Passive Women In Heart Of Darkness

The two Gothic works, Christina Rossetti’s “The Goblin Market” and Bram Stoker’s Dracula paint a vivid depiction of Victorian gender norms, exemplifying the prevalent idea of fallen women through their female outcasts: Laura and Lucy Westenra. Fallen women was a term used in the 19th century Britain to describe women who have lost her innocence and chastity, or those who seek independence from male-dominance. The male-centred Victorian society regarded these unconventional women as suspects of the society [Fallen Woman]. Both “The Goblin Market” and Dracula follow the transgression Laura and Lucy, both initially pure and innocent, into these fallen women. Laura, in Rossetti’s poem became an outcast of Victorian society when she ate the fruits offered by the goblin men, as with Lucy in Stoker’s novel, who

These three brides represent the femme fatale, the fatal woman. The over sexualised women whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them into compromising, dangerous, and deadly situations. These women serve as monstrous reminders of what happens if the boundaries of proper behaviour and traditional gender roles are crossed. These women, although beautiful, possess the wrong type of beauty, one of which brands them as evil, openly sexual and seductive women. Who, in addition lack the chaste passivity and fragility of the ideal Victorian lady, thus making them deserving of some form of punishment in order for them to be returned to their pure, innocent, albeit dead, human form.

Female power is suppressed by men in vampire literature. I will analyze the idea of women treated as inferior by men through psychoanalysis mainly based on Freudian concepts. The topics of psychoanalysis that I will be using to look at the texts are the ‘monstrous feminine’, the castration complex, and masculine instinct. The two texts that will be analyzed are the short stories ‘Carmilla’ and ‘Snow, Glass, Apples’.

Throughout history, authors repeatedly create a witch character in their stories. However, authors depict witches differently as such, in The Wizard of Oz, the evil witch is portrayed with the classical black pointy hat, broom, with a green face. Conversely, in the Crucible ordinary girls were accused of being witches without possessing those qualities such as the typical witch hat. However, witches that are portrayed do have the common characteristic such as being female. As in earlier works during the Ancient Greek and Roman writings through the English Renaissance, authors’ portrayed witches (women) to be strong and of independent thought.

Women in the 18th and 19th century were expected to follow the orders of the males in their lives. They were forced into arranged marriages to connect families in a pursuit for social power and they were expected to abide by anything the males in their lives asked of them. Free will was nonexistent. Much gothic literature effectively highlights the women’s expected role of the time. However, another aspect that seems to surface in gothic literature is whenever there is a woman who is not following the social norms, they seem to be the driving conflict behind the plotline and ultimately lead to any present happy ending.

Within My Last Duchess, The Bloody Chamber and Dracula, there is evidence to suggest that women within the gothic genre as portrayed as victims of male authority, as well as evidence to disprove this argument, instead suggesting that it is the women within the Gothic genre which makes themselves victims. ‘Angela Carter is particularly interested in the portrayal of women as victims of male aggression as a limiting factor in the feminist perspective of the time’[i] Carter, with her modern twist on traditional fairytales places a

The Gothic genre is an increasingly popular area for feminist studies, showing contrasts in society at the time and the expectations of women within it. In pre industrial times, women were expected to play a subservient role to men, they were expected to marry young and bare children, they would simply care for their husbands and support the family, they were denied the right to vote or own property and were expected to be the innocently silent, supportive backbone behind patriarchal society. It is noted that female characters in Gothic novels and plays often fall into one of two categories: innocent victims, subservient to the strong and powerful

Erik Erikson is one of the most influential psychoanalysts of the 20th century. He developed the eight stages of psychosocial development. These stages are trust vs. mistrust, autonomy vs. doubt/shame, initiative vs guilt, industriousness vs inferiority, identity cohesion vs. role confusion, intimacy vs. isolation, generativity vs. stagnation, and ego integrity vs. despair. He focused his study on the crisis that arise in adolescence and adulthood. He explained how certain things must be achieved in different stages of your life in order to be an emotionally normal person. These needs are coincidence with each other but take effect during certain time periods of your life and can affect your future. When analyzing his work, you can definitely see how it is relevant today. Erikson’s theory is compared with Freud’s because Erikson expands on the ideas that Freud already presented. Like any theorist, there are criticism that put restraints on his work.

