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Women in thomas hardy writing
representation of women in Hardys novels
Women in thomas hardy writing
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Return of the Native is a novel written by Thomas Hardy and was published in 1878. It is part of Hardy's Wessex Novel and takes place in Edgon Heath which is an area rife with witchcraft and superstitions. Eustacia Vye, Diggory Venn, and Clym Yeobright are all main characters in Return of the Native. However, they all have different physical appearances and personality traits which causes other characters in the novel to react to them differently.
Eustacia Vye is originally from Budmouth but moves to Edgon Heath to live with her grandfather, Captain Vye. Eustacia is described as beautiful young woman and is compared to a goddess. She has "pagan eyes that are full of nocturnal mysteries" (Hardy 63). Her black hair is compared to Sphinx, and she always gets referred to as the "Queen of Night" (Hardy 39). Eustacia attracts about every boy in Edgon Heath. Charley, a local servant, is willing to give Eustacia his role in the play just to hold her hand for ten minutes. Also, Damon Wildeve and Clym Yeobright are both in love with her. People in Edgon Heath, such as Mrs. Yeobright and Susan Nunsuch did not react to Eustacia very well. For instance, Mrs. Yeobright believes Eustacia is idle and wanton. She does not approve of Clym's and Eustacia's marriage and believes Eustacia is the reason behind Clym's disappointing actions. For instance, when Clym informs Mrs. Yeobright that he wants to stay in Edgon Heath, she says he is wasting his life away. Mrs. Yeobright states that if it had not been for Eustacia, Clym would never "entertained the teaching scheme" (Hardy 178). Susan Nunsuch accuses Eustacia of being a witch. Susan believes Eustacia casted a spell on Johnny and Susan Eustacia with a needle to prevent atrocious spirits upon her son.
Another main character in Hardy's novel Return of the Native is Diggory Venn. Diggory Venn has been in love with Thomasin Yeobright ever since his childhood. However, she rejects Diggory by writting a letter to him claiming she is not in love with him, and Mrs. Yeobright would not approve of him (Hardy 76). Although Diggory gets rejected by Thomasin, he does not stop caring for her. For instance, Diggory assures Thomasin's happiness by talking Damon Wildeve into marrying her. Being heart-brokened, Diggory quits his proffession as a diary farmer and becomes a reddleman, a person who sells red chalk to sheep farmers (Diggory Venn: the Reddleman).
Our perception of Lysander and Hermia’s love develops in the following events: Hermia chooses to become a nun rather than submit to marrying the man her father has chosen for her; Lysander comforts Hermia and shares his plan to elope; They lose their way in the woods and negotiate sleeping arrangements; Lysander deserts Hermia to pursue Helena and to kill his rival, Demetrius.
“Film is more than the instrument of a representation; it is also the object of representation. It is not a reflection or a refraction of the ‘real’; instead, it is like a photograph of the mirrored reflection of a painted image.” (Kilpatrick) Although films have found a place in society for about a century, the labels they possess, such as stereotypes which Natives American are recognized for, have their roots from many centuries ago (Kilpatrick). The Searchers, a movie directed by John Ford and starred by John Wayne, tells the story of a veteran of the American Civil War and how after his return home he would go after the maligned Indians who killed his family and kidnapped his younger niece. After struggling for five years to recover his niece back, who is now a young woman, she is rescued by his own hands. Likewise, Dances with Wolves is a Western film directed and starred by Kevin Costner. It is also situated during the American Civil War and tells the story of a soldier named John Dunbar that after a suicide attempt; he involuntarily leads Union troops to a triumph. Then, by his request he is sent to a remote outpost in the Indian frontier “before it’s gone”. There, the contact with the natives is eminent and thus it shows how through those contacts this soldier is transformed into another Indian that belongs with the Sioux to tribe and who is now called Dances With Wolves. While both John Ford and Kevin Costner emphasize a desire to apologize to the indigenous people, they use similar themes such as stereotypes, miscegenation, and the way characters are depicted; conversely, these two movies are different by the way the themes are developed within each film.
