Comparative Study

MUSTANG —
Cultural Context (Turkey)

Marriage

  • Marriage is used as a tool of control and a way to protect family honour.

  • Girls are married off rapidly and without consent once their behaviour is deemed “shameful”.

Key moments

  • After the beach incident, marriage becomes the solution to “restore honour”.

  • Selma’s wedding night shows marriage as emotionless and transactional.

  • Ece’s fear of forced marriage contributes to her tragic fate.

Role of Women

  • Women are expected to be pure, obedient, and silent.

  • Female sexuality is treated as dangerous and shameful.

  • Women internalise oppression (grandmother enforces rules).

Key moments

  • Girls are taught virginity tests and “proper behaviour”.

  • Bars installed on windows → physical symbol of female restriction.

  • Lale’s resistance highlights how rare independence is for women.

Class / Status

  • Honour and reputation matter more than wealth.

  • Respectability defines social standing within the community.

Key moments

  • Community gossip after the football celebration triggers punishment.

  • Grandmother’s fear of social judgement motivates harsh control.

Role of Men

  • Men hold absolute authority.

  • Abuse of power is normalised and hidden.

Key moments

  • Uncle Erol controls the household and sexually abuses the girls.

  • Men arrange marriages and dictate futures without female input.

Money

  • Marriage reduces the financial burden of raising girls.

  • Women are treated as economic liabilities.

Key moments

  • Each marriage removes a girl from the household responsibility.

  • Practical concerns outweigh emotional wellbeing.

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE —
Cultural Context (Regency England)

Marriage

  • Marriage is a woman’s main source of security.

  • Love is desirable but secondary to financial stability.

Key moments

  • Charlotte Lucas marries Mr Collins for security, not love.

  • Mrs Bennet’s obsession with marrying off daughters.

  • Elizabeth rejects Collins because marriage without respect is unacceptable.

Role of Women

  • Women are expected to be accomplished, attractive, and agreeable.

  • Limited legal and financial independence.

Key moments

  • Bennet estate entailed away from daughters.

  • Elizabeth judged for walking to Netherfield alone (improper behaviour).

Class / Status

  • Rigid class hierarchy governs relationships and marriage.

  • Social mobility is limited but possible.

Key moments

  • Darcy initially rejects Elizabeth due to her “inferior” connections.

  • Lady Catherine attempts to block Elizabeth’s marriage to Darcy.

Role of Men

  • Men control property, wealth, and marriage proposals.

  • Male behaviour often excused.

Key moments

  • Wickham’s scandals forgiven more easily than Lydia’s.

  • Darcy’s proposal places him in a position of power.

Money

  • Wealth defines marriage prospects and social respect.

  • Financial stability outweighs romantic ideals.

Key moments

  • Collins’ inheritance of Longbourn.

  • Darcy’s fortune makes him socially powerful and desirable.

SIVE —
Cultural Context (Rural Ireland)

Marriage

  • Marriage is a financial transaction.

  • Love is irrelevant; land and money are paramount.

Key moments

  • Sive forced to marry Sean Dota for his wealth.

  • Bride price motivates the family’s decision.

Role of Women

  • Women are expected to obey family decisions.

  • Female suffering is ignored and silenced.

Key moments

  • Sive has no say in her future.

  • Mena and Mike Glavin exploit Sive for profit.

Class / Status

  • Wealth and land equal status.

  • Poverty leads to moral corruption.

Key moments

  • Sean Dota’s money overrides his age and cruelty.

  • Sive’s low status makes her disposable.

Role of Men

  • Men dominate decision-making.

  • Patriarchal authority is absolute.

Key moments

  • Sean Dota chooses Sive as property.

  • Male voices overpower Sive’s wishes.

Money

  • Money is the central motivator of all actions.

  • Human value is reduced to financial gain.

Key moments

  • Arguments revolve around payment, not Sive’s happiness.

  • Sive’s death is the ultimate cost of greed.

COMPARATIVE INSIGHTS

  • Marriage

    • Mustang & Sive: Forced, oppressive, destructive

    • Pride & Prejudice: Restrictive but allows growth and choice

  • Role of Women

    • All three show women as limited by society

    • Only Elizabeth Bennet and Lale have real agency

  • Role of Men

    • Power is unquestioned in Mustang and Sive

    • Subtler but still dominant in Pride & Prejudice

  • Money

    • Central in Sive and Pride & Prejudice

    • Secondary but influential in Mustang

  • Overall Message

    • Sive warns

    • Mustang resists

    • Pride and Prejudice critiques and reforms