The Role of Women Throughout the Ages of
Literature
Women in Greek mythology were perceived to be more as
sexual objects than individuals. Many were taken advantage of by the Gods and
by human beings. One would see that women’s rights were very limited and they
were not allowed to express much of their freedoms. Within this time period
women were blamed for wars, destruction of towns, and the death of men. It was
not unliky to see goddesses using their powers for vengeance. Although the role
of human women was limited the existence of goddesses attributed great amounts
of power to female characters.
The women of the Medieval times were surprisingly a lot
more candid and sexual than one might expect of an era where the ideal of
femininity was Mary, the mother of Jesus. In actuality, the women in the
literature of the period, as well as the historical female figures seemed to be
torn between the ideal and the physical desires and domineering character that
her antagonist, Eve, embodies. In a careful reading of the literature of the
time, one finds the first buds of a feminist literature emerging from the words
on the pages.
The theme of misogyny and superiority of men was the
typical genre that authors took within their writing. Women were not looked to
as a person but were considered a mere necessity for the procreation process.
Women continued to be split between the ideal of the Virgin Mary, and her
fallible counterpart, Eve. Unfortunately, the Virgin Mary was one of a kind, so
there was often a general distrust of women. This distrust of women lead to
most works degrading the female race, and terming females as the "other",
which was to be feared. Equality between the sexes was not present within this
era, and is evident from the numerous writings degrading the female race.
The role of women in 19th century literature was one in
which they redefine their place in society by accepting an image of themselves
which involved both home-centeredness and inferiority. Elizabeth Gaskell did
not concede to the idea of women’s inferiority, although she does concede to
the notion that a woman’s place is in the home, as is evident by her portrayal
of Bessie in her poem “Cranford.” In this time period, women were being
portrayed as protagonists more often than in the past. In Gustave Flaubert’s
novel Madame Bovary, Emma, the lead character, is portrayed as a “tragic
heroine.” At the time the book was written (1856), the character of Emma was
viewed as foolish and putting herself in narrow circumstances. Her suicide
demonstrates the dangers of life for women who were looking to become
independent at that time. Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem, “The Princess” states,
Man for the field and woman for the hearth,
Man for the sword and for the needle she:
Man with the head and woman with the heart:
Man to command and woman to obey
It is evident from these works that during this time
women were still in a subjugated role despite their desire to break free of
societies’ restrictions.
Women’s roles in literature has evolved throughout
history and had lead women to develop into strong independent roles. Modern
literature has served as an outlet and sounding board for women’s rights and
feminist pioneers. Female writers have come to the fore front and provided
today’s readers with a vast array of ethnic and cultural perspectives. The
unique voice of female minorities is a common theme in many coming of age
novels that allows each writer to establish a separate identity for their
characters and themselves. Women in modern literature often include strong
independent females juxtaposed by oppressed women to provide examples for young
female readers and to critique short comings of our society. The emergence of
the independent female novelist in America has allowed for a new evolution of
the role of women in fictional literature.
It is difficult to summarize the role of women in
Hispanic literature, as it has been ever changing. At times she may be
submissive, at others, the fiercest of beasts, and most surprisingly sometimes
seemingly weak but in actuality the most contriving of creatures. It is
surprising to see a feminist view point since the Medieval times in Spanish and
Latin American literature, but it’s most productive era has come to exist in
the last twenty years.
plaza.ufl.edu/jess16/MultiplePerspectives/
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