The Labouchère Amendment mentions that “[a]ny male person who in public or private commits or is a party to the commission of or procures or attempts to procure the commission by any male person of any act of gross indecency with another male person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor…” (Sexology Handout). If this is the status quo of law at the time, then it is worth noting that Basil’s admiration toward Dorian puts him in situation where he could be charged for said crime. His commission of Basil to model for his artwork may seem like artistic interest at first. However, it is at first hinted, and then revealed that Basil had ulterior motives for his artwork. He confesses to Dorian: “I wanted to have you all to myself. I was only happy when I was with you. When I was away from you, you were still present in my art. It was all wrong and foolish. It is all wrong and foolish still. Of course I never let you know anything about this. It would have been impossible.” (79). The best pieces of Basil’s artwork are driven by his passion for Dorian. He redirects his sexual desire for the youth through artistic expression. While this is within the legal guidelines of the written laws of the time, it could be argued that Basil’s actions are that of gross indecency. This would especially be the case should his feelings for Dorian come to light. That is why he refused to have the artwork shown at first. He tells Dorian, “I grew afraid that the world would know of my idolatry. I felt, Dorian, that I had told too much” (79). It is clear that Basil is trying to appease his passions at his own risk. Even though he is aware of it, emotions can cause people to disregard their own well-being for the satisfaction of their passion.
Author: reevesj2
Victims of Society
Tristan sees prostitutes as victims of the patriarchal society of Victorian London. She says, “…if chastity had not been imposed on the woman for the sake of virtue without the man’s being subjected to the same thing, she would not be pushed from society from yielding to the sentiments of her heart…” (Tristan, 2). Tristan describes how the unfair balance of virtue and sexuality affects women: they would be seduced by men, usually wealthy men, and end up giving up their virginity. The men would then turn on them, having played their game, and move onto the next girl. With women’s sexuality being so closely tied to their identity, they would be disgraced and turned out by the strongly opinionated society. As a result, they have no choice but to turn to prostitution as a source of income. The poem Magdalen supports this idea. It tells the story of a girl who is seduced by a man, she falls in love, and then she is left cold. Without anywhere else to turn, she becomes a prostitute and finds out that she is going to die from some disease. This supports Tristan’s statements. The poem blames society as a whole rather than men or women. The speaker says, “…And there is nothing false nor true; // But in a hideous masquerade // All things dance on, the ages through. // And good is evil, evil good; // Nothing is known or understood // Save only pain” (Levy, 800). The lines speak about the “masquerade” which is the false faces that people wear. They follow the flow of society because that is the system that has been set in place by those in power. Even if it is not “known or understood” it is the lifestyle that the population has become accustomed to. The poem definitely takes a sympathetic tone for the prostitutes who are victims of their society. It is also not quick to cast judgment on those who wrong them either. It offers a more objective look on the affairs that go on.
Victorian Governesses
The Victorians looked down on the idea of governesses because they upset the social balance. They were educated women who broke away from their life course in order to explore paths that were not previously open to them. It was stated that “many left their quiet homes for the school-rooms of halls and castles” (569). Many governesses turned their back on their old comfortable lifestyles. This ended up costing them because they were forced to work for an income or resort to a marriage beneath their ranks in order to live in comfort. Therefore, they were taken advantage of by the families who hired them because of their desperation. Becoming victims of their own circumstance, governesses were seen as unhappy women who were wasting away their youth on the education of families of varying social rank. Their position held little prestige because of its overabundance on the market. All they accomplished was upsetting the social order of things.
Brontë’s portrayal of governesses goes against the societal views. It offers a circumstance where being a governess is better than the alternative. While Jane is a ward of the Reed’s, her life is very bleak there. She is unhappy and poorly treated by her peers on a regular basis. It is not until she moves to Lowood that she is able to pursue her own education and start up a life based on her own wants. Jane remarks: “I had the means of an excellent education placed within my reach; a fondness for some of my studies and a desire to excel in all…” (149). While before she was just a girl living in ignorance and isolation at the mercy of her guardian, now she is set on a path toward independence and is happier than she ever imagined possible. If one had to pick from the two options available, the one that she chose certainly appears to be more agreeable.
