Freeing Ahasuerus, Haman, and Mordechai: Liberating the Oppressor in the Book of Esther

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-61
Author(s):  
Denise Flanders
Keyword(s):  
Biblical Text ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
Marginalized Communities ◽  
Patriarchal System ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Patriarchal Ideology

Abstract The approach taken in this essay proceeds from the assumption that the biblical text of Esther reflects a patriarchal ideology and it is largely the males in the story who wield the power. However, instead of examining the negative consequences for the female characters and how the patriarchal system forces them to operate, I look to the male characters to see how they fare in the system of patriarchy which they undoubtedly inhabit. In the first part of the essay, I consider the call issued by womanist and liberation theologians from traditionally marginalized communities for the need for liberation of both the oppressed and the oppressors from systems of oppression. In the second part of the essay, I respond to this call via an analysis of the book of Esther. First, I examine four different actions or attitudes that characterize the men in the story. Second, I observe some places where their power clearly brings them loss. Third, I argue that the destructive attitudes, actions, and relationships of the men in the story demonstrate their own need for liberation from the oppressive system of patriarchy from which they supposedly benefit.

scholarly journals Animal Farm Is a World of Man

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rania Khelifa Chelihi ◽  
Mohd Nazri Latiff Azmi ◽  
Hardev Kaur
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
British Society ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
Political Role ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Patriarchal Ideology ◽  
The Social ◽  
Women's Role ◽  
Animal Farm ◽  
In The Beginning

In the beginning of the 20th century, feminist literary theory was concerned mainly with the social and political role of women, as well as women’s role in literature. In the second half of the century, it is tried to study women’s social positions and their rights compared to the male counterpart. One of the most explored themes since then was gender and patriarchy. The aim of this paper is to show how women were depicted in literature after half a century of the struggle of the first wave feminist towards equality and stress the importance of theorizing the concept of patriarchy, as a first step to understanding women’s subjugation. This unfolds through a re-visitation of George Orwell’s fiction novels. Orwell is better known by his political writing. Although he has never used the word “Feminism”, in any of his fictional works, two decades after his death, the radical feminist, Daphne Patai accused him that he is anti-feminist, fundamentally because of his deprecatory stands towards women through his female characters. The selected texts reinforce patriarchal ideology, through the way Orwell portrayed his male and female characters. A feminist analytical approach will be adopted in the realization of this research, in order to analyse the novel in depth, with a focus on Orwell’s portrayal of female characters. Observing and commenting how he debases, mistreats and degrades them. Further, it sheds the light on how he portrays his male characters by analysing female and male protagonists. The significant of the study is to show the social and political context of the time regarding the role and the identity of women in the British society in the 20th century, and how women were treated under patriarch society and still until our days. Moreover, it sheds light on how patriarchy the concept of women oppression helped in the development of feminist theories.

scholarly journals JERITAN PEREMPUAN YANG TERKUNGKUNG SISTEM PATRIARKI DALAM KUMPULAN CERITA PENDEK AKAR PULE: SUATU TINJAUAN FEMINISME RADIKAL

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 65
Author(s):  
Zahratul Umniyyah
Keyword(s):  
Short Stories ◽  
Research Method ◽  
Qualitative Method ◽  
Literary Work ◽  
Radical Feminism ◽  
Female Character ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
Patriarchal System ◽  
Male Characters

