A Critique to Eurocentric Community: the Reversion of the Idea of Submissive non-Caucasian Women in Robinson’s Monkey Beach and David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly
Despite the different genre of the two literary works, patriarchal values are amazingly apparent in David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly and Eden Robinson’s Monkey Beach. These literary works have appalled so many people for the criticism to a patriarchal system that lives within most of the world’s societies, especially on the depiction of non-Caucasian submissive women. In my perspective, the reversion of the idea of submissive women in both works appears to be a criticism to a Eurocentric paradigm that defines “common” gender and racial stereotype.
In my opinion, both works present White-centered
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By portraying Gallimard as Pinkerton, the pedantic American who longs for Butterfly, Hwang indirectly put the audience’s expectation that the woman Gallimard will meet is the submissive one or someone that resembles Cio-Cio San. In Act 1 Scene 3, Gallimard even said “It’s true what they say about Oriental Girls. They want to be treated bad!” In addition, Hwang even creates a binary world between the East and the West. It grows stronger when Helga, Gallimard’s real wife, says, “East is east, west is west.” This evokes such a contrast idea between Asians and Westerners. In Monkey Beach, Eden Robinson also conveys the submissive first nations’ women stereotype through sex assaults that appear frequently in the story. Those sex assault’s victims are mostly the women, such as Lisa herself, Karaoke or Adelaine (Jim’s girlfriend), and Erica. In Lisa’s case, it happened when she already twenty years old with Cheese who accidentally drug and assaulted her. While Karaoke was abused and assaulted by her own uncle, Josh, who is actually close with Jimmy. Erica, both Lisa’s friend and cousin, was attached by …show more content…
In M. Butterfly, the fact that Song Liling had been fooled the innocent Gallimard is the act of dominance. Also, the reversion significantly appears when Gallimard started to know that Song Liling is actually a man. In Act 3 Scene 2, Song’s superiority increased, especially when she says to Gallimard, “Come here, my little one.” The ending is also a reversion to the whole story. While Puccini’s Madame Butterfly picture the Asian woman who kills herself, Hwang makes the Westerner at the submissive side and end up with a suicide. Thus, the racial and gender stereotype is overturned from the submissive Asian women into the dominant Asian women, and from the superior White man into the inferior man. In Monkey Beach, the reversion is seen by the focus of the plot that goes highlighting Lisa until the end of the story. At chapter I and II, many characters especially related to violence, both sexually or not, involved in the story. However, starting with Chapter III when Lisa was finding the sasquatch the story goes intimate to the searching and Lisa herself. Lisa tells how her lonely trip accompanied by spirits a mystical phenomenon around her. In this case, Robinson highlights Lisa’s independence as a Haisla woman by picturing her make the trip alone. Furthermore, Lisa’s decision by accepting her
Eden Robinson and Constance Lindsay Skinner depict the harrowing treatment of Indigenous people through intimate unveiling of memories and dialogue, allowing readers to connect and sympathize with the characters. It also shows the intergenerational damage of residential schools and injustices experienced, and continue to be experienced, by the Aboriginal population. Birthright and Monkey Beach show that past abuse and injustices can lead to a continually viscous cycle of violence and trauma.
Toni Morrison’s use of her character Hagar emphasizes this point and furthermore exemplifies how this culture of identity can effect a romantic relationship. We observe this as Hagar becomes obsessed with the idea of meeting the standards of beauty in order to get milkman back because she has seen him with a woman who is of a lighter complexion who better fits the standard than Hagar herself does, “That had been shoulders of a girl whose silky copper-colored hair cascaded over the sleeve of his coat.” (Morrison 127).The lighter complexion of the woman fits better with the culturally accepted idea of beauty and feeds into the debate of light skin vs dark skin girls which ultimately ties back to the white-washed culture because lighter skin women are thought to be more attractive because their skin is closer to that of a white woman’s’ this can be seen in the diction that Morrison choices with the use of descriptive words such as silky and copper-haired, adjectives that normally describe the Caucasian woman. To coincide with idea of Caucasian attributes being beautiful Morrison also criticizes consumer beauty. We examine this As Hagar tries to achieve the physical beauty of the cultural standard it appears that the only products to available are those marketed for white women, "Morrison’s implied comparison between the attributes of popularized, white consumer beauty and the O.K
Octavia Butler’s trilogy Lilith’s Brood contains a myriad of characters who would be marked as “different” in contemporary American society, whether it is because of their race, gender, sex, or species. Their differences are often the catalyst for conflict between others who see themselves as more normal and, therefore, better and higher ranked in the human hierarchy. Butler’s disdain for human hierarchical tendencies is clear in Lilith’s Brood as she often calls human intelligence and hierarchy “the human contradiction”. Using the protagonists Lilith, Akin, and Jodahs, Butler criticizes the misconceptions formulated about race, sex, and gender and, through their interactions with others, underlines the illogical harassment that often derives from the fear of what we do not yet understand.
