It needs to be taken into account that literature goes on to reflect the true nature of the society of this world. The stalwart literary artists have for long engaged in portraying the dynamics of the interpersonal relationships in their works, and the theme of domination and its subsequent subversion has come to find commonality in the works of many literary artists of the world. If one closely introspects on some specific works, it would be easier to gauge how the thematic content of domination has been portrayed in the literary texts over the span of the history of literature. For delving deeper into the matter in context, one can consider the short stories, The Story of an Hour, and A Pair of Silk Stockings written by Kate Chopin along with other stories like Barn Burning and A Rose for Emily penned by William Faulkner. All of these stories show how the characters struggle with the onus of being dominated and how they endeavor to fight back or deal with the scenarios to get their way.
For instance, one can focus on the plot of the short story, The Story of an Hour, by Chopin. The readers come across the character of Mrs. Louise Mallard who comes to know that her husband has met with an untimely demise in an accident. However, it becomes understandable that all the years while in the marital relationship, Mrs. Mallard had been subjected to oppression by the patriarchal parameters and norms that are ascribed to the female counterpart of the relationship. Kate Chopin never talks about any overt oppression on the part of the female protagonist’s husband, thereby suggesting of the innate nature of marital relationship to be oppressive for the females. Mrs. Mallard locks herself up inside a room and ponders looking out of the open window. While the open window symbolizes the emancipation from the bondage of marriage, Mrs. Mallard can be found envisaging of the future times when she would be able to live life on her very own terms. She knows that her life would not be guided by the expectations and desires of the male counterpart of the marriage.
Although she is sad about her husband’s demise, she sees prospects of fulfilling her personal desires and aspirations sans any subjugation from her husband. Thus, the author explores how women are dominated in the marital relationships, and are unable to “drink the elixir of life” due to the subordination. Mrs. Mallard can very well be seen as a perfect archetypal character representing the victims of male domination in marriages. When she finally comes to realize that her husband is not dead, she is left in a state of shock to the extent of having a heart failure to meet her demise. Mrs. Mallard’s way of subverting the male domination in the relationship is achieved through her imagination of a free life. She is found to be very much exuberant about being free of the bondage of marriage. But, she finally finds emancipation from the patriarchal society and the norms by embracing her demise. Thus, one can comprehend how Kate Chopin gave expression to the feminist voice in this story in context through the portrayal of the character of Mrs. Mallard. (Chopin 1)
On the other hand, the story, A Pair of Silk Stockings, written by Chopin, shows the female protagonist, Mrs. Sommers, who lives a life encompassed with drudgery and monetary stringency. In this story, one finds how this lady comes across a small fortune of fifteen dollars. Here, one finds how the lady wishes to spend the money to but good clothes for her children. She never thinks of spending the amount in any other manner. The initial thoughts and perspective of Mrs. Sommers reflect the construction of feminine gender by the patriarchal society that demands the female to be selfless and caring of her children. Likewise, Mrs. Sommers thinks of presenting her children with good clothes. While going through the narrative of this story, one can very well comprehend that this lady used to have a much better life before her marriage. But now, she is dominated by the patriarchal parameters of the society and she struggles to live up to the normative actions expected of her by her family and the society. Chopin thus shows how the female self goes on to repress her personal desires and aspirations to be in congruence with the imposition of patriarchy.
However, when she reaches the market, Mrs. Sommers gives in to her personal desires as she goes on to buy a pair of silk stockings, and even procures boots that would match those stockings. She even gets fitted for gloves and reads expensive magazines while having lunch in an expensive restaurant. She goes on to watch a play, shares chocolate with a fellow audience and boards a cable car to return home. This short span of time and her actions bring out her true self that she had to repress due to the domination of the patriarchic society and subjugating marital relationship. As she wishes the cable car ride to go on forever, her emotions finally surface sans any onus from the society and relationships. The readers find this female character living her life in the way she wishes to, not bothering about any restrictions, impositions or responsibilities. (Chopin 1)
Having read the stories by Chopin, one can move on to the stories by William Faulkner, another famous author. In the story, A Rose for Emily, Faulkner portrays the character of Emily who comes across to be a bizarre lady living life on her own terms. When Emily Grierson’s father meets with her demise, she refuses to give up the body. However, only after the intervention of the people of the town, she lets the body get buried. It needs to be reckoned that she is recluse and quite introvert in nature. The people of the town are found to be quite worried about her as she does not mingle with people, and rather stays indoors. It has to be noted in this context that Emily Grierson is in no way in compliance with the notion of correct femininity as propagated by the patriarchic society. In stark contrast, she can be described to be someone who does what she wishes to. That is precisely her way of subverting the domination of the patriarchal society and its parameters.