Johanna Smith gives many examples of Marlow’s contradictions that his ideological discourse of empire and gender work to mystify. In Heart of Darkness the women are often silenced. Smith points out the example of the laundress: the company’s chief accountant insists that she had to be taught to launder his clothes properly and that she had a strong disliking for the job. But you never truly hear her side of the story; Smith suggests “Marlow’s silencing of the laundress shows Marlow’s authority as the masculine narrator of his story, to conceal not only her story but also those of the other silent women in Heart of Darkness” (Smith 193). Marlow’s Way of self asserting his dominating silence of the women is a clear example of Marlow’s view towards women and is a key illustration of just how much Marlow believes he, as a male, is far more superior than a women.

In Heart of Darkness women are not paid much attention beyond that of Kurtz's mistress and his fiancee. The only other women mentioned in the novel are the two ladies knitting with skeins of black wool, and the narrator's aunt, who got him his job with the Company. Since the aunt and the knitters are no mentioned hardly at all, only the

In John Polidori’s short story “The Vampyre”, a strong emphasis is placed on the sanctity and frailty of women, specifically of those who are youthful and unsullied by vice. This is seen throughout the story, where the two women most prominently featured in it -- Ianthe and Miss Aubrey -- are repeatedly described as innocent and infantile. The tale of the inexorable, seductive vampire who preys on these women reflects the attitudes towards women of Polidori’s time. These attitudes toward gender roles were those of chivalry and benevolent, protective patriarchy, with docile, frail women placed on a pedestal of beauty and innocence that is worthy of utmost male guardianship.

In George Orwell’s novels, the undeviating presence of warfare watermarks every page. Although the battles themselves are hidden in dialogue amongst characters, the complete mobilization towards warfare stands as a pivot point for the dystopian worlds Orwell illustrates. As Orwell’s societies combate war, the creation of a common enemy fuels a dependence on authority figures and renders civilians susceptible to being taken advantage of. The encroaching battlefront invokes massive fear among the majority and creates a scapegoat for corrupt leaders to manipulate unknowing citizens. Cumulatively Orwell’s consistent construction of a war-torn environment fuels the development of tyrannical authority figures, social stability, and widespread ignorance.

Contrary to to traditional Mother roles in gothic literature, the Mother in ‘The Bloody Chamber’ embodies Strength and Courage. Through Carters feminist style of writing, the mother is seen as a knight in shining armour. The ‘indomitable’ (p1) woman is a figure of strength and courage; she has shot ‘a man – eating tiger with her own hand” (p2), and holding all the traits of a masculine hero. Traditionally, these traits symbolise her possession of the power traditionally possessed by men. Moreover, her overwhelming power is influential; she is in the position of true power, in no way passive or innocent. The passing down of her husband’s “antique service revolver” (p2) contradicts societies expectation of women. Traditionally, possessions are handed down to a fathers heir, however the mother receives this symbolic item instead. This item represents both the mothers strength and her physical power. Yet she is equipped with ‘maternal telepathy’(p41), which adds another dimension to her empowerment as it is a feminine strength, suggesting Carter is employing the notion that women may embrace their femininity whilst still retaining an advantage over men. However, her masculine qualities cannot be ignored. The windswept image is one of strength, portrayed towards the end of the novel, when she saves the damsel in distress, a role usually dominated by men. Her ‘white mane’ (p40) and “wild” appearance alludes to the image of a hunting lioness, a symbol of strength. She is the embodiment of “furious justice”. This

This article analyzes the way Austen portrays women in her novels. Kruger mentions that Jane Austen’s work is often deprived by the

The information put forth in this TED talk was regarding the manner treatment of disease was approached. But to discuss the future of medicine, he begins with addressing the past. The prior and current model has a downward motion and is “so profoundly simple is can be summarized in 6 words: Have disease -> Take pill -> Kill something” (TED 2015). This method has been dominant since the 1950’s because of the antibiotic revolution stemming from the introduction of antibiotics into the United States which took place over 100 years ago. The mechanism under which antibiotics function is likened to a lock and key and the specificity of the lock and key mechanism was so exquisite that fatal or lethal diseases, such as tuberculosis or pneumonia,