Marriage,_a_Glass-Ceiling_over_Women

*Marriage, a Glass-ceiling o*ver Women Dept. of English 2007130864 Chaerim, Ji (지채림) Think of my marrying you to be kept by you, Monsieur! I could not do it; and how dull my days would be! ... I like an active life better; I must act in some way, and act with you. I have taken notice, Monsieur, which people who are only in each other's company for amusement, never really like each other so well, or esteem each other so highly, as those who work together and perhaps suffer together. With the development of feminists’ perspective on marriage as explained above, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, a wave of radical feminism emerged that was overtly hostile to the institution of marriage itself. For example, Beverly Jones and Judith Brown argued that “the married woman knows that love is, at its best, an inadequate reward for her unnecessary and bizarre heritage of oppression” (Jones & Brown, 23). In 1970, Robin Morgan referred to the institution of marriage as “a slavery-like practice, we can’t destroy the inequities between men and women until we destroy marriage” (Morgan, 537) The feminists who are strongly insisting that marriage should be eliminated are categorized as extreme or radical ones. Even though not all feminists agreed to their opinion, but it is undeniable that they have some important points which cannot be ignored. In conclusion, throughout the history of feminism theory, marriage has been one of the most frequently discussed topics and usually the voices have been converged into one general opinion: Marriage can be evaluated more or less negatively in women’s perspective. In this section of the paper, a few critical points about marriage in two novels will be analyzed based on the textual evidences. Generally, The Awakening and Sula give the same, or at least similar, examples. However, in some specific points they have difference, so that the comparison can be attached. As we can read in the example above, the individual person himself was not the problem that related to marriage. Edna is dissatisfied with her marriage not because of her evil husband, and also she refuses to marry her lover not because of him himself. In this sense, the statement above seems quite plausible. The power relation that has been created within marital relationship is male-dominated already. However, in most cases husbands cannot resign their power with their own will because of the social convention and structure which have became solid through a long period of time. In other words, however the individual husband tries to be democratic, the equality between husband and wife can be limited. And, maybe this is the reason why some radical feminists urge that the institution of marriage itself is so problematic that it has to be abolished or destroyed. Like this, men’s desire to display his wealth, power and masculinity in visible ways made women function as a medium, not represent themselves. This is fatal to every single individual, and especially harmful to women’s self-consciousness as an independent human being. Therefore, the independence of Edna from her husband and Sula’s decision not to get married can be considered as inevitable steps for their awakening and self-consciousness, considering that time’s social convention related to marriage which is favorable to men. However, the society has been changed in terms of law, economy, and social status, even position within a marital relationship. Also awakened women are not alone anymore. Already there are lots of women (and even some men) who willingly advocate the women’s right with her. Therefore, just “avoiding” a glass-ceiling is not enough for now. It means that whether one get married or not, an individual can break the invisible obstacles and discrimination by not yielding under male-dominated social pressure, being independent economically, and not functioning as a medium but representing herself. In conclusion, now we need not just “avoiding” a glass-ceiling, but “breaking” it ultimately. References J. Dyer (2002), Reading The Awakening with Toni Morrison, The University of North Carolina. S. Finlay & V. Clarke (2003), 'A Marriage of Inconvenience'' Feminist Perspectives on Marriage, London, Thousnad Oaks and New Delhi. G. Heilbrun (1978). Marriage and Contemporary Fiction, The University of Chicago Press. B. Jones & J. Brown (1968), Toward a Female Liberation Movement, Gaisesville, Florida. R. Morgan (1970), Sisterhood Is Powerful, New York, Random House. A. Parvulescu (2005), Beyond Marriage : The Couple. Wayne State University Press, Detroit, Michigan. M. Perry-Jenkins & K. Folk (1994), Class, Couples, and Conflict, National Council on Family Relations. W. Wilcox & S. Lock (2006), What's Love Got To Do With It' Equality, Equity, Commitment and Women's Marital Quality, The University of North Carolina Press.