Literary Criticism of The Short Stories of The Late 19th Century Through The Feminist Lens

The way that literature is approached can be critical to the ways in which it is interpreted by the reader. The literary lens, a genre of literary criticism, is a method used to understand a text from varying points of view. By looking at certain aspects of text from a new angle, previously hidden layered meanings are discovered. The feminist lens focuses on the depicted societal roles of women in literature. The many different kinds of feminist literary criticism enable the reader to underline the representation of patriarchal ideology and expose misogyny in writing about women. Sometimes the lens will be used to analyze the symbols that are used and how they can be classified as “gendered.” Other methods consider how the gender of the author affects the way literature is written. It is also common for feminist critics look at how male and female characters are portrayed and interpret whether it reinforces gender roles or confronts them in aim of promoting gender equality. While reading, by asking the questions ‘How is the relationship between men and women portrayed?’, ‘Who holds the power in the story?’, and ‘How are male and female roles illustrated?’, the strength of the female voice in the text can be further understood. Feminist criticism often refers to the fact that the relationship between men and women in society is often unequal and reflects a patriarchal ideology. This prejudice appears in the production of literature in a variety of ways, either implicitly or explicitly. By taking a deeper look at the short stories The Necklace, The Story of an Hour and Hills like White Elephants through the feminist lens, the forced conformity of women to the societal and marital norms of the late 19th century becomes evident.

To begin, the short story The Necklace, written by Guy de Maupassant in 1884, accounts the relevant tale of French middle-class woman Mathilde Loisel and her unfulfillment in life. Mathilde is stylish and social and she yearns for an expensive lifestyle to match her sophisticated taste, oblivious to the things she already has. Ironically, her desire for wealth and greed lead her ultimately to the life of poverty she despised. Her humble husband who is pleased by the smallest of gestures finds it difficult to comprehend his wife’s dreams of luxury, of “dainty dinners, of shining silverware, of tapestry which peopled the walls…” (Maupassant 1). Maupassant uses numerous examples of imagery to paint Madame Loisel as a 19th century version of today’s typical ‘desperate housewife’, insecure and perpetually unsatisfied. The story revolves around a diamond necklace lent to Mathilde by her only wealthy friend Madame Forrester on the single occasion she gets invited to a fancy ball. As she is trying on her friend’s jewelry she discovers a superb necklace of diamonds in a black satin box and “her heart began to beat with an immoderate desire. Her hands trembled as she took it. She fastened it around her throat … remained lost in ecstasy at the sight of herself.” This description helps to convey Madame Loisel’s true fascination with the riches she lacks, as it lures her into a materialistic state, rather than putting more importance towards the things that are truly valuable to her. The necklace itself is a symbol of power, representing the social status she longs for but will never be able to attain.

Albeit the works of Guy de Maupassant are better recognized for their representation of Parisian class struggle and Marxist theory, the feminist lens is also highly applicable to The Necklace. Growing up with his mother following his parents’ divorce, Maupassant gained much of his literary inspiration from her. He developed an unwavering respect for women as a result of his upbringing, incorporating his values into his work. In The Necklace, Mathilde, who goes more commonly by her husband's surname ‘Loisel’, is forced into a life of boredom. An unequal relationship between man and wife is evident as she is confined to her small, shabby apartment while her husband goes to work, left to manage home affairs. Her only escape is to a fantasy world of glamour and indulgence, making it easy to argue her existence in a patriarchal society. She is shallow and vain — obsessed with her looks and the image of wealth she aims to portray. This behaviour can be explained by the expectations conventionally placed upon her by the society in which she lives. As mentioned by author Virginia Brackett in her article on the matter, because women are not able to work for success, “they succeed in this society only as fashion objects” (Brackett, 1). She is allowed only to be valued for her looks, any other valuable traits she may have to offer are oppressed and deemed worthless. She strives for nothing but to be an object adoration for other men, the climax of her happiness occurring only as “all the men looked at her, asked her name, endeavored to be introduced.” The author has chosen to depict Mathilde in such a desperate and shallow manner to earn the sympathies of the reader and to reinforce his illustration of a male-controlled society. With no authority over her own life, she is forced to depend on her husband to advance her social standing.

