The Governess s Lack Of Social Experience Essay - 1404 Words

The Governess’s lack of social experience leads her to perceive sex in a skewed light. The twenty-year-old protagonist of The Turn of the Screw by Henry James has been put in charge of the schooling and supervision of two young children after the death of their former Governess. Flora and Miles, the niece and nephew of a rich bachelor have been put into the custody of their uncle. Their uncle, ill-equipped to raise them on his own, delegates his newfound responsibilities to a variety of servants who live with the children at one of his estates, Bly. After just two interviews with the Uncle, the Governess was given her position and took on the responsibilities of raising two children with very little support. The ill experienced Governess falls in love with the children’s uncle and is overtaken by her desires for him. Her sexual immaturity bars her from properly registering her feelings, causing Freudian principles to encompass her desires. The Governess’s immaturity is a foundation for her lack of sexual understanding. The Governess was essentially ripped from her childhood. She was a young woman who was never given the chance to explore all sides of her identity, especially her sexuality. This is a woman was torn away from all that she knew, and placed in a situation where she would have to dig deep within herself to find and channel motherly qualities, qualities she was never given the opportunity to develop. The Governess was placed in a social structure where herShow MoreRelatedA Marxist Approach to Jane Eyre1034 Words   |  5 Pageswritten. What does the text tell us about contemporary social classes and how does it reflect classism? Jane Eyre depicts the strict, hierarchical class system in England that required everyone to maintain carefully circumscribed class positions. Primarily through the character of Jane, it also accents the cracks in this system, the places where class differences were melding in Victorian England. For example, the novel questions the role of the governess: Should she be considered upper class, based onRead MoreJane Eyre s Life Was Full Of Oppression, Neglect And Sorrow1498 Words   |  6 PagesOne of those would be the search of love and acceptance. Jane wanted to find a family so desperately and she wanted to belong to people. More than this though, Jane wanted to be treated equally. She was denied equality because of her social status, her income,her lack of â€Å"beauty† and most of all because of her gender. The book Jane Eyre shows the struggle that women face while attempting to overcome oppression and inequality in the Victorian era. Ever since she was a child, Jane had always beenRead More In Want of a Wife: Jane Austen’s Reaction to Marriage1624 Words   |  7 Pagesengagement was not long lived, in fact it only lasted one night, and she rejected the suitor in the morning (8). Austen’s marital status and limited interaction outside her family led her to develop a keen sense of human interactions. Through her experiences â€Å"grieving and rejoicing with family members and friends, mothering nieces and nephews, worrying about the effects of her unstable times on those she loved† she is able to portray the time through her characters (9). During the Romantic Era, veryRead More Genteel People and Honest Hearts in Jane Austens Emma Essay examples1575 Words   |  7 Pagesclass is illustrated at Boxhill during Mr Knightley’s vehement reprimand of Emma’s cutting remark: ‘she has seen you grow up from a period when her notice of you was an honour.’ Of course, they have since slipped in monetary value, but retain their social position nonetheless. Mrs. Elton has the money, but not the connections or character to be considered genteel. Her marriage to a vicar as Mr Elton has raised her a class, but she has clearly not had the breeding to be comfortable in such high societyRead MoreThe Importance Of Being Earnest By Oscar Wilde942 Words   |  4 Pageseffectively mocks the concept of marriage for social status rather than love. Additionally, interpreting the roles of the lower class servants allows the readers to internalize the desperate need for social reform that the author felt at the time p eriod. Finally, the entire concept of Bunburyism, or masquerading as an alternate persona, satirizes the hypocrisy of the Victorian Era. During the mid 1800’s, commonly referred to as the Victorian Period, social hierarchy was an enormously profound aspectRead MoreJane Eyre By Charlotte Bronte1714 Words   |  7 Pages Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brà ¶nte voiced the radical opinions of Brà ¶nte on religion, gender, and social class. Jane Eyre, a young orphan who lived with her vituperative aunt and cousins, strayed away from the Victorian ideals of a woman and established a new status for herself. Jane Eyre was originally written in 1827 and was heavily influenced by the late gothic literature of the 19th century. Gothic literary aspects such as supernatural occurrences, mysteries and dark secrets, madness and dangerRead MoreFiction in Henry James Paste2797 Words   |  12 PagesFiction in Henry James`s â€Å"Paste† Table of Contents 1. Introduction 3 2. American Modernism 4 3. Henry James (1843-1916) 5 4. Paste 8 5. Fiction in Henry James 10 6. Paste analysis 12 6. Conclusion 14 7. Bibliography 15 1. Introduction In my term paper I will primarily discuss Henry James and his short story Paste. Firstly, I will focus on the time he wrote the story and than I will describe his life and his three major writing phrases. Next, I will go on with giving the most importantRead MoreMoll Flanders Morality1859 Words   |  8 Pageswith social class and financial state rather than religion; furthermore, people in higher social standings were depicted as having higher morals because of their financial status. Citizens in lower classes were not only looked down upon for their lack of money, but, also, they were also considered lesser because of their poor life choices and the way they lived their life. Defoe made the argument that people made poor decisions and had low morals because of their financial situation and social statusRead MoreJane Eyre : A Fight For Women s Equality1749 Words   |  7 Pages Jane Eyre: A Fight for Women’s Equality Feminism: the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men (dictionary.com). Throughout history, women have fought for and struggled with gaining full and absolute equality in society--which has proven to be difficult in the long-cultivated patriarchal society that we still live in today. In modern times, women continue to be paid less than men, are vastly underrepresented, and face many forms of violence aroundRead MoreArticle Review : The Magic Pudding Essay1810 Words   |  8 Pageswere we had to complete a visual art task on our own magic pudding We were also taken to see the film adaption of the book at the local Cinema. 2. Discussion Board Week 1 Jacqueline Rose Before analysing the text, I assumed Rose s argument that children s literature was to satisfy the needs and desires of adults was obscure, and that the innocent story of Peter Pan and Wendy was purely written for children. Furthermore, reading that the character Peter Pan was introduced by the author in