Bondage and Feminist Consciousnessin the Patriarchal Society ——A Feminist Approach to The Age of Innocence

◆魏兰亭

(大连工业大学艺术与信息工程学院)

Bondage and Feminist Consciousnessin the Patriarchal Society
——A Feminist Approach to The Age of Innocence

◆魏兰亭

(大连工业大学艺术与信息工程学院)

This paper is focused on women’s status in the conventional society of masculine superiorityin The Age of Innocence. By studying the two female characters May Welland and Ellen Olenska， the paper analyses the topic of womenas victims in the patriarchal society. And through the further study of the character Ellen Olenska， the paper explores the feminist consciousness in the novel.

female status bondage patriarchal society feminist consciousness

The Age of Innocenceis a novel enclosing a story of female status in thepatriarchalsociety.The two female characters May Welland and Ellen Olenska，to some extent，represent the female status in the old New York at that time.Asa writer brought up in theupper class inthe early 20thcentury，Edith Wharton reveals the truth that the society taughther to hide，and concerns herself closely with the conventional woman-neglecting society，in which women are in the position of being controlled and enslaved spiritually by men.Edith Wharton triggerspeople’s sympathy forfemale status，and makes people reconsider women’s existence in the man-centeredsocial system.

In the patriarchal society，man is in adominant position，while woman onlyservesas a “looking-glass， possessing the magic power of enlarging and perfecting the figure of man”. According to Virginia Woolf，the“looking-glass”is so important to men that if you“take it away，man may die，like the drug fiend deprived of his cocaine”.In the novel，the protagonist Newland Archer believes that he is his wife May Welland’spossessor，spiritual guide，or evenher“soul’s custodian”，rather than her husband on equalterms.In the eyes of Newland，May，a creature of purity，is hardly an individual. She is merely a perfect match，the most suitable for himby the criteria of the society.

May Wellandwasborn into and raisedup in the1870s New York upper class，which is a powerful force that demands individualsto sacrifice themselves to its forms and conventions，and where there are a set of man-centered conventional values and moral standards.As ispointed out by Cynthia Wolff in her book，that in Edith Wharton’s age，what men need to learn is“doing”while what women need to learn is only“acting” or“being”.Thus，women are required to learn to be innocent，simpleand acceptant.Living under such circumstances，May learns to suppress herselfand obeys the man-centered values.Gradually she becomesa carefully finished product of the oldpatriarchalsociety，groomed for her role of demure wife and mother by her family.

Mayis“innocent” in the senseof her beingconventional，predictable，as well as herconformingto her family’s expectations.Her“innocence”just seals her mind against imagination and her heart against experience.Newland comes to see her embodying everything he finds restrictive and stifling in the old New York society.She is an utter offspring of that society’s cultivation and always doesthe right thingin the eyes of her family and by the criteria of thesociety.She carefully keepsher marriagefrom falling apartwith her smile and strategy.In this way，she is a victim inescapably. Literally，she has becomea faithful protector of the patriarchal oppression.

As for another main female character Ellen Olenska， although Ellen is seeminglydistinct from May，she is a tragic victim of the patriarchal society likewise.Though born into the upper class of the old New York society，Ellen is peculiar for her growing experience in Paris，where she received the liberal thoughts. So when she wants to divorce her philandering husband and returns to New York，she is objected by all her relatives， because such an act is regarded as a shame to the family.She is violating the conventionalrules of that patriarchal society， according to which，women should be confined in the cage of morality. Therefore，no matter what free spirit and awakening feminist consciousness she has，confronting such obstacles，her free-yearning heart can only be frustrated. What’s more，Ellen’s economic dependence keeps her bound in her marriage.When she flees from her troubled marriage and returns to New York，she has intended to geteconomic support from her family so that she can separate herself from her immoral husband to gain her desired freedom. However，even her dearest grandmotherMrs. Mingott tries to force her back to her husband by threatening to cut her allowances. Family，as the most reliable shelter has expelled her. Just as Margaret B. McDowell indicates in her article，“Edith Wharton’s novel probes into the fact of womenrights’ being dispossessed”.No matter how hard women struggle to fight against the indifference and dispossession at that time，women are too powerlessto shake off the shackles imposed upon them. In this sense，she is notexceptional to the tragic female fateas a victimtypical of that age.

Though Ellen is rejected by the old New Yorksociety，she keepsher independence of thought and her aspire tofreedom. In contrast to May，Ellen is portrayed as an emblem of freedom willing to make her ownchoices while challenging the definition of traditional woman’s role.Ellen represents women’s rebelling voice and awakening consciousness to show their unwillingness tosuffer agony or lose self-respect. Even in that man-superior-and-woman-inferior society，she does not act like other women who submit to humiliation，resign to adversity in facing their husbands’ rascality，and accept their unfortunate fates passively. On the contrary，she regards freedom as the most valuable，for which she can abandon everything. Ellen returns to Europe to lead an independent life rather than being Newland’s mistress or enduring her unfaithful husband.She chooses her own social circle in Europe， and eventually gets freedom. She bravely strives against those unfair and rigid principles，challenges the man-centered social system，and fervently craves to be an independent woman，who casts off men’s control and enjoys self-esteem.

By the portrayalofthe two characters， Edith Wharton actually presentsa realisticpanoramaof the old man-centered New York society. And by revealing thepatriarchal influence exerted by social conventions upon human spirit， Edith Wharton shows us a picture of the old patriarchal moral standards. Although most of the women at that time in The Age of Innocence are bound and trapped by masculine superiority，Ellen Olenska is courageous enough to fight against the old unequal system， and get her ideal of independenceand freedom at last. So Ellen Olenska’s awakening feminist consciousness is a silver lining casting on the patriarchal society， and her never-yielding spirit to strive for woman liberty might be the true cause of the later feminist movement.

[1]Woolf，Virginia.A Room of One’s Own.New York：Harcourt，Brace and Company，1934.

[2]Wharton，Edith.The Age of Innocence.New York：Bantam Books，1996.

[3]Wolff，Cynthia Griffin.A Feast of Words: The Triumph of Edith Wharton.Cambridge：The Press of Syndicate of the University of Cambridge，1995.

[4]McDowell，Margaret .“Viewing the Custom of Her Country: Edith Wharton’s Feminism.”Contemporary Literature，1974：(15).