Another equally important short story in terms of feminist criticism is The Story of an Hour, written ten years later by Kate Chopin in 1894. This story tells the tale of Louise Mallard, a woman who suffered from a great heart trouble. It is for this reason that her sister Josephine takes great care when breaking to her the news of her husband’s passing in a train accident. Ironically, her sadness over her husband's death gives way to a new sense of freedom. She feels ecstatic with her newfound independence, repeatedly exclaiming how she is now “Free, free, free!”. It is only upon seeing her husband walk through the door alive and well that Mrs. Mallard suffers from a heart attack and dies, her hopes shattered. Her newfound joy disappears as quickly as it came, and the mere glimpse of it is enough to take her life. The concept that Mrs. Mallard was set free after the news of her husband's death is magnified by the author's use of symbolism and imagery. Louise’s heart condition itself is symbolic of her ambivalence towards her marriage. The described open window out which she gazes is symbolic of Louise looking upon her own bright future and the new opportunities that await her, which was previously hindered by the demands of her husband. Her attention to detail outside the window — the tops of trees, the ‘delicious breath’ of rain, the notes of a distant song and the cloudy blue sky — denote her newly found lust for life. She is fully indulging in aspects of the world she was likely never able to before, claiming to be “drinking in the very elixir of life” through that window. Her revetment in deep thought establishes her as an intelligent individual, an element of her person that would have never before been appreciated by her husband. The forbidden pleasure of freedom she’d longed for throughout her entire marriage has finally become a possibility.

Furthermore, as an individual influenced by the controversial nature of Guy de Maupassant’s work, Kate Chopin chose to revolt against tradition and authority and to write the unsparing truth about a woman’s concealed life. Much of the fiction she wrote draws on the mentoring she received by women as a young girl; by her mother, her grandmother, and her great grandmother. Many considered her a pioneer in her own time with her portrayal of women's desires of independence, a concept that was unthinkable in the misogynistic era which she lived. The character of Louise Mallard in The Necklace is one of Kate Chopin’s strongest self-assertive women, defying the conventional feminine stereotype. The story suggests that even the healthiest marriages in the 19th century are inherently oppressive. Although Louise acknowledges that her husband had treated her well, had never looked upon her save with love, there would now “be no powerful will bending hers”. Despite the love she feels for her husband, she is overwhelmed and elated by her newfound independence that she lost when she married him. She is free to live the life she wants without his imposition. Chopin wrote to convey her feelings towards the prejudiced society in which she lived, believing that the lives of women were still very much limited when compared to those of men. Allotted few roles, women were expected to be subservient to their spouse. Chopin's story “reflects both these constraints and the growing desire of many women for 'liberation' of various kinds.” Louise Mallard’s sudden and violent joy reflects the female search for identity in a male-dominated world.

