thomas hardy comparing women character
Compare and contrast the way in which Hardy presents the female characters from two of the tales in 'The Distracted Preachers and Other Tales'. 'The Distracted Preachers and Other Tales' are set in the 19th century, written by Thomas Hardy. He is one of England's most widely known novelists and poets from the Victorian era, who is at least as popular today among ordinary readers as during his own lifetime. He received a great deal of academic attention and acclaim, where the life and personality of Hardy have aroused fascinated interest. 'The Withered Arm' and 'The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion' from 'The Distracted Preachers and Other Tales' are both principally tales of love affairs of normal everyday country lives in the Victorian society, showing the interaction of love and suffering, and the consequences of suffering of the three women where Hardy writes through their eyes. Fate and destiny are often shown in his stories, where lives are altered in their courses. Fates are determined and plots resolved by chance, bad luck or, a malevolent fate. Rhoda Brook, Gertrude Lodge and Phyllis Grove are all women of this time where women had no freedom or liberty, showing a big contrast of beliefs, manners, habits and values between the past and present. Victorian women's lives were powerless and mundane. They were expected to be totally subservient and dependant
Explore how women are presented by Thomas Hardy in The Sons Veto, The Withered Arm and Tony Kytes, the Arch Deceiver.
Prose Study: Thomas Hardy Explore how women are presented by Thomas Hardy in 'The Son's Veto', 'The Withered Arm' and 'Tony Kytes, the Arch Deceiver'. Thomas Hardy found himself amidst the rigid class system popular in Victorian England. Within a society dominated by men, Hardy is able to see past the stereotypes of the time and empathise with the plight of not only different classes, but most commonly, the problems women faced. His stories carried a recurring theme; women from different backgrounds attempting to remove the straight jacket that the attitudes within their society have forced upon them. At this time in history, women were perceived as having a diminutive purpose with little independence. The restrains of society can clearly be seen through Sophy's character in 'Son's Veto'. This story tells the tale of a young parlour maids journey through life at this point in history. Hardy describes her as a 'young invalid lad sitting in a wheeled chair.' as a result of an accident in her youth. It was this accident that first sparked Mr Twycott's interest in the young Sophy. Sophy was a lady in every sense of the word - except the home she was born into: a complete women but not polished and refined as middle class ladies were expected to be at the time. 'Sophy the women was a charming a partner as a man could possess, though Sophy the lady had her deficiencies.'
English coursework. Analysing 4 short stories
After reading four short stories from the 19th century, we explored how the writers present the female characters in each story, mentioning to what extent the character fit, or challenge, the stereotype of a 19th century woman. In the short story "Mr Lismore and the widow", we meet Wilkie Collins' female character, Mrs Callender, and I could immediately determine one of her main characteristics; her forward attitude. The story begins with Mrs Callender eagerly attending a men's meeting where she doesn't fit in, determined to see a man named Mr Lismore, "I want to see him, and that is all". The way in which she goes only to watch this man, "with such evident interest in Mr Lismore", proves she is very forward, challenging the typical stereotype of a 19th century woman, who was thought to be shy and timid. As the story progresses, we see many examples of this upfront behaviour, "are you married?", "or you may be in love?". When Mrs Callender confidently writes a letter to Mr Lismore and is the one trying to make contact with him, it shows she does not hold back and is clearly the one eager to speak to him, showing a lot of confidence and self-assuredness. Furthermore, later in the story Mrs Callender's actions show she is not only forward and full of confidence, but is sexually (opposite of subservient?), defying the stereotype once again. The way in which Mrs Callender
Consider how Thomas Hardy explores and presents his views on relationships between men and women in three of his short stories you have read.
