During the 19th century the Domestic Spheres were the separation of realms between men and women. Where men were more dominant and women were considered the light of the home. From the U.S History Women’s workshop stated, “if one associated a given trait with men, then women should possess its opposite or its complement. If men were strong; women must be frail; if men were rational, then women were emotional. If men tended to be coarse, women were supposed to be naturally more refined” In the 19th century women had the specific role to do house chores, take care of the children, and to make sure her husband was happy. The husband role was to be a provider and have control over the family.
We see this in the Yellow Wallpaper, when the narrator is sick and feels she is not doing her duty as a wife. On page 34 she states “of course it is only nervousness. It does weigh on me so not to do my duty anyway. I meant to be such a help to John, such a real rest and comfort, and here I am a comparative burden already” The narrator feels that since she cannot take care of her husband or baby, she feels guilty that she cannot perform her wifely duties. As a wife, the narrator has to keep her husband happy and you see this continually throughout the story when she gives into her husband advice to keep him happy. On page 38 the narrator tried to talk to her husband about going to her cousin Henry and Julia for a visit. He insisted that she stayed at home, even though the narrator believed that going to see her family would be beneficial to her she wen t along with her husband’s idea.
Even with the rigid boundaries of domestic spheres, men and women still struggled for power in the 19th century. The poem “Puss in the Corner” portrays the delicate balance of power between men and women. Using the symbol of a cat and mouse, the " ‘Puss in the Corner’" sits and smiles, / And fastens the knots with a thousand wiles”, toying with the affections of her suitor, the mouse. Before marriage women had the freedom to wield their power by playing with the emotions of men, this freedom from the bounds of marriage gave women power. Yet the mouse plots to regain power:
When once the marriage vows are said,
When "Puss in the Corner" and I are wed,
We'll see who rules over all the house,
And which is the cat and which the mouse!
By taking a women’s hand in marriage men regained control of power and forced women into a domestic life. This delicate imprisonment is seen in the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper”. The narrator’s husband secludes his wife, controlling every aspect of her life, “he is very careful and loving and hardly lets me stir without special direction”(33). Their marriage reflects the ideology of domestic spheres wherein men had power of women who presided over a purely domestic world.
Photo :http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MA02/rodriguez/GildedAge/Gilded%20Age%20Hale.html
I believe these spheres are related directly to the idea of the "new woman" and the challenges to achieving such an ideal. There seems to be this idea or belief that there must be opposites and that in no situation should traits or gender roles overlap. Possibly, the root of the idea that power is an all or none quest. Connecting again to the idea of the "new woman" and opposites, anti-feminist propaganda portrays women completely taking over male roles, and their husbands completely taking over domestic tasks. It seems the idea of opposites being absolutely necessary interferes with progression.
ReplyDeleteIt seems almost that the stereotypes of relationships have changed completely over the years and that the spheres have switched positions. Within 5 minutes of turning on any random sitcom on tv, there will be a joke made either comparing marriage to jail or teasing a guy about being "whipped". While the woman can hold the power before they get married, in modern times it is often regarded that the woman will maintain the power, often holding childbirth as proof of superiority.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I found interesting was the "Puss in the Corner" poem, particularly when it talks about marriage as a cause of the domestic sphere idea. I don't agree with that entirely, because inequality does not just appear when women get married--it's an inequality that exists from birth. But do the prejudices toward even baby girls stem from the inherent inequality of marriage. Intresting questions.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, why that part of the poem really struck me was because in the women's suffrage primary documents, there was a line that expressed a very similar idea in the Declaration of Sentiments: "...if married, in the eye of the law, civilly dead.” A legal document recognized the idea that women do not only become subservient to men when they marry, but also become dead.
I think the poem provides an excellent example of two opposites (husband and wife). I'm interested, however, in what the opposite of "control over the family" would be because I think the direct opposite, having no control, is not an admirable trait. While I understand Ally's point that marriage doesn't just create an inequality, I think it's hard to deny that a partner's life, male or female, does in fact change after marriage. On both sides there is less freedom, at least in today's world because ideally both parents work together to find harmony. This means that they will have to sacrifice aspects of their single life. I believe that perhaps this inequality stems in the amount that one must give up. Its seems like maybe men worked before they were married while women never had to care for their family before. A man could continue his life after marriage but maybe a woman has to readjust?
ReplyDeleteThe idea of "ninteenth century spheres" demonstrates humans tendencies to pre-categorize people, namely by gender in this sitution. Like many have mentioned, the idea of counterparts and the need for almost a harmonious ying-yang situation is a recurrent theme and is something that people throughout different cultural times have strived for. Like referred to by Rebecca, a specific example for this desire is marriage. The idea that power within a marriage is not evenly distributed but rather one person has dominance is an interesting idea. Sterotypically, women tend to be depicted to be in the lesser-power role. My inital quesiton would be, why would someone be willing to sacrifice some so called "power" to someone else? Perhaps this tendancy is due to the idea that people and general want utopian relationships, and perhaps that one person seemingly having "less power" (open to interpretation per relationship) allows the relation over all to be balanced, and thus ideal.
DeleteI think it is interesting that in the Yellow Wallpaper, the narrator feels the need to remain in her sphere. It seems to me that some women still hung onto the old traditions of a wife taking care of the house and children, even if others were progressing into a new era. The narrator wants to do everything she can to make John's life easier, but because of her condition is unable to.
ReplyDeleteo
ReplyDeleteNot only do they offer individuals the chance to consolidate their debts into one monthly payment, but they also work hard to lower the interest rates. If you are more curious about personal debt then you can learn more about it on freedebtreviews.com.
ReplyDelete