Novel Lec 6
Women in the Victorian Novel
The Status of Women in the Victorian Age (Page 3)
Women were considered second-class citizens compared to men.
Women were expected to learn specific skills to get married.
Poor women learned weaving, cooking, washing, cleaning, sewing.
Rich women learned piano, painting, ball dancing, etiquette, languages.
The main role of women was to get married and play the role of an obedient wife and a loving protective mother.
The Domestic Sphere (Page 4)
Women lived in the domestic sphere.
They were responsible for unpaid care and domestic work.
Men had the final say in household decisions.
Restrictive masculinities dictated that men should dominate and control women in the household.
True Woman (Page 6)
Victorian women were expected to stay in the house (the private/domestic sphere).
They were not allowed to inherit any property or vote.
They were given basic education only to fulfill their assigned gender roles.
Women were considered part of male property and were expected to keep their husbands happy and groom their children well.
Stereotypes and Restrictions (Page 8)
Women were stereotyped as being domestic.
Women's rights were severely restricted.
Once married, women lost ownership of their earnings and possessions.
Husbands had power and control over all assets, income, and money.
Victorian wives were treated as their husbands' property, including domestic labor and marital duties.
Expectations and Roles (Page 9)
A wife's basic job was to love, honor, and obey her husband.
Women were expected to get married, take care of the home, and be mothers.
Women who failed to find spouses were typically expected to work in childcare.
Women were expected to be "angels in the house" and guard their families day and night.
Education and Suffrage (Page 13)
Women were initially educated in "accomplishments" to attract husbands.
Some doctors believed that too much education would harm women's reproductive abilities.
Women's colleges opened, sparking the desire for the right to vote.
The National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies was formed in 1897.
Women gained the right to vote in 1928.
Employment Opportunities (Page 16)
Working-class women held jobs to supplement income and provide for the family.
Domestic service was the main source of employment for women.
Higher-class women worked as governesses, housekeepers, or lady's maids.
Lower-class women worked as housemaids, laundresses, or kitchen maids.
Some women worked in coal mines and factories during the Industrial Revolution.
Teaching and Other Professions (Page 18)
Teaching was a field for working women.
Schoolteachers were often single women with little formal education.
Women could also work as private teachers for affluent families.
Sewing, cooking, singing, and playing an instrument were important skills for women.
Virginia Woolf's Perspective (Page 19)
Virginia Woolf addressed the need for women to overcome societal expectations in her essay "Profession for Women."
She argued that women writers must defeat "The Angel in the House" to be successful.
Note
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Victorian women who stepped out of the domestic sphere became novelists.
Writing novels was a suitable and lucrative profession for Victorian women.
The exact number of women writers from that time is unknown.
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The rise of female novelists began in the 18th century but became prominent in the 19th century.
Jane Austen, Charlotte Brönte, and George Eliot were influential female novelists.
Women writers faced difficulties due to lack of education and job opportunities.
Writing novels provided an escape from the patriarchal society.
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During the Victorian Age, it was considered indecent for women to work outside the domestic sphere.
The reception of governesses and teachers was paradoxical, as their work was both respected and disrespected.
Women's writing changed the stigma of women earning money.
Women entered the literary market as journalists, editors, and editors of journals for women and children.
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Examples of seminal Victorian women novelists include the Bronte Sisters.
Charlotte Bronte rebelled against the conventions of other authors in her novels.
Emily Bronte's "Wuthering Heights" is both a poem and a book.
Anne Bronte challenged social and legal structures in her novels.
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George Eliot's novels are characterized by their seriousness and introspective nature.
Elizabeth Gaskell shed light on social topics such as the struggle of the working class.
"North and South" is a social commentary on industrialization and class distinctions.
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George Eliot's novels are characterized by their seriousness and introspective nature.
Elizabeth Gaskell shed light on social topics such as the struggle of the working class.
"North and South" is a social commentary on industrialization and class distinctions.
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Elizabeth Gaskell was one of the most well-known female writers in Victorian England.
She wrote about the struggle of the working class and the dissolution of class distinctions.
"North and South" is her