Introduction
Living in nineteen century England where women were oppressed victims of a patriarchal society, subordinate first to their fathers and, then, to their husbands, Emma’s wealth and her indulgent father allow her a sense of independence few women had. Unlike most female characters of her time, Emma does not wish to get married and swears to stay by her Father’s side. Emma does not seek love, but is much more interested in protecting her position in the patriarchal social hierarchy. After her Mother died at the age of twelve Emma immediately occupies the mother’s position and becomes “mistress of the house”. Emma’s family situation provides for her a level of authority that is challenged by no one other than Mr. Knightley. “The …show more content…
Prior to this shift, many women enjoyed at least some level of equality as they worked alongside their husbands in family businesses. However, as men began to leave the home to pursue other avenues of income, unpaid domestic work lost visibility, and masculine work that was public, divorced from the home, and salaried gained more and more value). The domestic sphere was solidified as the “woman’s sphere”. This ideology of the women’s sphere mandated that women had control over domestic responsibilities, such as moral and spiritual guidance of children, while men had control over public and political matters. This new ideology surfaced as Austen was writing, and therefore relevant issues that emerged during this period, such as economic inequalities between men and women, are often addressed in her novels. Several characters have to cope with the problems of employment that arise from the shift to a more industrial …show more content…
Austen uses the situations of these and other characters to comment on cultural shifts that are occurring at her moment in history, shifts that leave women more vulnerable at the same time that the ideology of the domestic sphere insists they are “safe” at home under the care of a loving father or husband. Traditionally, marriage had been regarded as an alliance between families, as a pairing on the basis of wealth or birth, or as an arrangement made by parents without regard to the personal preferences of the young woman and the young man – especially without regard to the feelings of the young woman. However, in the latter part of the eighteenth century radical changes in attitudes toward marriage were occurring. Marriage was coming to be regarded as a lifetime, intimate, happy companionship based upon love, esteem, and compatibility, and both woman and man were to have voice in choosing the
Living in nineteen century England where women were oppressed victims of a patriarchal society, subordinate first to their fathers and, then, to their husbands, Emma’s wealth and her indulgent father allow her a sense of independence few women had. Unlike most female characters of her time, Emma does not wish to get married and swears to stay by her Father’s side. Emma does not seek love, but is much more interested in protecting her position in the patriarchal social hierarchy. After her Mother died at the age of twelve Emma immediately occupies the mother’s position and becomes “mistress of the house”. Emma’s family situation provides for her a level of authority that is challenged by no one other than Mr. Knightley. “The …show more content…
Prior to this shift, many women enjoyed at least some level of equality as they worked alongside their husbands in family businesses. However, as men began to leave the home to pursue other avenues of income, unpaid domestic work lost visibility, and masculine work that was public, divorced from the home, and salaried gained more and more value). The domestic sphere was solidified as the “woman’s sphere”. This ideology of the women’s sphere mandated that women had control over domestic responsibilities, such as moral and spiritual guidance of children, while men had control over public and political matters. This new ideology surfaced as Austen was writing, and therefore relevant issues that emerged during this period, such as economic inequalities between men and women, are often addressed in her novels. Several characters have to cope with the problems of employment that arise from the shift to a more industrial …show more content…
Austen uses the situations of these and other characters to comment on cultural shifts that are occurring at her moment in history, shifts that leave women more vulnerable at the same time that the ideology of the domestic sphere insists they are “safe” at home under the care of a loving father or husband. Traditionally, marriage had been regarded as an alliance between families, as a pairing on the basis of wealth or birth, or as an arrangement made by parents without regard to the personal preferences of the young woman and the young man – especially without regard to the feelings of the young woman. However, in the latter part of the eighteenth century radical changes in attitudes toward marriage were occurring. Marriage was coming to be regarded as a lifetime, intimate, happy companionship based upon love, esteem, and compatibility, and both woman and man were to have voice in choosing the