To the Lighthouse – Role of Wife and Mother
Woolf portrays the character of Mrs. Ramsay as a self sacrificing woman and mother as defined through her interactions with men: Charles Tansley, Mr. Carmichael, Paul, Mr. Bankes, Mr. Ramsay, and James. During Mrs. Ramsay's lifetime she is admired by most of these men, and is continually striving to be esteemed by all of them, at any sacrifice to herself. Although there is goodness in Mrs. Ramsay, not unselfishly given, there are also rising questions of this representation of mother by Woolf, primarily put forth through the characters of Lily and Mrs. Ramsay's daughters.
In thinking about herself as a mother, Mrs. Ramsay says that, "She often felt she was nothing but a sponge sopped full of human emotions."(p.32) She is the person responsible for appeasing the worries of her husband and caring for the needs of her children, not to mention the stray people, mostly men, for whom she cares. In this particular paragraph, she defines what is to be a woman, wife, and mother in England at the beginning of the centu...
Alexander Hamilton, on the other side, distrusted popular rule and emphasized law, order, authority and property. Alexander Hamilton wanted to promote commerce and industry through a strong central government. He also would diversify American economic life by encouraging shipping and creating manufacturing by legislative directive. Hamilton also believed that a ...
Why would I start with Julia Duckworth Stephen to get to Virginia Woolf? One answer is Virginia’s often quoted statement that "we think back through our mothers if we are women" (Woolf, A Room of One’s Own). Feminism is rooted not just in a response to patriarchy but also in the history of females and their treatment of each other. Part of feminism is a reevaluation of the value of motherhood.
As president, George Washington appointed cabinet members: Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of War Henry Knox, and Attorney General Edmund Randolph as is trusted advisors. However, Hamilton and Jefferson had opposing political view, which developed American’s first political parties by the mid-1790s. The Federalist Party led by Hamilton and supported by Washington, believed that merchants and manufacturers were the backbone of the economy, they also supported a strong central government. On the other hand, Jefferson led The Democratic- Republic, advocated limited national government, and believed that artisans and farmers were the backbone of the economy. The rivalry between the Federalist and Democratic- Republican was the result of disputing the interpretation of the Constitution, conflicting political ideologies, and opposing agendas for the future of the American Republic.
Contrastingly, Mrs. Darling, his wife, is portrayed as a romantic, maternal character. She is a “lovely lady”, who had many suitors yet was “won” by Mr. Darling, who got to her first. However, she is a multifaceted character because her mind is described “like the tiny boxes, one within the other, that come from the puzzling East”, suggesting that she is, to some extent, an enigma to the other characters, especially Mr. Darling. As well as this, she exemplifies the characteristics of a “perfect mother”. She puts everything in order, including her children’s minds, which is a metaphor for the morals and ethics that she instils in them. Although ...
Whose side would you have been on in the 1790s, Thomas Jefferson’s or Alexander Hamilton’s? Both of these men served under George Washington in the first presidential cabinet, yet they had very different views of what government should be (Davis 86). My objective in this research essay is to inform the reader of why there was so much controversy between these two founding fathers, and to determine which side had the better views for our newly forming country.
A group of people with similar ideas and beliefs that agree on how the country should be ran is one of the many definitions of what a political party is. Although both Hamilton and Jefferson were both very successful and thriving men, Hamilton in my opinion was more efficient with his thinking. Hamilton was the first secretary of treasury of our nation and was one of the founding fathers of the United States. I chose Alexander Hamilton based on most of his thoughts and beliefs for the best of America our country.
