with much of it focusing on the two oldest sisters, Jane and Elizabeth. By the end, three women – Jane, Elizabeth, and Elizabethà ¢â‚¬â„¢s friend, Charlotte Lucas – are married. However, these three women differ greatly in their following of feminine concepts, as well as their attitude towards marriage. Austen foils Jane, Charlotte, and Elizabeth’s personasRead MoreJane Austins Pride and Prejudice: A Famous Work of Englands Regency Period 1636 Words   |  7 Pagesridiculed these social standards in their writing. Famous novelist Jane Austen was known for satirizing many social customs of the Regency Period in her romantic fiction novels, placing a special emphasis on women’s rights. Pride and Prejudice in particular depicted protagonist Elizabeth Bennet as a smart, headstrong, free thinking individual who didn’t let negative outside forces sway her beliefs. In Pride and Prejudice, Austen challenges the social propriety and creates her own ideals for women