The Opera Carmen and Gender Roles
Carmen
Carmen is a depictive work that represents the social and gender issues that were present in nineteenth century France and Spain. It introduces readers to numerous aspects of life including treatment of women, prejudices towards individuals and groups, social structures, and accepted social behavior. Carmen, as both a novel and opera, is a literary work that was written not only to entertain but also to reflect nineteenth century society. Carmen, as a literary work, has experienced many changes throughout its existence. The French author Prosper Merimme originally wrote Carmen. Merimme was known mostly for his long stories and ability to write in an objective and psychological style, a trait rarely found during the age of Romanticist literature (Encyclopedia). Along with others, he is considered a leading figure in French literature during the nineteenth century (Wright 188). The story of Carmen first appeared on October first 1845 in La Revue des Deux Mondes, a bi-weekly travel journal that often depicted wild stories set in exotic lands (McClary 1). The Novel is told from a French perspective and incorporates many of Merimme’s intrinsic notions of French superiority typical of the time period. The narrator is a French traveler who embarks upon Spain and there encounters numerous individuals and adventures. Once in Spain the noble Frenchman encounters a savage he calls Don Jose and a fortune telling gypsy named Carmen. After a brief encounter with the alluring and dangerous Carmen, the Frenchman leaves to pursue further adventures. In the end, the narrator returns to find Don Jose in prison for the murder of Carmen. Even within this first version of Carmen, the plot is “lined with questions of control and mastery(McClary 3).” The novel itself is a depictive literary work that deals with the long-standing battle between the sexes. From the very beginning women are marked as enemies and, indeed, all threats and conflicts within the work are
Carmen is a depictive work that represents the social and gender issues that were present in nineteenth century France and Spain. It introduces readers to numerous aspects of life including treatment of women, prejudices towards individuals and groups, social structures, and accepted social behavior. Carmen, as both a novel and opera, is a literary work that was written not only to entertain but also to reflect nineteenth century society. Carmen, as a literary work, has experienced many changes throughout its existence. The French author Prosper Merimme originally wrote Carmen. Merimme was known mostly for his long stories and ability to write in an objective and psychological style, a trait rarely found during the age of Romanticist literature (Encyclopedia). Along with others, he is considered a leading figure in French literature during the nineteenth century (Wright 188). The story of Carmen first appeared on October first 1845 in La Revue des Deux Mondes, a bi-weekly travel journal that often depicted wild stories set in exotic lands (McClary 1). The Novel is told from a French perspective and incorporates many of Merimme’s intrinsic notions of French superiority typical of the time period. The narrator is a French traveler who embarks upon Spain and there encounters numerous individuals and adventures. Once in Spain the noble Frenchman encounters a savage he calls Don Jose and a fortune telling gypsy named Carmen. After a brief encounter with the alluring and dangerous Carmen, the Frenchman leaves to pursue further adventures. In the end, the narrator returns to find Don Jose in prison for the murder of Carmen. Even within this first version of Carmen, the plot is “lined with questions of control and mastery(McClary 3).” The novel itself is a depictive literary work that deals with the long-standing battle between the sexes. From the very beginning women are marked as enemies and, indeed, all threats and conflicts within the work are
Cited: Blom, Ida, Karen Hagemann, and Catherine Hall, eds. Gender Nations: Nationalisms and Gender order in the long nineteenth century. Oxford: Berg, 2000. Bizet, Gerorges. Bizet’s Carmen. New York: Dover, 1970. Electric Library Presents Encyclopedia.com. Columbia: Columbia University, 2000. < http://www.encyclopedia.com/articles/08350.html>. McClary, Susan. Gerorges Bizet Carmen. Cambridge: Cambridge University, 1992. Wright, Charles H. C. The background of Modern French Literature. Boston: Ginn and Company, 1926.