To further contrast Edgar’s and Nelly’s opinion s of Catherine ways, Edgar sees Catherine as docile, calm, and loving. This side to Catherine can be attributed to when she stays at the Linton’s home. Catherine spends five with the Linton’s and while she is there she does not show her rough rude side in their company. As describe by the narrator, she took care not to act like a young ruffian and worse than a brute; comparing her to Heathcliff (her lover). While on the other hand, Nelly recognizes this calm behavior displays by Catherine as one of double standard; she being deceitful to get her own
Demetrius received no love from Hermia who he wanted to pursue, therefore he does not have perfect happiness. At the time when Demetrius can still make rational choices of who he loves, he loves Hermia instead of Helena. In order to pursue Hermia, Demetrius requested Hermia’s father Egeus to marry to her, but she never take Demetrius as a consideration. With all of Demetrius’ efforts, Hermia totally ignores him. Compare to Lysander and Hermia’s inseparable relationship, Demetrius is unhappy by staying alone. The person he loves does not love him, and the person he does not love loves him. Demetrius is a person who knows what he wants. Throughout the play, he loves Hermia consistently until the fairy put a spell on his eyelid.
That Lysander, the devil who stole Hermia’s heart with bewitched “knacks, trifles, nosegays” and “sweetmeats”
In Jessica Bennett’s “Tales of a Modern Diva” and Daniel Akst’s “What Meets the Eye”,
...ouple that will never be, but finally all is set straight. Because the spell is still on his eyes and no one but the fairies know, Helena is finally free to love him as much as she wants and she is being loved in return. Hermia, as well, had persistence. When the spell was wrongly cast upon Lysander's eyes she kept telling him that he was to be in love with her, and that they are supposed to be together. They were to have a life together, and everything that comes out of his mouth is a lie. She knew deep down he did not and could not mean what he said. She never lost her faith and she was right. In the end each couple has their true love.
When most people think of "Indians," they think of the common stereotyped of the wild, yelling, half-naked "savages" seen on the television movies. With more modern movies like Dances with Wolves and some of the documentaries like How the West was Lost, some of these attitudes have changed. But the American public as a whole is still very ignorant of what it means to be a Native American-today, or historically.
Cloris forms a hyper-masculine, godlike image of Lysander which places an immense pressure on him to live up to her expectations. Although she is simply in accordance with the ideals of men that have previously been formulated by others, her compliance with such images only creates unrealistic expectations that will likely end in disappointment. The narrator states of Cloris’ discovery, “Finding that god of her desires disarmed of all his awful fires,” (112-113) which dramatizes Lysander’s downfall. The once fearsome thing is now characterized as, “cold as flowers bathed in the morning dew,” (114) becoming an altogether feminine portrait of something that is intended to be idealized as the epitome of manliness. His premature ejaculation is the ultimate sign of his descent into a non-masculine figure and a disappointment on both ends. Both Cloris and Lysander are similarly chastised only by society’s expectations, Cloris being a woman with lust and Lysander a man without his erection, and are unable to experience guiltless or unpressured pleasure,
When Columbus first set foot in the New World, he believed that he had arrived in the islands just off the coast of Cipango, known today as China. Thinking this, he called the people that he met Indians, as they lived on the islands that he falsely believed were the Indies. The term Indian spread back to Europe, as did the term Indies, and to this day, Native Americans are known as Indians, and the Caribbean islands are referred to as the West Indies. The Indians populated a much greater area than Columbus could have imagined, covering the land of two Continents. The Native people of these lands, known already by a term in their languages that roughly meant "the people", were now thrown into one large group called Indians, which stretched nearly pole to pole.
