In the 19th century, the vast majority of women had very limited freedom. They were, in most respects, property of their husbands or fathers, and had very little choice in the direction of their life. Perhaps because women's roles were so restricted, romance novels were one of the most popular ways for women to escape the drudgery of their pre-set life. However, in the novels of the time, in works such as Jane Eyre, Madame Bovary, and La Bete Humaine, seeking romance was shown to have nothing but negative consequences. It is important to remember the prevailing attitudes and social codes of the time when analyzing the role of women and romance in 19th century novels. Women were by and large portrayed as the domestic ideal, because that's what was expected of them in society. This domestic ideal consisted largely of the ideas of selflessness and sympathy, a sort of "angel of the house" mentality that placed women in roles that discouraged discourse and intellectual endeavor. What is left, then, but the world of romance? Yet this romantic world is impossible precisely because of the role of women. Being entirely dependent on men, the course of action is limited.
. . .
Like Emma Bovary, Severine then rebels against her set role and seeks passion and romance elsewhere, this time in the arms of Jacques. It is ironic because Jane does not actively seek romance as do the heroines in the previous two novels. However, she accepts that which she cannot control. She cannot control her finances (her husband does), and she cannot control Jacques, who murders her in a fit of beast-like rage. I will keep the law given by God, sanctioned by man. Instead, she uses her mind to engage Mr. Consider the lead woman character Severine in Emile Zola's La Bete Humaine. It is even more ironic considering that Jane Eyre was written by a woman; perhaps it takes a woman to know a woman's pleasure.
"Little by little, these fears of Rodolphe's took hold of her.
Jane is still susceptible in certain ways to the will of men; in the 19th century, this is unavoidable.
Ironically, it is the heroine in Jane Eyre who receives the romantic, i. We see Emma sink into fits of the deepest depression when her lavish spending becomes impossible and her new lovers deny her or become lackluster, which is another example of how a woman searching for passion in a world controlled by men leaves her at their mercy. Rochester in ways that he has never seen before, and at his level.
Approximate Word count =
1249
Approximate Pages =
5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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