Similarly, the short story Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway, although written much later in 1927, tells an ambiguous story of a woman’s suppressed desires. It is set in a bar by a train station near the Ebro River in Spain, where an American man and a woman, who he calls “Jig”, sit drinking beer and making small-talk while they wait for their train. They hesitantly move into conversation about an operation that the man wants her to have, downplaying it’s seriousness by insisting it is “awfully simple” and “perfectly natural”. Although neither of the individuals fully reveal what the operation actually is, it is clear that the man thinks it will be beneficial to their relationship while the woman is reluctant to go through with it. They dance seamlessly around the topic, refraining to directly mention the issue they are discussing, indicating the couple’s issues with communication. The quarrel progresses until the distressed woman makes the man promise to stop talking. When the train finally arrives and the story comes to an end, it is unclear as to whether the woman agrees upon the operation or not. Hemingway uses subtle symbols to hint at the reality of the operation, which is in fact an abortion. Up until this point it is evident that the couple has been indulging in an aimless hedonistic lifestyle, as the girl says “That's all we do, isn't it — look at things and try new drinks?” The similarities between the couple's position halfway between decisions and their location halfway between cities indicate that the setting is in fact symbolic of their transition from this lifestyle to another. On one side of the train tracks, “there was no shade and no trees”. However, on the opposite side “were fields of grain and trees along the bank of the Ebro”. This contrast between barren and fertile land on either side of the tracks symbolizes the ultimate outcomes of the decision the girl faces; will she go through with the operation and return to her purposeless life with her partner or bear the child like she wants and live out a fruitful life. The first evidence of her inclination towards carrying out the pregnancy is her mention that the hills in the distance remind her of 'white elephants”. This comparison is significant as the white elephant is a common representation in Buddhism and Hinduism for an unwanted, impractical gift; something the recipient does not want to keep because the gift entails an expense out of proportion to its value. This can be interpreted as her referring to her pregnancy as the white elephant or that the relationship itself can be viewed as a white elephant that she may wish to leave behind. Moreover, when the girl gets up to admire the fields of grain she says to her lover longingly 'And we could have all this… and we could have everything', signifying she sees the pregnancy as a blessing, and would prefer to keep the child and perhaps get married.

Contrarily to the previous authors, Hemingway was not known as a voice for women during his time, even earning a misogynistic reputation as feminist critics lamented his stories’ praise of masculinity at the expense of women and femininity. His stories alienated many a female reader, considering his male-oriented stories about hunting, fishing, bullfighting, and battle. However, he was one to value honesty in his work, planting deep meanings beneath simple words. He once said, 'The writer's job is to tell the truth', and in the story Hills Like White Elephants he does just that, offering some insight to what women were experiencing as the feminist movement began to evolve, including the widely debated right to choose what a woman does to her body, referring to an abortion. The dialogue based format of the story makes the reader immediately aware of the story’s explicit lack of balance in gender roles, as the American man clearly holds the power in the conversation over the girl. Her submissive attitude towards him is indicative of her low self-esteem, which is further developed as she asks repeatedly whether he will love her if she does what he wants. She even claims she doesn’t care what happens to herself, she will simply “do it and then everything will be fine.' Through her exasperated comments it becomes evident that she truly believes the abortion is the only solution to their failing relationship, giving little thought to the emotional and physical trauma the procedure will bring herself. The man’s response is also indicative of his own lack of regard for his partner’s wellbeing. His nonchalance on the seriousness of an operation he clearly knows nothing of makes him seem impatient for her decision. Her attempts to articulate her own thoughts and feelings and in turn advance her feminist outlook are shut down by his persistent coercion. As Jig comes to terms with her true desires to bear children she has the potential to break free from the gender stereotype that confines her, “in this story, however, she is a tragic figure seemingly driven into a barren and empty existence by her love for this man.” Male hierarchy is evident throughout the narrative, but the woman attempts to defy the constraints of her society and her oppressive boyfriend as she considers her own part in the decision.

In closing, using the feminist lens to observe women’s societal roles in literature can be indicative of the time period in which it is written. This is evident in the short stories The Necklace, The Story of an Hour and Hills like White Elephants, where the highlighted suppression of women's rights is demonstrative of their treatment in the late 19th century. From this, the conclusion can be made that the feminist movement is dynamic and that its influence on literature is constantly changing.

Women today still struggle with expectations of compliancy to men’s demands even with years of struggle to become powers in industry, politics and the work force.

Sources Cited

Brackett, Virginia. “The Necklace.” Masterplots, Fourth Edition, Nov. 2010, pp. 1–3. EBSCOhost,search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=103331MP423449820000699&site=lrc-plus.

Chopin, Kate, and Robert C. Evans. “The Story of an Hour.” Introduction to Literary Context: American Short Fiction, Nov. 2014, pp. 193–198. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=101666196&site=lrc-plus.

Holladay, Hal. “Hills Like White Elephants.” Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition, Jan. 2004, pp. 1–3. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=103331MSS156692400010&site=lrc-plus.