In fact, it is only after the demise of Emily Grierson that the people of the town come to find the dead body of Homer, her lover. It becomes clear in retrospect that Emily went on to kill Homer by poisoning him with arsenic that she had bought from a medical store. She kept the deceased body, and even slept by its side on the bed. She even kept all the wedding attire in the same room. Bizarre as it might rightly seem to be, Emily chose the extreme way of subverting the patriarchic influences. In her bid to have total control over her lover and the relationship, she went on to murder him. Thus, she endeavored to end the domination of patriarchy and establish her supremacy and emancipation at the same time. The narrative of the story in context shows how the female protagonist never accepts the ways of the society only to live life on her own terms. (Faulkner 1)
In contrast to the patriarchal domination on the women folk that is evident in the narratives of the three stories discussed so far, the story, Barn Burning, by William Faulkner, goes on to explore the theme of domination and the subsequent response to it from a different perspective. Here, one finds how a young lad is dominated by his father, Snopes, into giving up on his sense of morality and conscience as the family goes about burning the barns of other people. It is truly intriguing to see how Sartoris goes on to fight with his inner self so as to be able to speak out against his own family and the criminal acts of his own father. The story goes on to portray how Sartoris is overtly dominated by his father and its insisted by him to give in to his demands and actions. The entire narrative revolves round the male protagonist’s struggle with morality and conscience that stand at direct loggerheads with his loyalty toward his family.
However, by the end of the tale one finds how Sartoris come to listen to the call of morality. He spills the beans about his father’s criminal acts. Although his father gets killed due to his confession, the male protagonist’s way of subverting the unacceptable domination of criminality and loss of conscience echoes in the minds of the avid readers. The story shows how the male protagonist comes of age and grows as an individual in his perspective and moral stand. While one found Mrs. Mallard, Mrs. Sommers or Emily Grierson fighting with the norms and parameters of the patriarchic society, here the protagonist fights with his own family to ensure that his moral standards are preserved in the long run. It is very intriguing to find how the character finds emancipation from the clutches of immorality just like the other characters discussed who could finally find their freedom from the societal onus that came to overshadow their lives for a long time. (Faulkner 1)
Thus, in the story, The Story of an Hour, one finds a woman who longs to be emancipated from the oppressive clutches of patriarchy and marital bondage. However, she is finally not able to break free of her shackles and meets with her untimely demise in a state of shock, her dreams having been shattered. In comparison to Mrs. Mallard, Mrs. Sommers from the other story by Chopin is someone who does not keep her desires and aspirations repressed. Rather, she goes on to spend the money on things she has wanted for herself for long. Thus, she subverts the domination of the society and patriarchy, even if it is so for a brief span of time. In stark contrast to both these characters, Emily Grierson from the story by Faulkner is someone who goes to the very extreme for subverting the patriarchic domination. She finds a bizarre way of establishing her own dominance over her lover by killing him. On the other hand, Sartoris from the last story is stuck in a moral dilemma as he has to sit on the fence on the issue of loyalty toward his family and his conscience. Sartoris faces a different sort of domination than the other three main characters that have been discussed. He finally listens to his conscience.
It would be correct to conclude by saying that the authors explore the theme of domination and the reaction to it on the part of the various characters in the discussed stories. It is notable that every character has his or her different way of dealing with the odds that they are faced with. An exploration of the stories goes on to delve deep into the various forms of domination and the subsequent effects on the lives of the characters of the respective stories. All the characters have their different ways of dealing with the onus, and while someone succeeds in subverting the unsolicited dominance, it is not possible for all to show the strength of character. Both Kate Chopin and William Faulkner explore the theme of dominance exuding their literary excellence. These stories in context have gone on to become immortalized in the history of English literature owing to their quintessence of portrayal and affective appeal. The readers can actually feel the emotions of the character’s struggles so as to get engaged with the narratives of the respective stories in the best possible manner. The stories are a vehement cry against any form of domination as it has an adverse effect on the psyche and life in general.
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.” Vcu.edu. vcu.edu, n.d. Web. 26 June 2016.
Chopin, Kate. “A Pair of Silk Stockings.” Pbs.org. pbs.org, n.d. Web. 26 June 2016.
Faulkner, William. “A Rose for Emily.” Virginia.edu. virginia.edu, n.d. Web. 26 June 2016.
Faulkner, William. “Barn Burning.” jerrywbrown.com. jerrywbrown.com, n.d. Web. 26 June
2016.