Abstrak : Kajian ini membahas dua cerita pendek dalam Kumpulan Cerita Pendek Akar Pule karya Oka Rusmini. Tulisan ini bertujuan mengungkap, menganalisis, dan mendeskripsikan penderitaan fisik dan penderitaan psikis yang dihadapi perempuan. Metode penelitian yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah metode penelitian kualitatif. Pengarang menyuarakan pemikirannya melalui kemunculan tokoh-tokoh perempuan dan berbagai permasalahan yang bersumber dari laki-laki. Posisi perempuan selalu dianggap lemah, sistem patriarki yang tumbuh subur di Bali semakin menekan kedudukan perempuan sehingga perempuan semakin tidak berdaya dan harus tunduk dengan aturan adat yang sangat merugikan pihak perempuan. Kata kunci: sastra, feminisme radikal, sistem patriarki   Abstract : This study discusses two short stories part of Akar Pule anthology written by Oka Rusmini. In this study, the writer attempts to reveal, analyze, dan describe physical and psychological oppressions experienced by the female character. In this study the writer uses qualitative method as research method. The author voices her thoughts by presenting the female characters and their problem caused by male characters (men). In these short stories female characters (women) are placed in weaker position than men. The patriarchal system which is deeply rooted in Balinese culture gives more oppression towards women making Balinese women more powerless and forcing them to obey the customs that disadvantage them. Keywords: literary work, radical feminism, patriarchal system

scholarly journals Eroticism in the “Cold Climate” of Northern Ireland in Christina Reid’s "The Belle of the Belfast City"

Text Matters ◽  
2013 ◽  
pp. 121-138
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Ojrzyńska
Keyword(s):  
Northern Ireland ◽  
Personal Experience ◽  
Cold Climate ◽  
Moral Code ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
Patriarchal System ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
The Social ◽  
Strong Position ◽  
Private Domain

Closely based on the dramatist’s personal experience, Christina Reid’s The Belle of the Belfast City offers a commentary on the life of the Protestant working class in the capital of Northern Ireland in the 1980s from a woman’s perspective. It shows the way eroticism is successfully used by the female characters as a source of emancipation as well as a means not only to secure their strong position in the private domain of the household, but also to challenge the patriarchal structures that prevail in the Irish public sphere. The analysis of the play proposed in this essay focuses on the contrast between the presentation of its male and female characters. I will demonstrate that, while the former group desperately cling to the idea of preserving the social status quo, the latter display a more progressive outlook on the social and sexual politics of the country. In particular, I will investigate how the tensions between the representatives of the two sexes reveal themselves in the corporal sphere. I will argue that, as opposed to the erotically-inhibited and physically-inarticulate male characters, the female dramatis personae take advantage of being more connected to their bodies and use their physicality in an erotic fashion to subvert the rules of the patriarchal system and its strict moral code that limits their social roles to those of respectful mothers, obedient sisters or virtuous wives.

scholarly journals Ibsen’s The Pillars of Society: Female Protest against Patriarchy

NUTA Journal ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 10-17
Author(s):  
Arjun Dev Bhatta
Keyword(s):  
Feminist Theory ◽  
Social Relationship ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
Female Protagonists ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Patriarchal Power ◽  
The Voice

This study explores social relationship between male and female in Henrik Ibsen’s play “The Pillars of Society”. The first part of the study analyzes a sexist society in which male characters subjugate females through their hegemonic power. The female characters appear meek, submissive and voiceless. The second part of this study examines the revolutionary role of the female characters who raise their voice against all-pervasive patriarchal power. They protest against male formulated institutions which have kept women voiceless and marginalized. Being dissatisfied with the defenders of patriarchal status quo, Ibsen’s female protagonists come to the fore to challenge prevailing social conviction about femininity and domesticity. They lead a crusade to establish their position and identity as human beings equal to men. In this play, the female characters Lona, Martha and Dina hold a revolutionary banner to protest against male domination of female. In their constant struggle, they win while the male characters become loser. This study analyses the voice of these leading female characters in the light of feminist theory proposed by scholars such as Kete Millett and Sylvia Walby.

scholarly journals The legal paradox in the work of Eça de Queiroz: thoughts on the novels “O crime do padre Amaro” and “O primo Basílio”

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 247-273
Author(s):  
Eduardo de Carvalho Rêgo
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Method ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
The Law ◽  
Correct Application ◽  
Main Instrument