In the closing lines of M. Butterfly, Gallimard, the hapless French diplomat/accountant turned spy, says, "I have a vision. Of the Orient" (92). At the moment he is speaking of his remaining belief that there are beautiful women, as he thought his "Butterfly" was, but it is indicative of the colonial impulse. Colonization becomes possible because a society can characterize another society in ways that make colonization seem like a positive endeavor. As Said notes, the characterization of other cultures, such as the Orient or Africa, is carried out in the popular realm through works of art, literature and drama. Indeed, books, plays, poems and stories are just a few of the forms used to indoctrinate the masses of a colonizing nation with the rationale and impulse to colonize.
all, Song has deceived a somewhat intelligent individual for over twenty years. I saying , Song :"Rule One is " Men always believe what they want to hear." ( 82 ) I don't think that is entirely accurate,but Song has proven it to be throughout the play in dealing with Gallimard. So basically in that area Song's "rule" applies. Gillimard wanted to believe his "love" was indeed a young , Oriental woman. He refused to acknowlege otherwise because that was his " fantasy". However, I must disagree when "Rule One" also states, Song: " So a girl can tell the most obnoxious lies and the guys will believe them every time--" (82 ) Again, as far as Song's relationship with Gillimard is concerned, it is again truthful. However, I think that would be an extreme exaggeration in speaking of "men" in general, even in terms of "men" in this play. I don't think Song could have fooled Marc for very long. I think perhaps we see some of Hwang's own experiences in his life poking through into the play.
The issue of cultural stereotypes and misconceptions thematically runs throughout David Henry Hwang’s play M. Butterfly. The play is inspired by a 1986 newspaper story about a former French diplomat and a Chinese opera singer, who turns out to be a spy and a man. Hwang used the newspaper story and deconstructed it into Madame Butterfly to help breakdown the stereotypes that are present between the East and the West. Hwang’s play overall breaks down the sexist and racist clichés that the East-West have against each other that reaffirm the Western male culture ideas. The stereotypes presented in the play revolve around the two main characters, Gallimard and Song. The play itself begins in the present with Gallimard, a French diplomat who has been incarcerated in a Beijing prison. He relives his fantasies for the past with his perfect woman and shares his experience with the readers throughout the remainder of the play. Upon Gallimard’s arrival in China, he attends the opera and meets Song, and Gallimard immediately describes Song as his “butterfly”. Gallimard falls in love with the “delicate Oriental woman” that Song portrays (22). He then buys into the Western male stereotype that Eastern women need protection by strong, masculine Western men. Gallimard ends up falling in love with Song and has an affair with her to fulfill the stereotypical idea of a dominant Western male controlling an Eastern woman. Throughout Gallimard’s relationship with Song, the readers discover that Song is in reality a male spy for the Chinese government. Song had manipulated his looks and actions to mirror those of the ideal Chinese woman in order to earn Gallimard’s affection. M. Butterfly’s main issue arises from the cultural stereotypes of the masculin...
...ding white, male superiority. Back in high school, I dated a non-Asian male from my class who often talked about how Asian women are “hot and sexy” yet “more faithful to men and less aggressive than White women.” At the time, I thought this was a compliment and I often tried to conform to this stereotype in order to satisfy my partner. Images of Asian-American women as both innocent and dangerous have legitimized any racist and sexist policies directed at Asians and women.
For example, in Act 1, Scene 1 of “Trifles”, when Mrs. Wright is being held accountable for her husband’s death and she worries over the state of her jars of jam, Mr. Hale makes the observation, “Well, women are used to worrying over trifles.” (Act 1, Scene 1). In this excerpt, we determine this play portrays women as their stereotypical stay-at-home figure whose significant worries in life are mere trifles, hence the play’s name. Moreover, in comparison to “Trifles”, the women in “M. Butterfly” are portrayed as tractable females in the eyes of a man. For example, in Act I, Scene X, Gallimard assures himself of Song’s involuntary infatuation for him by stating, “She is outwardly bold and outspoken, yet her heart is shy and afraid. It is the Oriental in her at war with her Western education.” (Act 1, Scene X). Gallimard perfectly outlines the stereotypical feminine attribute: timidness. Here, Gallimard is asserting the attributes of shyness and fear are reminiscent of Oriental’s; a cultural stereotype Gallimard believes due to the perceived submissiveness of his Oriental mistress:
Throughout history, human beings have struggled with the idea of equality. Whether in times of peace or times of war, the genders have almost never been equal in terms of political, economic or social pressures and activities. These injustices can be found everywhere— in conversations, classes, media, films, literature, and so forth. One example of this “hidden sexism” in literature can be found in the novel, Lost Names, by Richard E. Kim. Kim’s book, when first glanced at, seems normal.