First, Godfrey Cass makes unsound decisions and causes problems for people. Initially, Godfrey secretly marries Molly; he would have been better off if he had married her in the open or had not married her at all. Dunstan uses Godfrey’s marriage to threaten him and says, “‘I might tell the Squire how his handsome son [is] married to a nice young woman, Molly Farren and [is] very unhappy because he [can’t] live with his drunken wife’”(24). Godfrey’s disgraceful marriage was a bad decision. Later, Molly is unhappy about their marriage because Godfrey resides in his fine house while she dwells in a dingy, small room. Molly hated that “her husband would be smiling and smiled upon, hiding her existence in the darkest corner of his heart” (108). Then, many years after Molly succumbs to her drug addiction, Godfrey unwisely decides to try to adopt his daughter Eppie who grew up with Silas. When Godfrey breaks the news to Eppie that he is her father, she “turns quite pale” (171) and replies, “But I can’t leave my father” (170). She is shocked that Godfrey had neglected her all of her life. It would have been nobler of Godfrey to claim Eppie as his own and reveal his marriage, but he was afraid of losing his reputation. Godfrey’s decision to marry Molly and not to claim Eppie creates turmoil in Raveloe.
In the first part of the play Egeus has asked the Duke of Athens, Theseus, to rule in favor of his parental rights to have his daughter Hermia marry the suitor he has chosen, Demetrius, or for her to be punished. Lysander, who is desperately in love with Hermia, pleads with Egeus and Theseus for the maiden’s hand, but Theseus’, who obviously believes that women do not have a choice in the matter of their own marriage, sides with Egeus, and tells Hermia she must either consent to marrying Demetrius, be killed, or enter a nunnery. In order to escape from the tragic dilemma facing Hermia, Lysander devises a plan for him and his love to meet the next evening and run-off to Lysander’s aunt’s home and be wed, and Hermia agrees to the plan. It is at this point in the story that the plot becomes intriguing, as the reader becomes somewhat emotionally “attached’’ to the young lovers and sympathetic of their plight. However, when the couple enters the forest, en route to Lysander’s aunt’s, it is other mischievous characters that take the story into a whole new realm of humorous entertainment...
“Come, Eurycleia, move the sturdy bedstead out our bridal chamber-that room the master built with his own hands. Take it out now, sturdy bed that it is, and spread it deep with fleece, blankets and lustrous throws to keep him warm.” (23.
However, the ideal relationships are not immune to experiencing unharmonious periods. Despite this, the ideal couples eventually found harmony which allowed them to experience a joyous ending. Lysander and Hermia have a harmonious relationship in that they display similar desires and mindsets. In the beginning, after declaring their love for one another Lysander and Hermia devise a plan to run away and elope (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 1.1.156-178). Even when they are not of the same mindset Hermia and Lysander find an amicable solution. After becoming lost in the forest, Lysander’s desire is for them to sleep together, Hermia refuses for fear of the disgrace that would be placed upon her if for some reason they did not become married. Even though Lysander is a reluctant he respects her wishes (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 2.1.47-67). On the other hand, the relationship between Oberon and Titania in spite of being plagued by dysfunction comes to a harmonious agreement. At the beginning Titania and Oberon are quarreling over the control of an Indian changeling boy (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 2.1.18-31). While under the influence of an enchantment that Oberon had placed on her Titania relinquishes the control of the changeling boy to Oberon (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 4.1.56-60). After the enchantment is removed from her Titania no longer has feelings of defiance toward Oberon (A Midsummer Night’s
Heathcliff and Catherine have loved each other since their childhood. Initially, Catherine scorned the little gypsy boy; she showed her distaste by “spitting” at him (Brontë 27). However, it was not long before Heathcliff and Catherine became “very think” (Brontë 27). They became very close friends; they were practically brother and sister (Mitchell 122). Heathcliff is intent upon pleasing Catherine. He would “do her bidding in anything” (Brontë 30). He is afraid of “grieving” her (Brontë 40). Heathcliff finds solace and comfort in Catherine’s company. When Catherine is compelled to stay at Thrushcross Grange to recover from her injury, she returns as “a very dignified person” (Brontë 37). Her association with the gente...