Female Clerks
My topic of research from Lee Jackson’s The Victorian Dictionary was about female clerks. There was a satire article from the Victorian newspaper Punch about a female clerk being hired in a post office. The article deftly makes a mockery of the idea of women working in a post office: “…we see no objection to female clerks, who will, at all events, be sure to have something to say…” (“A FEMALE FUNCTIONARY”). Due to their lack of having a voice in many situations, the writer is teasing the idea that they would love to speak here because elsewhere they are to remain silent and submissive. The article continues to mock women by targeting the limitations of their legal standing: “We rather tremble…for we know what an awful propensity most women have to put papers to rights, and the inextricable confusion into which papers are generally thrown by the process” (“A FEMALE FUNCTIONARY”). Seeing as how women are rarely allowed to sign legal papers without the consent of a male guardian, this is a shot on their limitations. The idea of them handling the legal papers of others is certainly humorous and ridiculous to the Victorian readers. If not degrading enough to the female gender, the satire ends by taking the responsibilities of their position and twisting them into a cruel joke: “Perhaps, however, the State Papers are not intended for reference, and as most of them are possibly mere waste paper by this time, a female hand may be very useful in cramming them into all sorts of holes and corners, where they will be quite out of everybody’s way, and utterly inaccessible” (“A FEMALE FUNCTIONARY”). The author morphs the female clerk from the role of maintaining the functioning of an important service into handling an unimportant task where the result does not affect the documents in the least. He talks about the female clerks cramming the waste paper away where it is in nobody’s was and inaccessible but he is also referring to the clerks themselves as if their job would satisfy them and keep them out of the real business of government and law.
Works Cited
“A FEMALE FUNCTIONARY.” Punch. Victorian London Dictionary. Web. 12 February 2016. http://www.victorianlondon.org/index-2012.htm
Jordan Reeves Blog Post 1
My name is Jordan Reeves, and I am majoring in English. I like to read books on my free time but never get the time to read as much as I would like. I cannot say that I have a favorite author but one of my preferred ones is George R.R. Martin. His work on the A Song of Ice and Fire series is inspirational.
It is hard to say whether The Pride and the Prejudice agrees with the Sermons for Young Women or not. The way that I see it is that it takes the literal meaning of the book while mocking the gender stereotypes and social norms that are being taught. In Fordyce’s book, he comments on the effect that women have on the male etiquette: “Those who are most conversant with women of virtue and understanding will always be found the most amiable characters, other circumstances being supposed alike” (396). His theory is that a man’s character is shaped by the kind of women that he associates himself with. In a way this is true because people in general are shaped by the kind of people that with whom they associate. We are very social creatures and that reflects in the way that society is able to dictate what is or is not considered appropriate. The Pride and The Prejudice both supports and mocks this idea with the way that Elizabeth is able to chip away at Mr. Darcy’s frosty exterior and make him a more amiable presence. Elizabeth is not considered a virtuous woman by the standards set by Fordyce and yet she is the woman who is able to turn Mr. Darcy into a kinder gentleman. At the beginning of the novel when Darcy is first introduced he is considered standoffish and refuses to dance with women who he is not already affiliated with. However, the more that he converses with Elizabeth over the course of their chance meetings, he finds himself becoming too comfortable around her. His satisfaction towards her departure from Netherfield speaks volumes: “…Elizabeth had been at Netherfield long enough. She attracted him more than he liked…” (XII, 40). Elizabeth’s stay at the house meant that she and Darcy were constantly interacting. As he becomes more familiar with her and grows attached, his demeanor also begins to change. He even grows so attached that he asks Elizabeth to dance as a gentleman should where before he broke the social code by denying her when seeing that she was lonely.