Would it be correct to say that in Tom Jones, Fielding considers marriage to be a mere socio- economic arrangements under which women feel continuously suppressed? Discuss.
Would it be correct to say that in Tom Jones, Fielding considers marriage to be a mere socio- economic arrangements under which women feel continuously suppressed? Discuss.
The true history of the English countryside has been centred throughout in the problems of property in land, and in the consequent social and working relationships. By the eighteenth century, nearly half of the cultivated land was owned by some five thousand families. As a central form of this predominance, four hundred families, in a population of some seven or eight million people, owned nearly a quarter of the cultivated land.
In a society stressing male dominance, it is surprising to find an author who writes his female characters as more intelligent than and even superior to his male characters. Henry Fielding demonstrates this respect for his female characters in his 18th century classic, Tom Jones, as well as in other works, like his novel, Amelia.
We can see that the gender history is closely linked with the women’s history. Until then, the history was based on a male point of view; men dominated both the public and private life. But with the emergence of gender, women’s history is important for her emancipation.
In general, texts argued that men and women were naturally different. Authors said that women were of a lower status and tried to mould them into an idealized shape (modest, pious, and domestic). This perception has been accentuated during the 18th century and women were confined to a private sphere.
The majority of the studies centred primarily on women and femininity. We can see that the sexes were not rigidly defined and that gender affected men’s and women’s lives more than we had thought until then.
Many authors talk of separate spheres; men were naturally suited to the public sphere of work and politics, as women were naturally suited to the private sphere of the home and the family. In Tom Jones, we cannot find many relevant occurrences of the separate spheres;
The true history of the English countryside has been centred throughout in the problems of property in land, and in the consequent social and working relationships. By the eighteenth century, nearly half of the cultivated land was owned by some five thousand families. As a central form of this predominance, four hundred families, in a population of some seven or eight million people, owned nearly a quarter of the cultivated land.
In a society stressing male dominance, it is surprising to find an author who writes his female characters as more intelligent than and even superior to his male characters. Henry Fielding demonstrates this respect for his female characters in his 18th century classic, Tom Jones, as well as in other works, like his novel, Amelia.
We can see that the gender history is closely linked with the women’s history. Until then, the history was based on a male point of view; men dominated both the public and private life. But with the emergence of gender, women’s history is important for her emancipation.
In general, texts argued that men and women were naturally different. Authors said that women were of a lower status and tried to mould them into an idealized shape (modest, pious, and domestic). This perception has been accentuated during the 18th century and women were confined to a private sphere.
The majority of the studies centred primarily on women and femininity. We can see that the sexes were not rigidly defined and that gender affected men’s and women’s lives more than we had thought until then.
Many authors talk of separate spheres; men were naturally suited to the public sphere of work and politics, as women were naturally suited to the private sphere of the home and the family. In Tom Jones, we cannot find many relevant occurrences of the separate spheres;
Bibliography: Fletcher, Anthony. Gender Sex and Subordination in England 1500-1800. ch. 15 ‘The Construction of Femininity’ (376-400) Barker, Hannah and Elaine Chalus. ‘Introduction’ in Gender in Eighteenth-Century England. (1-28)