This paper searches for one possible way of understanding the Law based on the novels "O crime do padre Amaro" and "O primo Basílio", by Portuguese writer Eça de Queiroz. In both novels, the deaths of the female characters (Amélia and Luísa) are consequences of their lovers’ conducts (Amaro’s and Basílio’s), with no legal punishments for any of them. After reading these novels, there might be a feeling of injustice to the women, even if the male characters had not formally done any criminal actions. Precisely, this lack of action of the Law creates a paradox: even though the search for Justice is its main objective, by attempting to accomplish that purpose, sometimes severe injustice is brought by it, such as what happens to Amélia and Luísa. This research used the inductive scientific method, so the analysis of specific phenomena serves to generate generic conclusions. In this case, the main conclusion is the paradoxical trait of the Law, which is the main instrument for Justice, but is, at the same time, strongly capable of generating injustice because of its correct application.

Sexism in Facebook discourse about clergy misconduct

2021 ◽  
pp. 095792652110487
Author(s):  
Laurel Puchner ◽  
Linda Markowitz
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Moral Economy ◽  
Sexual Misconduct ◽  
Religious Leader ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Female Victims ◽  
Patriarchal Ideology ◽  
Sexualized Violence ◽  
Clergy Misconduct

Sexism and sexist ideology have significant negative consequences for female victims of sexual assault and other crimes. Thus, uncovering how language is used as a discursive tool for maintaining unequal power relations is extremely important in discourses around sexual misconduct and sexualized violence. In this study we used Critical Discourse Analysis and Manne’s theory of the moral economy of patriarchy to analyze Facebook posts supporting a religious leader who had committed sexual misconduct. The analysis reveals the patriarchal ideology underlying some of the Facebook conversation discourses and the discursive strategies used by individuals to try to normalize their sexist arguments. Content of the posts shows the religious leader’s defenders showing sympathy for the perpetrator, ignoring the female victims, and minimizing sexual assault, as they argue that he should not be criticized or held accountable for his actions.

Thinking About the Concept of Social Gender With a Film

2020 ◽  
pp. 228-247
Author(s):  
Berceste Gülçin Özdemir
Keyword(s):  
Social Order ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
The Public ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
The Social ◽  
Narrative Cinema ◽  
Feminist Film ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Public Sphere

The concept of social gender is an interdisciplinary matter of debate and is still questioned today. Making sense of this concept is understood by the ongoing codes in the social order. However, the fact that men are still positioned as dominating women in the contrast of the public sphere/private sphere prevents the making sense of the concept of gender. This study questions the concept of social gender through the female characters and male characters presented in the film Tersine Dünya (1993) within the framework of Judith Butler's thoughts regarding the notion of the subject. The thoughts of feminist film theorists also bring the strategies of representation of female characters up for discussion. Butler's thoughts and the discourses of feminist film theorists will enable both making sense of social gender and a more concrete understanding of the concept of the subject. The possibility of deconstruction of patriarchal codes by using classical narrative cinema conventions is also brought up for discussion in the examined film.

scholarly journals Pragmatic use of ancient greek pronouns in two communicative frameworks

Pragmatics ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 447-471 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiara Meluzzi
Keyword(s):  
Female Characters ◽  
Personal Pronouns ◽  
Ancient Greek ◽  
Person Plural ◽  
Modern Greek ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Membership Categorization ◽  
Related Distribution ◽  
Pragmatic Function ◽  
Context Dependent

This paper deals with the use of personal pronouns (PPs) in Ancient Greek in two Aristophanes’ comedies (i.e. Lysistrata and Ecclesiazusae). The main purpose of this study is to show that Ancient Greek PPs often have a pragmatic function, in particular linked to the speaker’s communicative goals. The analysis highlights the presence of a gender-related distribution and a context-dependent use of personal pronouns. In particular, male characters prefer 1st person singular pronouns, whereas female characters use more 1st person plural pronouns with an inclusive value. Moreover, in two communicative frameworks it is possible to notice how PPs are used for their value of membership categorization. In this respect PPs can be considered possible markers of autonomía or afiliación (see Bravo 1999). Some peculiar instances of referential ambiguities concern in particular the use of 1st and 2nd person plural pronouns in both comedies.The analysis shows that use of Ancient Greek PPs varies according to gender and context. Moreover, it is clear that in both comedies this variation should be explained mainly as a pragmatic strategy of membership categorization, thus showing instances of non-prototypical uses of PPs similar to other languages (e.g. Spanish, English, Modern Greek).

