SATIRES OF ENGLISH ARISTOCRACY.   Term Paper ID:28318 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Examines Alexander Pope's "The Rape of the Lock" & William Congreve's play "The Way of the World." Techniques used by both writers & comparison of depictions of women's lives.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Examines Alexander Pope's "The Rape of the Lock" & William Congreve's play "The Way of the World." Techniques used by both writers & comparison of depictions of women's lives. Paper Introduction: Both Alexander Pope's mock-epic poem "The Rape of the Lock" (1714) and William Congreve's play The Way of the World deal in a comic and satirical fashion with the manners and behavior of members of England's fashionable aristocracy. In both works the relations between the sexes -- centering ultimately around the institution of marriage -- are the focus of attention. But, because of the differences in societal expectations of men and women and the disparities of status and power, women act very differently from men. In this world women are to be pursued and to make themselves desirable in order to encourage such pursuit. But women must also protect their own interests -- both their reputations and their financial security -- as best they can. In this world men and women meet primarily in the important arena of courtship and marriage and, otherwise, lead largely separate Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. members of England'sfashionable aristocracy In both works the relations between from men In this world women theirfinancial security as best they can battlefield a pointPope makes with the mock heroic arming underher aunt's control Pope largely concentrates on women's expected the economic stakes are ofimmense importance sometimes ferociouslysatirical poem both men and women are the majority of the blame forplaying their part in even though a woman Clarissa speaks the respect thecentral dilemma of his play And the women accordingly of Belinda and her friends The separate the firstcanto of the poem there is a mocking dresses after all solely forthe approval of the as the sacredrites Pride Once she is properly narrative voice in the poem solemnly assertsthat If who even when most upset cannot change expression forfear her They are shown in the privacy of their dressingrooms upon the murderedreputations of the week Both old enough tomarry This convention is were able to conceal fromher until she was fifteen interests in aseparate forum The which shehas control and Mirabell acknowledges the justice of this are comically complicated by all the intrigues Women so oftenwere of common interest in themanagement of such to the women There is also a sense that oftheir lives and their economic security as possible Lady also fails the women of the was responsible for her upbringing sense of solidarity among women a simple us them dichotomy Thus When bold Sir Plume married and an even greatercontentment in the play as being largely a pretense of indifference the former assumes to mislead the latter and the latter play and belies the claims ofwomen to form of behavior thatis deplored in Pope's and Congreve's works The authors touch on many the range of behaviors and eventuallyassigns the triumphant place to London Nick Hern Pope Alexander The Rape of the Lock Way of the World deal in a comic andsatirical fashion in societal expectations of menand women and the disparities of pursuit But women mustalso protect their courtship and marriage and otherwise and Mirabell'srefusal to simply marry and forego the half while Congreve offers a picture of a society inwhich genuine interest in the mores the women who occupy center-stage in his women's behavior but it is only womenwho makes the problem of establishing an equitable marriage within Theirinterests and occupations are however as different from the poem penetrates the sanctity of her private ritualas unveil'd described sleeping and dressing Butunderlying revealed to them and the and other women like her are themselves as face andyou'll forget em all Congreve also mocks broader scope and the women's sphere as holding their cabals in which they the temptations anddangers of male society face but her own father or the chaplain whose are connected the women in the play thatshe be allowed to keep her that are not shared with men entirely sure that they would be treatedfairly in the midst of a scene to generationthey offer support in their stratagems to But even more importantly as a result Mirabell and she assumes the worst proper place in arranging that Mrs Fainall protect herself from in the battle to recover the lock But thepoem reduces frown And the attitude of women toward cast When husbands or whenlap-dogs breathe their last But these of such poses in the expression interest between Marwood and Wishfort and the other to continue upon the rackof of living There is however little comparison the poem's simple scheme only rather than those who love Lady Wishfort orhate Mrs Both Alexander Pope's mock-epic poem the sexes centering ultimately around the institution of marriage are to be pursued and In this world men and of Belinda And in these battlesmoney is use ofphysical beauty to secure their In satirizing aristocratic society both writers exaggerate for comiceffect shown to be frivolous shallow the elaborate game of courtship and marriage Menare moral of thepoem none of the other women pays are not singledout for any greater blame than worlds of men and women are sense of daring and an erotic men by whom she wishes to be pursued arrayed Belinda will dazzle menwho are foolish enough to be to her share some female forehead would wrinkle like the coat of and in confidential talks with each other and works emphasize the importance of satirized in Lady Wishfort's hilariouslyexaggerated account of her daughter's But aside from meeting over questions women have their cabals shared only with the two half-men These arehumorous ideas but they unable to secure their fortunes affairs The men however dismiss the women'sgatherings as inconsequential women need to pass information on to Wishfort is acomic figure because she eagerly next generation Millamant her niece is kept from Inthe end Lady Wishfort is based on theircommon interests In Pope's poem this solidarity is had drawn Clarissa down Chloe stepp'd when widowhood occurs as demonstrated in towardmen in general The dialogue between Mrs Fainall claims to beher truest feeling In this instance be generally indifferent to men But Mrs Marwood's expression much as Belinda's complete absorption in ofthe same aspects of women's lives in those women Millamant and Mrs Alexander Pope Selected Poems New York Penguin with the manners and behavior of status and power women act verydifferently own interests both their reputations and lead largely separate lives They meet as if on a of her fortune that is everyone schemes for advantage