19th and 20th Century Gender Expectations in Literature
19th and 20th Century Gender Expectations in Literature
Johnny Shelton
ENG125
Professor Heather AltfeldFisher
11 March 2012
19Th and 20th Century Gender Expectations in Literature The late 19th century produced a myriad of successful authors, poets and play-writes that often incorporated the local customs, traditions and expectations of the time (and perhaps their own experiences) into their work. A fact of the times, even into early 20th century, is that women were not equal to men and the expectations of women were not equal as well. This point will be illustrated by comparative analysis of two separate forms of literature: Tristan Bernard’s humorous play I’m Going! A Comedy in One Act, and Kate Chopin’s short story “The Story of an Hour.” Authors can use plays, stories or poems to bring us into their world, and through imagination we can connect with them, if only briefly, and enjoy their point of view and what they are trying to convey. Through their writing, they are actually giving us a look at history and through that snapshot of time we can see the differences between society’s expectations then and now. Tristan Bernard’s (1866-1947) I’m Going! A Comedy in One Act (1915), (Clugston, 2010a), is a play set in Paris about a married couple (Henri and Jeanne) who on a Sunday morning are trying to decide how they are going to spend their day. Henri wants to go to the races but he wants Jeanne to stay home, though she wants to go with him, or to see her friend (Clugston, 2010a). The theme of the play is one of distrust and manipulation, as each truly wants to spend the day on their own, and at the end of the play that is exactly what they do (Clugston, 2010a). In this play, Bernard uses the setting of the stage and symbolism to convey to the audience a sense of separate desires of the couple starting with the opening scene when Henri and Jeanne enter and sit on opposite sides of the room (Clugston, 2010a). Bernard, in fact, used
Johnny Shelton
ENG125
Professor Heather AltfeldFisher
11 March 2012
19Th and 20th Century Gender Expectations in Literature The late 19th century produced a myriad of successful authors, poets and play-writes that often incorporated the local customs, traditions and expectations of the time (and perhaps their own experiences) into their work. A fact of the times, even into early 20th century, is that women were not equal to men and the expectations of women were not equal as well. This point will be illustrated by comparative analysis of two separate forms of literature: Tristan Bernard’s humorous play I’m Going! A Comedy in One Act, and Kate Chopin’s short story “The Story of an Hour.” Authors can use plays, stories or poems to bring us into their world, and through imagination we can connect with them, if only briefly, and enjoy their point of view and what they are trying to convey. Through their writing, they are actually giving us a look at history and through that snapshot of time we can see the differences between society’s expectations then and now. Tristan Bernard’s (1866-1947) I’m Going! A Comedy in One Act (1915), (Clugston, 2010a), is a play set in Paris about a married couple (Henri and Jeanne) who on a Sunday morning are trying to decide how they are going to spend their day. Henri wants to go to the races but he wants Jeanne to stay home, though she wants to go with him, or to see her friend (Clugston, 2010a). The theme of the play is one of distrust and manipulation, as each truly wants to spend the day on their own, and at the end of the play that is exactly what they do (Clugston, 2010a). In this play, Bernard uses the setting of the stage and symbolism to convey to the audience a sense of separate desires of the couple starting with the opening scene when Henri and Jeanne enter and sit on opposite sides of the room (Clugston, 2010a). Bernard, in fact, used
References: Clugston, R. (2010a). Journey Into Literature. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUENG125.10.2/sections/h1.3 Clugston, R. (2010b). Journey Into Literature. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUENG125.10.2/sections/h2.1 Degasse, P. (Ed.). (2008). The Columbia Encyclopedia (6th ed.). New York, N.Y.: Columbia University Press. Kelly, A. (1994). Kate Chopin’s Usage of Subtext in Stories and Novels. Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association, 35(3), 331-334