"How does Hardy treat gender roles in chapter 10 of Far from the Madding Crowd."

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"How does Hardy treat gender roles in chapter 10

of Far from the Madding Crowd."

Hardy uses many subtle and individual techniques to display gender roles within this chapter. In the main these reciprocate normal behaviour by having a woman in a superior position dominating a lot of men. This idea is known as subversion of gender, and this is the main technique used in this chapter. One must remember that at the time of writing this was sensational, as women were not considered self-reliant.

The first thing the reader sees is the chapter heading, and in Hardy's case, he uses chapter headings as a summary for the chapter; "Mistress and Men" implies a Mistress holding power over men. It is this subversion of gender roles, which lends the attraction for ladies of leisure in the 1900s, and also generates humour; as at the time the thought of a woman in control of men would have been laughable. It also serves to impress upon the ladies of leisure that would have read this format of writing, that women could be self-reliant. This could have been seen as a dangerous ideal, as it promotes