Feminism in to the lighthouse
To The lighthouse
Name:
Maru Riddhi
Paper:
9 The Modernist literature
Topic:
feminism in to the lighthouse
Roll
No: 21
Class:
M.A.Sem.3
Year:
2016-2018
Emil
Id: riddhimaru27@gmail.com
Submitted
To: M.K.Bhavnagar University,
Topic:
feminism in to the lighthouse
Introduction
Before the Second World War and long before the second wave of feminism,
Virginia Woolf argued that women's experience, particularly in the women's
movement, could be the basis for transformative social change. Grounding
Virginia Woolf's feminist beliefs in the everyday world, Naomi Black reclaims
Three Guineas as a major feminist document. Rather than a book only about war,
Black considers it to be the best, clearest presentation of Woolf's feminism.
Woolf's changing representation of feminism in publications from 1920 to 1940
parallels her involvement with the contemporary women's movement (suffragism
and its descendants, and the pacifist, working-class Women's Co-operative
Guild). Black guides us through Woolf's feminist connections and writings,
including her public letters from the 1920s as well as "A Society," A
Room of One's Own, and the introductory letter to Life As We Have Known It. She
assesses the lengthy development of Three Guineas from a 1931 lecture and the
way in which the form and illustrations of the book serve as a feminist
subversion of male scholarship. Virginia Woolf as Feminist concludes with a
discussion of the continuing relevance of Woolf's feminism for third-millennium
politics.
Virginia woolf works
1.Mrs.Dalloway (1925)
2. To The lighthouse 9 1927)
3. Orlando 91928)
4. The Waves (1931)
5. Between the Acts (1941)
6. Moments of Being (1972)
Three phases of Feminism
In her book “A Literature of Their Own” Elaine Showalter writes on
English women writers. She says that we can see patterns and phases in
the evolution of a female tradition. Showalter has divided the period of
evolution into three stages.
- The first phase
- The feminist phase
- The latest phase
The first phase, the feminine phase dates from about
1840-1880. During that period women wrote in an effort to equal the
intellectual achievements of the male culture. The distinguishing sign of
this period is the male pseudonym. This trend was introduced in England
in the 1840’s. It became a national characteristic of English women
writers. During this phase the feminist content of feminine art is typically
oblique, because of the inferiority complex experienced by female writers.
The feminist phase lasted about 38 years; from 1882 to 1920. The New
Women movement gained strength—women won the right to vote. Women writers
began to use literature to dramatize the ordeals of wrong womanhood.
The latest phase or the third phase is called the female phase ongoing
since 1920. Here we find women rejecting both imitation and
protest. Showalter considers that both are signs of dependency. Women
show more independent attitudes. They realize the place of female
experience in the process of art and literature. She considers that there
is what she calls autonomous art that can come from women because their
experiences are typical and individualistic. Women began to concentrate
on the forms and techniques of art and literature. The representatives of
the female phase such as Dorothy Richardson and Virginia Woolf even began to
think of male and female sentences. They wrote about masculine journalism
and feminine fiction. They redefined and sexualized external and
internal experie.
What is
feminism?
In feminism we found that
women should have economic, political and social equality with men. Term
feminism is refers to political movement and right to vote for woman. We found
that not only woman but anyone can be feminists like men and women, girl and
boy. This term also can be called as a feminist movement. This movement and
feminists are demand men and women all are equal without any kind of boundary.
Feminists appeal for equality and freedom for women. The feminist critic wants
to explain gape the gender gap, men are superior to women. We found huge gender
gap among man and woman. This movement is known women’s liberation movement,
and women’s right to vote.
The first
feminist book was ‘A vindication of the right of women’ by Mary Wollstonecraft.
The term feminism is adopted world widely and socially also. Feminism is “The
theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. And
another one is organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interest.
This term was first used in 1895.” (According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary) At
some point feminism have not any ‘fundamental definition’, it is in very wilder
sense. It draws attention to women’s issues in men mad society. In short
reading of any kind of book with perspective of women is known as feminist
reading of the book.
Feminism in To the
Lighthouse
When we
refer history, we found that women have to straggle for free themselves from
the boundary of men, culture and religion. Women try to get space in literature
also. In 'To the Lighthouse’ we found two female characters Mrs. Caroline
Ramsay and Lily Briscoe. The character of Mrs. Ramsay and Lily Briscoe portray
these demanding roles. Both are totally differing from each other(Pinkney
· Character of
Lily Briscoe
Lily was guest at Ramsay family’s summer house. She is single; she is in her thirty-three. She is painter and free minded woman. She played role as a truly liberated female artist. Lily is representative of pure feminist woman who change male dominated society to get (achieve) a sense of individuality. She wants to live her life alone. In the novel we found that Charles Tensely who says that ‘women cannot write and women cannot paint’ Lily tries to prove that woman can paint. Through write this novel Virginia proves that woman can write and through creating the character of Lily Briscoe she prove that woman can paint. Lily finished painting at the end of the novel, she demonstrate herself as a truly liberated female artist. Lily was rule breaker, she has desire to stay away from conventional female culture norms and stereotypes of male dominated society. Lily maintain her status as medal age young woman, who valued artistic achievement over the prospect of marriage, it is difficult to maintain. The burden to conform to specific female gender roles weighs heavily upon her conscious: “Even while looked at the mass, at the line, at the color, at Mrs. Ramsay sitting in the window with the James, she kept a feeler on her surroundings lest someone should creep up and suddenly she would find her picture looked at(Feminism in To the lighthouse essays).”
