英语小说鉴赏

Marriage in the late Nineteenth Century

In Victorian's time, all women, whether married or single, were expected to be weak and helpless. The accepted reasoning was that the career for women was marriage. A woman's prime use was to bear a large family and maintain a smooth family atmosphere where a man need not bother himself about domestic affaires. Divorce was not, for women, a release from the miserable marriage since a divorced woman had no chance of acceptance in society again. Therefore, it was a time of patriarchy, that is, an age dominated by man. As we can see from the two representative novels, The Shadow in the Rose Garden and The Story of an Hour, directly or indirectly, men unveiled their wanting of hegemonic power in family life.

The husband in The Shadow in the Rose Garden was inferior to his wife in social status. He was very aware of that, and he was, to some extent, quite sensitive to it. His low status made him feel uncomfortable and a lack of security in his marriage. He was afraid of his wife's prejudice and contempt, but he concealed his uneasiness, pretended to be confident and tried to win the leading position.

In one episode, after waiting long enough for his wife in the first morning of their honeymoon, he lost his patience. Maybe he felt his wife did not take him seriously and his confidence assured by his smart jacket began to be challenged upon. But when the wife "said come and took his arm", he "pulled his moustache". He even lighted a pipe when she "gave a short laugh and leaned on his arm as they went out". He was relaxed and proud in that his wife's tenderness showed her respect and dependence on him. He was satisfied by her recognition.

In another, after the wife returned from the rose garden, he immediately followed her. "He entered, rather pleased, an air of complacency about his alert figure". He didn't let go any opportunity to present his masculine to his wife. "What's the matter?" he asked a tinge of impatience in his voice. Maybe he complained his wife for not centering on him in their honeymoon. However, the wife denied to answer, regardless of his pressing inquiries, and didn't even want to speak to him. He felt great humiliated and he finally lost his temper. He rushed up to her room and asked determinedly, "what's the matter?" He persisted in inquisition, totally unaware of his wife’s bitterness. After the woman's bitter confession, he "shrank and became white". He started to hurt her with grave irony. He never thought there was any need for a husband to ask his wife about her little secrets. His