scholarly journals TRANSGRESI SEKSUAL DALAM NOVEL PARA PENEBUS DOSA KARYA MOTINGGO BUSYE (Sexual Transgression in Motinggo Busye’s “Para Penebus Dosa”)

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 35
Author(s):  
Ferry Fauzi Hermawan
Keyword(s):  
Social Norms ◽  
Gender Bias ◽  
Female Character ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Sexual Transgression ◽  
Descriptive Method

Artikel ini bertujuan untuk menggambarkan transgresi seksual yang terdapat dalam novel Para Penebus Dosa karya Motinggo Busye. Metode yang digunakan dalam artikel ini adalah metode deskriptif analitis. Data dari novel dideskripsikan untuk memperoleh gambaran transgresi seksual. Dalam novel tersebut pelanggaran terhadap kebiasaan seksual, norma, dan kelas digambarkan melalui peristiwa seksual yang dialami oleh para tokoh, terutama tokoh perempuan. Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa tokoh perempuan digambarkan banyak melakukan tindak transgresi dibandingkan dengan tokoh laki-laki. Analisis juga menunjukkan bahwa narator dalam novel memiliki sikap bias gender dan mendukung nilai-nilai patriarki dengan lebih banyak memberikan hukuman terhadap tokoh perempuan yang melakukan tindak transgresi seksual dibandingkan kepada tokoh laki-laki.Abstract:The paper aims at describing sexual transgression in Motinggo Busye’s “Para Penebus Dosa”.  The research applies descriptive method. The sexual transgressions elaborated in the novel are presented through the deviance of sexual affairs, social norms, and class experienced by the characters, especially female character. The result of the research shows that  female characters described in the story committed a lot of sexual transgressions compared to male characters. The study also reveals that the narrator in the novel  has a gender bias act. Moreover, he supports values of patriarchy by giving more punishment to the female committing sexual transgression act than to the male.

scholarly journals J.R.R. TOLKIEN’S CONSTRUCTION OF MULTIPLE MASCULINITIES IN THE LORD OF THE RINGS

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatriz Domínguez Ruiz
Keyword(s):  
Point Of View ◽  
Female Characters ◽  
60Th Anniversary ◽  
Lord Of The Rings ◽  
The Third ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Fantasy Novels ◽  
Las Mujeres

Abstract: The Lord of the Rings is one of the most widely acclaimed fantasy novels in history and since it was first published in the fifties, the analysis of the work from the perspective of gender has mainly focused on its female characters. In this article, written on the 60th anniversary of the first publication of the third and last volume, The Return of the King, my aim is to focus rather on the most relevant male characters and what types of masculinities they perform, offering thus a new re-reading of the text from the point of view of masculinities. Title in Spanish: “La construcción de masculinidades múltiples en El Señor de los Anillos, de J.R.R. Tolkien”Resumen: El Señor de los Anillos es una de las novelas de fantasía más aclamadas de la historia. Desde que fue publicada en los cincuenta, el análisis de esta obra desde el punto de vista del género se ha centrado fundamentalmente en las mujeres. En este artículo, escrito en el sexagésimo aniversario de la primera publicación del tercer y último volumen de la obra, El Retorno del Rey, mi intención es centrarme sin embargo en los tipos de masculinidades representados por algunos de los personajes más relevantes, ofreciendo una nueva relectura del texto desde el punto de vista de las masculinidades.

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