Consider how Thomas Hardy explores and presents his views on relationships between men and women in three of his short stories you have read. Status is a high rank or standing, especially in a community or a workforce. Your status describes how well known you are in the community, compared to different people. This is why in the 1880's, status became a powerful and popular item for men to own. It was important for men in the 1880's to have a high status because it showed how well known you were and how important you were in the community compared to other men, for this reason status became a vital possession to own, and men could boost their status considerably by having exceedingly good wealth, and also the key feature which boosts men's statuses were their wives. Wives either made or beaked a man's status in the community in the 1880's. Men became fond of having their trophy wives to show of to other men to make them feel jealous, just so they can gain a higher status compared to other men. Overtime as the men's wives got older and seemed to loose their touch or gleam about them, their husbands disliked them and started to find them less attractive from when they first got married, as soon as the wife becomes less and less attractive the man's status would fall down as well. This made women become more and more obsessed on how they looked so they could please their husbands
Thomas Hardy has been praised for the strength of his narrative in The Wessex Tales. Discuss Hardy(TM)s narrative technique in at least three of the short stories in the collection. You should also consider the elements
Thomas Hardy has been praised for the strength of his narrative in "The Wessex Tales". Discuss Hardy's narrative technique in at least three of the short stories in the collection. You should also consider the elements which Hardy includes in his narratives which make them compelling and interesting. Thomas Hardy has, throughout his literary works within "The Wessex Tales" maintained a strong and unique narrative style, which has over nearly one hundred and fifty years enticed and compelled his audience to read on. Hardy successfully uses the pastoral voice within his narration; this is a highly conventional mode of writing, which idealizes a golden age of rustic innocence and virtuous frugality. We can see clear evidence for this in Hardy's work within the context that he wrote about a fictional place, similar to Dorset or Sussex, fifty years previous to his writing. Although the tales are fictional, the world and characters Hardy created were not far from what would have been within the time of his tales, therefore making the tales more believable and thereby letting his audience relate further to the tales. His success in creating a fictional world is, in my opinion, helped by the separation of the time period of his readers and that of his characters/tales. By setting his stories in the past an air of mystery is created, as none of his readers would have known what it
Compare Hardys presentation of women in An Imaginative Women and On the Western Circuit
Compare Hardy's presentation of women in two short stories Thomas Hardy's presentation of women is quite highlights the typical Victorian attitude towards women . In particular, 'An Imaginative Women' and 'On the Western Circuit' produce some interesting comparisons. The two leading characters are women, Ella Marchmill ('An Imaginative Woman') and Edith Harnham ('On the Western Circuit'). The first and probably the most obvious similarity between the two women is the way Hardy has presented their marriage. This was at a time when men still exerted their power over women, and a woman divorcing a man was unheard of. In both of these stories, Hardy has portrayed both of them as passionate, yet unhappy wives. William Marchmill, Ella's husband, is mention quite frequently in the story and plays an integral part, so we get a more accurate picture of him. However, Edith Harnham's husband only appears near the start, yet in that one glance, we get a good idea of the relationship between the two. "Oh? Horrid nuisance every year! I wish it could be put a stop to." "I like it." "H'm. There's no accounting for taste." Their relationship with each other has been portrayed powerfully in these three lines. Immediately, a lack of respect and common interest, perhaps even a sense of hostility between the two has become apparent. Compare this short, snappy encounter with some of the more
Thomas Hardy Essay
Thomas Hardy Essay English novelist, short story writer and poet Thomas Hardy was born in 2nd June 1840 in Dorchester, England. His short stories included The Withered Arm and Tony Kytes, The Arch Deceiver. When Hardy is writing short stories, the technique he uses is called Suspense. Suspense is the tension of the story which is the interest about the outcome of certain actions often used in short stories, it creates a dramatic impact and a mood of tension encouraging the reader to engage with the text. Hardy has also deliberately used frequent omissions and the alternate use of long and short sentences to create drama and the effect of leaving the reader guessing. In his short story called The Withered Arm, Hardy creates the theme of suspense throughout the portrayal of one main character named Rhoda Brooks. He describes Rhoda as being lonely and apart from the others, as 'a thin and fading woman'. This creates immediate atmosphere of suspense making the reader draw into empathisement with her. It appears that Farmer Lodge and Rhoda have had a past relationship previously and resulting from the affair, the farmer had fathered Rhoda's son. This becomes part of the first impressions we receive from Rhoda. In the story, Rhoda sends her son to spy on Farmer Lodge's new bride named Gertrude which leads us to conclude that there is bitterness and resentment in Rhoda. Hardy
What is Hardy saying about the treatment of women by society through the medium of story telling?
