Femininity In The 1800s
Society should have been against the functions of femininity in the 1800s as well as the early 1900s because it cultivated the grounds for discrimination within society and had a negative effect on women’s health, behaviors, status, and rights. Regardless of a woman’s social class, ethnicity, religion, level of education, or position of power, gender prevailed due to societal ties placed on gender. During this time, women had to meet society’s standards of being a woman while also portraying the image of a perfect wife and an admirable mother. It was taboo for women to be independent, divorced, or outspoken. These gender expectations brought negative impacts and challenges which inspired some women to fight back for the freedom they were entitled
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She loved Robert and what Robert represented. She felt liberated with him but she knew that being with him meant being someone else’s possession. "You have been a very, very foolish boy, wasting your time dreaming of impossible things when you speak of Mr. Pontellier setting me free! I am no longer one of Mr. Pontellier's possessions to dispose of or not. I give myself where I choose. If he were to say, 'Here, Robert, take her and be happy; she is yours,' I should laugh at you both” (Chopin, Pg. 581). Edna didn’t want anyone controlling her. Period. She loved being liberal and despite the fact that she was in love with Robert, she loved the idea of being a free woman more than the idea of being “owned” by another man. She tells him that she isn’t property to be transferred from one man to another. Edna affirms that she is not a possession and that she alone has the power to give herself to someone. Robert doesn’t understand this concept because women were indeed viewed as a man’s possession during this time. Her views were foreign to him, and he couldn’t understand what her ultimate desires were. Chopin uses this idea to demonstrate how vital it was for a woman to feel the type of freedom Edna began to feel. Women overall are portrayed as hopeless romantics or emotional by nature. This idea makes readers understand the power of autonomy over Edna. One would have predicted that Roberts’s proposal to Edna would have brought a new light to Edna’s views, however in the contrary it made her realize that being with him meant given up all she believed in and everything she was fighting
She loved Robert and what Robert represented. She felt liberated with him but she knew that being with him meant being someone else’s possession. "You have been a very, very foolish boy, wasting your time dreaming of impossible things when you speak of Mr. Pontellier setting me free! I am no longer one of Mr. Pontellier's possessions to dispose of or not. I give myself where I choose. If he were to say, 'Here, Robert, take her and be happy; she is yours,' I should laugh at you both” (Chopin, Pg. 581). Edna didn’t want anyone controlling her. Period. She loved being liberal and despite the fact that she was in love with Robert, she loved the idea of being a free woman more than the idea of being “owned” by another man. She tells him that she isn’t property to be transferred from one man to another. Edna affirms that she is not a possession and that she alone has the power to give herself to someone. Robert doesn’t understand this concept because women were indeed viewed as a man’s possession during this time. Her views were foreign to him, and he couldn’t understand what her ultimate desires were. Chopin uses this idea to demonstrate how vital it was for a woman to feel the type of freedom Edna began to feel. Women overall are portrayed as hopeless romantics or emotional by nature. This idea makes readers understand the power of autonomy over Edna. One would have predicted that Roberts’s proposal to Edna would have brought a new light to Edna’s views, however in the contrary it made her realize that being with him meant given up all she believed in and everything she was fighting