In the novel This Earth Of Mankind by Pramoedya Ananta Toer, discrimination against social structure, race, and gender is apparent. The setting is in the Indies, or now called Indonesia. At that time, there are terms for different races in the book, which are “Native” indicating someone who is pure Indonesian, “Indo” a half European and half Indonesian, and “Pure Blood” or “European” when someone is pure European. An Indo and a Pure Blood receives more respect in society than a Native. Furthermore, European or Pure Blood is at the top of this social hierarchy, people who are European or Pure Blood receives the utmost respect in society. Differences in gender is prevalent in this novel, where most women in this book have power in their own homes, but in society is looked down upon. Female characters experiencing these are Annelies, the main character’s love interest, Nyai Ontosoroh, Annelies’ mother who is a concubine, and Magda Peters, the main character’s European teacher. Women in this novel are portrayed differently according to what race, social structure, and gender they are born in, which can be seen through Nyai Ontosoroh, Annelies, and Magda Peters.
...present powerful characters, while females represent unimportant characters. Unaware of the influence of society’s perception of the importance of sexes, literature and culture go unchanged. Although fairytales such as Sleeping Beauty produce charming entertainment for children, their remains a didactic message that lays hidden beneath the surface; teaching future generations to be submissive to the inequalities of their gender. Feminist critic the works of former literature, highlighting sexual discriminations, and broadcasting their own versions of former works, that paints a composite image of women’s oppression (Feminist Theory and Criticism). Women of the twenty-first century serge forward investigating, and highlighting the inequalities of their race in effort to organize a better social life for women of the future (Feminist Theory and Criticism).
David Henry Hwang’s “M Butterfly” illustrates the misconceptions western society has about gender and race. Gallimard, a French diplomat has a twenty-year affair with Song, a Chinese diva. Song represents a fabricated rendition of an Asian woman considering that she is actually a man who works as a spy for the Chinese government. This revelation clearly exemplifies that Gallimard’s love for Song is about Western superiority and power over Asian women. Through Judith Butler’s lens of gender performativity in “Imitation and Gender Insubordination,” the construct of gender roles imposed by western society becomes a crucial element for understanding Gallimard’s obsession with Song.
Butterfly introduces characters that also cross-dress in order to reach their particular goal. Song, similar to Viola from Twelfth Night, is a man disguised as a woman. Song manages to convince Gallimard that he is a woman for over eight years. Again this proves that Judith Butler’s theory of gender performativity and that nobody is born with a particular gender. According to Judith "We act and walk and speak and talk in ways that consolidate an impression of being a man or being a woman.
Indisputably, roles and characteristics of opposite genders have been ubiquitous, since historical evidence proves so – dating back to when the practice of oral tradition was favored over written language. This historical evidence is especially apparent in literature from previous time periods. In these works of literature, men and women often have very different social and economic positions within society. Particular duties, or tasks, are practiced depending on the gender of these individuals. However, in the advancing world we are currently living in, these duties are beginning to intertwine in an effort to allow equal rights amongst opposite genders. This effort to break the sexist barrier, which encompasses our world, has already begun rattling the chains of politicians and the like. However, with the progressions made thus far in retaliation to sexism and unequal gender privileges, the United States of America is heading in a positive direction towards gender equality. Nonetheless, the female gender is perceived as a lesser entity in society while the male gender is dominant and controlling. The masculine individuals in literary works usually govern, or direct the feminine individuals. These characteristics are often evident in various literary works – including “Hills Like White Elephants,” and “A&P” written by Ernest Hemingway and John Updike, respectively. The slow and steady transformation from a sexist society to one that allows inferior genders to perform similar tasks, if not the same as their superior counterparts, may disturb the ideological mindset of figures with authority; however, it provides inferior genders with the opportunity to branch out socially, economically, and politically.
In Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel, The Namesake, the protagonist, Gogol, struggles with his cultural identity. He is an American-born Bengali struggling to define himself. He wants to fit into the typical American-lifestyle, a lifestyle his parents do not understand. This causes him tension through his adolescence and adult life, he has trouble finding a balance between America and Bengali culture. This is exemplified with his romantic relationships. These relationships directly reflect where he is in his life, what he is going through and his relationship with his parents. Each woman indicates a particular moment in time where he is trying to figure out his cultural identity. Ruth represents an initial break away from Bengali culture; Maxine represents