"What is Hardy saying about the treatment of women by society through the medium of story telling?" The Wessex Tales are a collection of short stories that were written by Thomas Hardy between the 1874 and 1888 but were based in the 1800s. They were set in a small part of Southern England, which in the Anglo-Saxon times was named Wessex; Hardy uses this setting for this set of fictional tales. Wessex had many small communities and in his tales he captures the spirit of these small districts. Every rural community was very close; everyone knew one another and everyone earned their money through conventional means, for example farming or labouring. This was mainly because there were very few means of transport, as only the rich owned ponies and carts due to the high maintenance costs and therefore there was little movement between villages. Due the size of these small village communities there tended to be frequent gossip between the women of the area; any turn of events would soon be known by the majority of the township as gossip spread like wildfire. At the time the stories were set, to survive and buy food the lower class women worked, often in middle class houses as maids, or servants. There was no need for the middle class women to work and therefore they often had a great deal of spare time on their hands. Servants weren't generally treated very well, as they were
Thomas Hardy Essay
Thomas Hardy Essay This essay is about the author Thomas Hardy's stories and how he presents "love" in them. His characters are cleverly created, each with their own personalities and different behaviours in love. Most of Hardy's stories are tragic, not necessarily to depress us, but mainly to make us think. Tragedies are usually caused by the characters themselves and also an external malign force. Examples of external malign include the law, and also diseases like Gertrude's withered arm, which caused major problems for her. The many types of love found in the stories include maternal, physical, sexual, rejected, sympathetic, committed, paternal, marital, love of being loved and more. The social and historical context in Thomas Hardy's stories is always important. The stories are set in the fictional places of Wessex and the area surrounding which are Casterbridge (Dorchester) and Budmouth (Weymouth). The characters live in a rural area, with the mention of farming, hills, grass, fields and hedges. There are no references to trains in the stories, though they must exist because they were in the era of the Industrial Revolution. Less pollution meant people had longer lives. Love relationships were mainly dominated by males, with the exception of Harriet in 'The Palmleys', who makes the decision to jilt Jack. Stricter codes and laws meant that people could be hanged or shot
Who deserves our sympathy:Rhoda or Gertrude
Who deserves our sympathy: Rhoda or Gertrude? Throughout the "Withered Arm" the main characters: Rhoda Brook and Gertrude Lodge experience lots of tragedy, and due to this, the book makes the audience empathise with the two of them. The following paragraphs will examine the lengths and extremes of these tragic events, and therefore conclude who deserves our sympathy. Rhoda Brook is a poor milkmaid and an abandoned single mother and Gertrude Lodge, is the rich and beautiful wife of Farmer Lodge. The pain and suffering endured by both characters is evident at different circumstances in the book, hence the book depicts sympathy for both characters. In the opening chapter of the "Withered Arm", Thomas Hardy shows sympathy for Rhoda. He uses the chapter title to demonstrate this- "The lorn milkmaid". The word "lorn" has connotations of sadness or loneliness; therefore, even before we begin to read the book, the title gives us the impression that the milkmaid is miserable and alone. As the chapter progresses, we learn that Rhoda works on a farm, owned by Farmer Lodge. We soon realise that Rhoda is isolated from the rest of workers on the farm. She does not seem to join in with the general chatter of the other milk maids and is by herself most of the time. She is described as "A thin, fading women of thirty that milked somewhat apart from the rest." The use of the work "fading"