Jefferson’s agrarian ideas have been pushed far aside in today’s world. The United States is far from an agriculture society and has definitely followed Hamilton’s ideas of pro-commerce and manufacturing. We can see this in our everyday lives; most people we know are not farmers, but office workers working for businesses of mass production. There is also our federal government which is a powerful government just as the Federalists wanted. It might be stronger than what the founders intended, but it is still the same principle. An example of this would be the ruling done last year by the Supreme Court allowing same-sex marriages nationwide. Originally, this was something the individual states decided, but now each state has to follow the law made by the federal government. Our government today also follows order and stability. There are so many regulations and laws today it would probably be overwhelming for the Federalists of Hamilton’s time. The government today is very “organized” in the sense that there is a process for everything from obtaining a driver’s license to filing for bankruptcy. Whether you are the one requesting the driver’s license or the judge granting the bankruptcy, there is an order that must be followed. The one place where the Federalists and Republicans could overlap would be in the interpretation of the Constitution. There are times where the laws are loosely interpreted and other times where they are strictly interpreted. It is normal for us to see celebrities or people with money get off from crimes easier than those who do not have money. In those situations, laws are “loosely” interpreted. For those of us who do not have the luxury of extra cash in our bank accounts, we have
Born in the British West Indies, Alexander Hamilton was a bright and talented young man. In 1772, he moved to the mainland to attended King’s College in New York City. Soon after, he quickly embarked on an extraordinary career. Between his arrival in America and his death, Alexander Hamilton contributed greatly to establish our governmental framework. He fought under George Washington in the Revolutionary war and was a member of the Continental Congress. He was an advocate for the ratification of the Constitution and established a prestigious law career. He then served as the nation’s first Secretary of the Treasury. Hamilton was always one step ahead, his leadership skills and intelligence demonstrated to be valuable in his political path.
Hamilton's role as Treasurer was to develop a healthy economy. He believed that in order to do this it was essential to have a central bank to make the economy stronger and the nation's currency more stable. He wanted to correct the economic problems that the country faced under
"I can no more forget it, than a mother can forget her suckling child". Jane Austen wrote these words about her novel, Sense and Sensibility, in a letter to her sister Cassandra in 1811. Such a maternal feeling in Austen is interesting to note, particularly because any reader of hers is well aware of a lack of mothers in her novels. Frequently we encounter heroines and other major characters whom, if not motherless, have mothers who are deficient in maturity, showing affection, and/or common sense. Specifically, I would like to look at Sense and Sensibility, which, according to Ros Ballaster's introduction to the novel, "is full of, indeed over-crowded with, mothers" (vii). By discussing the maternal figures in this work, I hope to illustrate the varying possibilities of what mothering and motherhood can entail in Austen, and what this curious spectrum of strengths and weaknesses means for the heroine involved.
In Virginia Woolf’s “To the Lighthouse”, the struggle to secure and proclaim female freedom is constantly challenged by social normalcy. This clash between what the traditional female ideologies should be and those who challenge them, can be seen best in the character of Lily Brisco. She represents the rosy picture of a woman that ends up challenging social norms throughout the novel to effectively achieve a sense of freedom and individuality by the end. Woolf through out the novel shows Lily’s break from conventional female in multiply ways, from a comparison between her and Mrs.Ramsey, Lily’s own stream of consciousness, as well as her own painting.
Lily’s use of a purple triangle to represent Mrs. Ramsay and James (Woolf 52) could symbolize many different things. Lily says, “It was a question [of] how to connect the mass on the right hand with that on the left hand” (Woolf 53). To connect one with two requires three, the completion of a triangle, the third stroke. Mrs. Ramsay is a representation of that third stroke. She brings people together through her d...
Clarissa's relationships with other females in Mrs. Dalloway offer great insight into her personality. Additionally, Woolf's decision to focus at length on Sally Seton, Millicent Bruton, Ellie Henderson, and Doris Kilman allows the reader to see how women relate to one another in extremely different ways: sometimes drawing upon one another for things they cannot get from men; other times, turning on one another out of jealousy and insecurity. Although Mrs. Dalloway is far from the most healthy or positive literary portrayal of women, Woolf presents an excellent exploration of female relationships.
Woolf presents three characters who embody three different gender roles. Mrs. Ramsay is the dutiful wife and mother. Mr. Ramsay is the domineering patriarch. Lily Briscoe is an independent, aspiring woman. Woolf sets these three roles in contrast with each other. She allows the reader to see the power and influence each character has. Mrs. Ramsay’s submissive and supportive nature arouses admiration. Mr. Ramsay’s condescending manner provokes animosity. Lily Briscoe’s independence enables her to find meaning and fulfillment in her life.
Mr. Ramsey makes excuses for not becoming intellectually enlightened in the same vain that he makes excuses for not sailing to the Lighthouse. Mrs. Ramsey is the ideal wife and mother. She uses her love to create and build, not in the physical sense, but more in the sense of relationship, community, and hope building. She is perhaps the most successful of the characters, in that her goals are what she feels she has become her goal: one who helps people, brings them together, and infuses them with hope and love.... ... middle of paper ...