Austens Growing Feminism in Emma Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Austens Growing Feminism in Emma - Essay Example Rarely was it possible to attain both and often it was found, too late, that it was possible to attain neither. Even in the very early 1800s, though, many of these ideas were beginning to surface in the literature produced. Writers such as Jane Austen emerged as proto-feminists, planting the seeds of a new day while still remaining ‘acceptable’ to the old. This careful blending of feminist ideals with traditional behaviors can be found in such novels as Emma, in which critics have found support both for the traditional role of women as well as encouragement for a new way of thinking about women. Women’s lives were often strictly contained within rigidly defined terms. Women who formed the upper class enjoyed ample time for leisure activities in their lifestyles and once a woman married, her role was to simply to manage the home and the household. Though the life of the upper class woman might seem easier and more secure than that of a lower class woman, this was not always the case. Land, titles, and money were inherited by the closest male relative – typically the older son, but if there was no older son then it would go to a more distant relation. Only the small amount of money set aside as a woman’s marriage dowry went to an unmarried woman after the death of her father. In addition, many women were married nominally against their will in arranged marriages, by the Victorian age positioning the woman herself as commodity (Levine-Clark, 1991). As a result, many mothers and daughters were left extremely poor after the death of their husband and fathers. At the same time, the activities they were permitted to take part in remained relatively sedate and home-bound.