Lily faces many problems and suffers from a typical male dominated
society, her desire to pursue art or painting as a vocation because she is
woman, and we found male prejudice upon woman. In novel we found that she peak
paintbrush instead of needle. She was aware about gender stereotypes. Lily
doesn’t marry in her life. Lily has confident on her art and painting. In this
novel Lily’s art is essentially metaphorical a radical political statement of
feminism ideals. Lily is unable to obtain an empowering sense of female
liberation. Lily finished the painting at the end of the novel; the first
section emphasizes sense of self as an artist and as a woman living in world
ruled by men. In the novel she is outsider of the family. Lily drowns a
painting of Mrs. Ramsay sitting in the openly transparent window of the cottage
with James, her youngest son and doing knitting. They both have their portrait
painted by Lily, looking at them through the window from position outside on
the law(Feminism in To the lighthouse essays).
Here we can says that Virginia create character of Lily as young woman
and free woman with art of painting. At one point Lily’s painting is actually
painted by Virginia herself. When we look at painting what we found in
painting, is the framing of the other woman. In painting what Mrs. Ramsay is
doing? She doing very typical household work like, taking care of James and
knitting. We can say that Virginia cannot give free spas to Mrs. Ramsay, even
in painting also. In this novel we found clash of gender ideologies much of the
novel and Virginia emphasizes a subversion of traditional female gender roles
through character of Lily Briscoe. In novel we found struggle to obtain and
assert female autonomy is constantly threatened or undermined by a society
built upon patriarchy or male dominated society.
Character of Mrs. Ramsay
Mrs.
Caroline Ramsay is very beautiful, charming and nurturing character. She is
loving and caring wife of Mr. Ramsay. She is thread of Ramsay family; she holds
all Ramsay family together. In novel we found that she is like very typical
Indian woman, who wake up early in the morning, go into kitchen, make breakfast
for family member. She like to decorating dining table. She used to serving
delicious food to family member and guest also, she believes in hospitality.
She wants to remain present in mind of family member. In chapter-1 she is
alive, but even in chapter-2 after her death Mrs. Ramsay remain central
character. Everybody in family remembers (miss) her a lot through the novel. In
the chapter -3 we found that Lily revisited her memories related with Mrs.
Ramsay, and makes harmony with her ghost (memory). She recalls what Mrs. Ramsay
tall her about marriage and she also remember her one sentence, ‘close the door
and open the window’.
We found that Mrs. Ramsay is character, who is constantly present not only
as worldly presence but also in the mind of the family members. She takes all
responsibility of family. In novel we found that when she asked for money from
Mr. Ramsay ask her question. She is not economically free woman; she must have
to give falsify or record of the money, sometime he refuse to give. But she
cannot give counterpoint to her husband; she is perfect housewife or homemaker.
It is very difficult to maintain both husband and her son James. Sometime James
became angry that his mother cannot give attention to him, she only talk and
love my father.
Mythical References
In this novel Dr. Joseph M Blotner reads mythical connections with female
characters. According to him three mythic female figures are traced in the
designing of the characters. Thay are : Zeus(Rhea) ,Demeter & Persephone.
Mrs.Ramsay is the symbol of female principal in the life. She is not merely goddess but more than this. We can say that she is the meaning of the novel. Rhea is the daity who bore the God children of God Zeus. Rhea has six children. Mrs. Ramsay resembles Rhea. She has eight children.Many a times she is relates with nature.
Conclusion
There
is so many things related with feminism are found in novel, this is only fling view
of it. We also found Virginia try to connect Greek mythology in the book. In
Greek goddess are in center. Here we compare character of Mrs. Ramsay with
three Greek mythical characters like Rhea, Demeter and Persephone. Mrs. Ramsay
is symbol of female principal in her life. Many women in novel either or
silently subvert conventional female gender roles. We found that the three
daughter of Mrs. Ramsay's daughter silently reject the life that their mother
chose for her. They want to live their life as Lily live
Works Cited
Feminism in To the light house essays. 31 December 1969. 31
October 2015
<http://ww.megaessays.com/viewpaper/18497.html>.
Pinknry,
Makiko Minow. Virginia Woolf and the Problem of the subject.
1. America: Edinburgh Uinivercity press, 2010.
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