SOCIAL POSITION OF WOMEN

Social Position of Women in Literature

[Name of the Institute]

Social Position of Women in Literature

Introduction

In all societies, the roles of men and women are built on the social model but too frequent disparities based on gender, to the detriment of women. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the social position and role of women in literature. Women are the basis of many stories in English literature and the depiction of their roles in the stories indicates their social position and psychological establishments. For this purpose the basis of my analysis will include the work of Ernest Hemingway for his novel “A Farewell to Arms” and Scott Fitzgerald for “The Diamond as Big as the Ritz”.

Social Position of Women in “A Farewell to Arms”

Often regarded among the premier war novels of all times, A Farewell to Arms draws heavily on Hemingway's personal experiences as an ambulance driver during World War I. Since its publication in 1929, first as a serial in Scribner's magazine then as a novel, a plethora of critics have discussed its meaning and debated what it has to say in regard to love, war, and self-discovery. Although Hemingway celebrates love, or at least insists on the need for love, there is a streak of misogyny that runs through his work. Hemingway distrusts women. He created what might be called ideal women, such as Catherine Barkley in this novel and Maria in For Whom the Bell Tolls—an ideal woman being a woman who knows her place, who knows her duties, who knows her obligations, who is devoted to the well-being of the man. He created these women who have been described as lobotomized; yet he also created some of the grandest bitches in literature: destructive, devouring, man-eating women. These two things operate side-by-side. One is there for the sake of illuminating the other. The bitches help define what a good woman is by contrast (Hemingway, 1987, Pp. 10-125). 

The first thing to be notice about this conversation is the definition of love being offered by the Priest. He seeks to differentiate between lust and love, insisting that one wish to serve and sacrifice for the things you love. He offers this definition to demonstrate to Frederic that, despite his protests, he does indeed love. The priest is referring to the divine love and its beauty. Human beings have a natural tendency to love their creator the sole being the eternal. In the Priest's mind, Frederic wishes to serve and sacrifice in the name of lust. When Frederic persists, replying "I do not love," he indicates that he is not as committed to the Italian army and its fight as he once was or should be. Frederic's conversation with the Priest moves from a discussion of loving God to sexual love and then possibly to romantic love or devotion to a cause or group. Over the course of the novel, it seems that Frederic ultimately has to choose between devotion to the army and to Catherine. Also, he refers to love as his "religion" ...