The Feminist Theme

Paper Summary:

The paper examines Nathaniel Hawthorne's story "The Birthmark" and William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily." The paper analyzes and compares the feminine characters, Georgiana and Emily. The paper then discusses how the feminist theme in both stories connects these different personalities. The paper illustrates how the victimization of women at the hands of men is the common thread that ties both stories and helps us in studying the characters and their psyche.

From the Paper:

""The Birthmark" is essentially a love story with a strong feminist streak. The only similarity that we can find in these two works comes from this feminist theme. On the surface "Birthmark" talks about obsession of a man with everything the world can offer. This is an interesting concept since the obsession is directly connected with chauvinistic desire to control a woman. In "The rose for Emily," the same feminist theme occurs in the form of Emily's father's desire to create a lady out of his daughter. Hawthorne and Faulkner's women are, however, different."

Sample of Sources Used:

• The Centenary Edition of the Works of Nathaniel Hawthorne. 20 vols. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 1962-85. "The Birth-mark." 36-56. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 1968.
• Frederick J. Hoffman (editor) Olga W. Vickery (editor) William Faulkner: Two Decades of Criticism. Michigan State College Press. East Lansing, MI. 1951.
• William Faulkner, "A Rose for Emily," Collected Stories (New York: Vintage, 1977), p. 128
• Judith Fetterley. The Resisting Reader: A Feminist Approach to American Fiction. Indiana University Press. Bloomington, IN. 1978.
• Feminist Criticism and Social Change, ed. Judith Newton and Deborah Rosenfelt (New York: Methuen, 1985)

More papers on The Feminist Theme:

• Essay # 73845 : "The Feminist Themes of "The Yellow Wallpaper"
• Analytical Essay # 54182 : "Feminist Themes in Virginia Woolf's "Mrs. Dalloway"
• Analytical Essay # 29692 : "The Yellow Wallpaper"

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