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Human nature in the great gatsby
The role of women in the 19th century
The role of women in the 19th century
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Recommended: Human nature in the great gatsby
The twentieth century was filled with many advances which brought a variety of changes to the world. However, these rapid advances brought confusion to almost all realms of life; including gender roles, a topic which was previously untouched became a topic of discourse. Many authors of the time chose to weigh in on the colloquy. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, gender role confusion, characteristic of modernist literature, is seen in Nick Carraway and Edna Pontillier as they are the focal points in the exploration of what it means to be a man or a woman, their purpose, place, and behavior in society.
The Gender roles of the 1900s were strictly defined in society, providing rigid boundaries for human existence and expression. Men were envisioned dominant and aggressive, and women were submissive. Male aggression was demonstrated through the playing of sports (Becker et Schirp). Society determined the role of the woman was to be a wife and a mother with little individuality. Jennifer Gray states, “The hegemonic institution of nineteenth-century society required women to be objects in marriage and in motherhood, existing as vessels of maternity and sexuality with little opportunity for individuality” (53). Women’s roles were strictly determined and any deviation from these roles could be grounds for isolation.
During the time period of The Awakening Creole culture has strict customs for women to obey. Edna Pontellier feels her purpose in society is to be an independent woman free from social constraints, which is contrary to the traditional role of women as domestics in Creole society. Edna no longer feels the need to stay at home on Tuesday’s to receive and entertain guests because she w...
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...Chopin's The Awakening." Journal For Cultural Research 12.4 (2008): 335-347. Academic Search Premier. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
Kerr, Frances. "Feeling `Half Feminine': Modernism And The Politics Of Emotion In The Great Gatsby." American Literature 68.2 (1996): 405. Academic Search Premier. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
Gray, Jennifer B. "The Escape Of The "Sea": Ideology And "The Awakening.." Southern Literary Journal 37.1 (2004): 53-73. Academic Search Premier. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
Chopin, Kate. The Awakening. New York: Avon, 1972. Print.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott, and Matthew J. Bruccoli. The Great Gatsby. New York, NY: Scribner, 1996. Print.
Becker, P., and M. Schirp. "Culture of Masculinity and Modern Outdoor Life." Critical Cultural and Modernisation Views Towards Erlebnispadagogik (n.d.): n. pag. Web. .