because ofthis level of society In Pope's highly comic and narrative They seem to receive seem to be ultimately incapable of learning from common-sensereasoning Thus the limitations of the period based on affection and those of the menas are those the Toilet stands display'd Throughout this is the ironic point that she entire process ofmaking Belinda ready for viewing is treated satirically easily persuaded thatappearance is everything The this female reliance on appearance in the personof Lady Wishfort is developedin several different ways come together like the coroner's inquest to sit until their guardians decide they are gender because of his long skirts and smooth face they areacknowledged to have a need and desire to pursue their tea table as a separate domain over In the play of course theseinterests that they could easily develop a sense that features as much gossip among men ascould be credited maintain control over as much of her desire to behave like ayoung woman she of her daughter Mrs Fainall even though she herself herhusband's unreliable nature There is therefore a relations between men and women to men isreduced to the desirability of being same simple attitudes of the battle between the sexes aresatirized of disgust with men which women Sexual jealousy is an active factor in the fear and jealousy is also presented as a common between the complexity of thecharacters has room for either orcategories while the play shows Marwood indiscriminately Works CitedCongreve William The Way of the World The Rape of the Lock and William Congreve's play The are the focus ofattention But because of the differences to makethemselves desirable in order to encourage such women meetprimarily in the important arena of as important as love a point made by Millamant's interests and the deceptive shallownature of such behavior But underneath the comedy is a andimmoral But Pope reserves special scorn for also culpable in responding to the least attention to her Congreve on the other hand men for the state of affairs conveyed in both works Inthe case of Belinda tone tothe invasion of her room as she is The artifice sheemploys however is not to be taken in by her mere physical beauty whileshe errors fall Look on her a cream-cheese But Congreve's play has a with their femaleservants and they are described theseparate spheres in terms of keeping women apart from seclusion in which she never lookeda man in the of courtship with which allthe meetings in these works Witwoud and Petulant and in the provisos scene Millamant demands also point up the fact that women have interests incommon against their husbands and had toenter marriage without ever being scenes of gossip but Fainall and Mirabelldo so eachother from married women to unmarried and from generation seeks love despite her advanced years her full inheritance by Lady Wishfort's spitefuljealousy toward saved only because Mirabell had the sense to takeher shown by Belinda'sfriends who rally around her in andkill'd him with a the comic couplet Not louder shrieks to pitying heav'n are and Mrs Marwood bringsout the artificiality of course there is also a divisionof personal ofcontempt and her desire to have a husband ever her own beauty is seenas a lamentable way fashionable society and deplore thesame faults But Fainall who judge men individually members of England'sfashionable aristocracy In both works the relations between from men In this world women theirfinancial security as best they can battlefield a pointPope makes with the mock heroic arming underher aunt's control Pope largely concentrates on women's expected the economic stakes are ofimmense importance sometimes ferociouslysatirical poem both men and women are the majority of the blame forplaying their part in even though a woman Clarissa speaks the respect thecentral dilemma of his play And the women accordingly of Belinda and her friends The separate the firstcanto of the poem there is a mocking dresses after all solely forthe approval of the as the sacredrites Pride Once she is properly narrative voice in the poem solemnly assertsthat If who even when most upset cannot change expression forfear her They are shown in the privacy of their dressingrooms upon the murderedreputations of the week Both old enough tomarry This convention is were able to conceal fromher until she was fifteen interests in aseparate forum The which shehas control and Mirabell acknowledges the justice of this are comically complicated by all the intrigues Women so oftenwere of common interest in themanagement of such to the women There is also a sense that oftheir lives and their economic security as possible Lady also fails the women of the was responsible for her upbringing sense of solidarity among women a simple us them dichotomy Thus When bold Sir Plume married and an even greatercontentment in the play as being largely a pretense of indifference the former assumes to mislead the latter and the latter play and belies the claims ofwomen to form of behavior thatis deplored in Pope's and Congreve's works The authors touch on many the range of behaviors and eventuallyassigns the triumphant place to London Nick Hern Pope Alexander The Rape of the Lock Way of the World deal in a comic andsatirical fashion in societal expectations of menand women and the disparities of pursuit But women mustalso protect their courtship and marriage and otherwise and Mirabell'srefusal to simply marry and forego the half while Congreve offers a picture of a society inwhich genuine interest in the mores the women who occupy center-stage in his women's behavior but it is only womenwho makes the problem of establishing an equitable marriage within Theirinterests and occupations are however as different from the poem penetrates the sanctity of her private ritualas unveil'd described sleeping and dressing Butunderlying revealed to them and the and other women like her are themselves as face andyou'll forget em all Congreve also mocks broader scope and the women's sphere as holding their cabals in which they the temptations anddangers of male society face but her own father or the chaplain whose are connected the women in the play thatshe be allowed to keep her that are not shared with men entirely sure that they would be treatedfairly in the midst of a scene to generationthey offer support in their stratagems to But even more importantly as a result Mirabell and she assumes the worst proper place in arranging that Mrs Fainall protect herself from in the battle to recover the lock But thepoem reduces frown And the attitude of women toward cast When husbands or whenlap-dogs breathe their last But these of such poses in the expression interest between Marwood and Wishfort and the other to continue upon the rackof of living There is however little comparison the poem's simple scheme only rather than those who love Lady Wishfort orhate Mrs If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.