The sexuality of women is a topic that is subtly explored in both 1984 by George Orwell and in Jane Austen’s most famous novel Pride and Prejudice. In particular, these two authors represent the repression of sexuality in their worlds, which acts as a social commentary in a way that is not always recognised, as one novel is famously known for commenting on extreme totalitarianism while the other is simply recognised for showing the power of true love in a world of propriety and stoicism.
Symbolism of clothing is very prominent in both novels to represent the binds that women are placed in through their social expectations. In 1984, most, if not all, of the women who were members of the party were also members of the celibacy club and as a …show more content…
Pride and Prejudice revolves around a world where marriage are always being chased after, and even though it is not discussed what happens when it comes to consummating the marriage; the expectation of reproduction is always present, as though the marriage does not have worth until there is evidence to society that the couple have had sex and are carrying on their line. Similarly, in Pride and Prejudice balls are used as an over-glorified auction for fathers to show off their daughters in their finery to potential suitors – allowing them to dance with their girls as a way of getting a feel for the women, almost as if they are inspecting cattle in a meat market. The opportunity to wear their finest things and put on make-up makes the girls appear more sexual to the men, even though no-one speaks about why they wear a corset too tightly – to show that they are not pregnant as their waist is too small – and why they wear long gloves – to make the women seem more mysterious as the men want to end up revealing what the clothes conceal. Alternatively, in 1984, Sex is something that is not talked about simply because no-one likes to do it, let alone talk about it. The party has conditioned men and women not to enjoy sex as it could take away their love for the party and instead allow love to blossom between husband and wife. In …show more content…
While this makes sure that the marriage won 't be affectionate or romantic so that the party remains each individual 's main pillar for devotion; it also smothers the flame of lust between two people and makes any feeling of sexual excitement foreign and unwelcomed, as it is a feeling that has been repressed for so long, by so many. In Pride and Prejudice, women would very rarely have a choice in who they would marry, as marriages were often discussed between a father and potential husband instead of between man and woman. This meant that women would be pressured to accept marriage proposals by their fathers or face the threat of being disowned, resulting in a marriage that would not be romantic and the two participants would probably not have found each other attractive, meaning that sex would only be used for reproduction or for the man’s pleasure, as women would not be able to initiate anything without being improper.
In conclusion, while 1984 and Pride and Prejudice are wildly different novels with an age gap of a century they both explore the repression of women’s sexualities in a similar manor, representing women as objects that should be hidden under repressive
Symbolism of clothing is very prominent in both novels to represent the binds that women are placed in through their social expectations. In 1984, most, if not all, of the women who were members of the party were also members of the celibacy club and as a …show more content…
Pride and Prejudice revolves around a world where marriage are always being chased after, and even though it is not discussed what happens when it comes to consummating the marriage; the expectation of reproduction is always present, as though the marriage does not have worth until there is evidence to society that the couple have had sex and are carrying on their line. Similarly, in Pride and Prejudice balls are used as an over-glorified auction for fathers to show off their daughters in their finery to potential suitors – allowing them to dance with their girls as a way of getting a feel for the women, almost as if they are inspecting cattle in a meat market. The opportunity to wear their finest things and put on make-up makes the girls appear more sexual to the men, even though no-one speaks about why they wear a corset too tightly – to show that they are not pregnant as their waist is too small – and why they wear long gloves – to make the women seem more mysterious as the men want to end up revealing what the clothes conceal. Alternatively, in 1984, Sex is something that is not talked about simply because no-one likes to do it, let alone talk about it. The party has conditioned men and women not to enjoy sex as it could take away their love for the party and instead allow love to blossom between husband and wife. In …show more content…
While this makes sure that the marriage won 't be affectionate or romantic so that the party remains each individual 's main pillar for devotion; it also smothers the flame of lust between two people and makes any feeling of sexual excitement foreign and unwelcomed, as it is a feeling that has been repressed for so long, by so many. In Pride and Prejudice, women would very rarely have a choice in who they would marry, as marriages were often discussed between a father and potential husband instead of between man and woman. This meant that women would be pressured to accept marriage proposals by their fathers or face the threat of being disowned, resulting in a marriage that would not be romantic and the two participants would probably not have found each other attractive, meaning that sex would only be used for reproduction or for the man’s pleasure, as women would not be able to initiate anything without being improper.
In conclusion, while 1984 and Pride and Prejudice are wildly different novels with an age gap of a century they both explore the repression of women’s sexualities in a similar manor, representing women as objects that should be hidden under repressive