Comparing literary genres and their characteristics

¶ … Message, Different Genres

Literature is a means by which people can raise questions about the society they live in and address issues of concern to them. One of the questioned often raised relates to the role of women in society. Female writers are able to use literature to express their opinions and explore what it means to be a woman in society. This was especially true in the times when women did not have the power and were not taken seriously enough to question their own roles openly. One text clearly describes the role of women saying that women were "supposedly the most stable of all elements of American nineteenth-century life, fixed firmly within their sphere of home and hearth" (The Literature of an Expanding Nation 21). When women are viewed this way, they are not capable of openly questioning their role or how they are viewed. Literature then becomes a means by which women can express their opinions. Susan Glaspell, Edna St. Vincent

Millay and Charlotte Perkins Gilman are three female authors who have used literature to present their opinions on he place of women. Glaspell used the genre of drama to present her opinion in the play "Trifles." Edna St. Vincent Millay challenged the accepted role of women in her poem "I, Being Born a Woman and Distressed." And Charlotte Perkin Gilman used the short story genre, with her work "The Yellow Wallpaper." All of these works mentioned share the same overall message, showing that woman are suppressed in society and should be freed. However, each of the messages are expressed in a different way, with the methods used linked to the genre used a medium for the message. These works will now be explored to show how each author uses the genre to present her message.

Susan Glaspell shows her views of the role of women in her play "Trifles." The genre play has two important features that influence how Glaspell presents her views. The first is that the play is a visual genre. A play is designed to be performed, rather than read. This means that Glaspell needs to show how women are suppressed and the place they are given, rather than focus on how women feel about it. Unlike a short story or a poem, a play cannot be largely focused on a woman's interior dialogue or what she thinks. Instead, a play must deliver its message via the action that happens. The second important feature of a play is that it is a way of depicting life. Glaspell is able to look at life, observe what she sees is wrong with society, and then put a representation of life on the stage so that other people can see what she sees. This is exactly what she effectively does in the play. One of the major ways the play makes its point is by showing how men act and how they view women. This is seen when the sheriff is looking in the kitchen and states that there is "nothing here but kitchen things" (Glaspell 997). While the sheriff is not saying directly that women are nothing, he is showing his general views via this statement. The kitchen is used to represent the role of the women and the sheriff is showing that he sees women as inferior to men. It is no coincidence that it is a sheriff who makes these statements. Glaspell uses the sheriff and the law to represent how men have the power in society and make all the rules. This is seen at another point where Mrs. Peters says, "But Mrs. Hale, the law is the law" (Glaspell 999). This is a female character saying this now, which shows that Glaspell is not saying that men are necessarily evil. Instead, she is showing how society overall accepts men as being in power and women as being inferior. The main point is that this view is so accepted that there is no ability to question it. Saying that the law is certainly not a way of making a valid argument. It is not like Mrs. Peters is saying that the law should be followed because it is right, or good, or necessary. Instead, she is showing that she accepts things as they are simply because they are the way are. In doing this, the person watching the play can begin to question whether the law in the play is correct and whether the rules of society are valid. This same question is asked in the scene where Mrs. Peters hides the bird. Based on the laws of the time, this is a crime since she has repressed evidence. But Mrs. Peters is also driven by a moral law and this is why she hides the bird, despite knowing that it is technically a crime. The audience must wonder whether she actually did anything wrong, and if she didn't then this suggests that the laws of society are not set, even if they are generally accepted. A similar idea is explored when it is considered whether Minnie's husband John Wright did anything wrong to deserve to die. When considering whether he technically did anything wrong, Glaspell has Mrs. Hale express her opinion. As she states, "He didn't drink, and kept his word as well as most, I guess, and paid his debts" (Glaspell 998). Again there is a sense that at least according to the law, Wright did not do anything wrong. But the events of the play hint that there is something greater to consider here. After all, Wright was killed and yet it seems Minnie will get away with her crime. At the same time, Glaspell creates a view where this is seen as a valid ending and the right one for Minnie and Wright. This shows that despite the laws saying that Wright did nothing wrong, there is a moral view saying that he did. This is what leads to a view where a person can see that there is more to understanding life than judging it by its rules. Since the play is a representation of real life, viewers can extend this questioning to the real world and see beyond what they have accepted as normal and never questioned. This is how Glaspell uses the genre of the play to show people a new vision and open their eyes to what they had previously accepted as normal. With the play focusing on issues of men and women and their roles, this level of previous acceptance is applied to how women are seen, both by themselves and by men. In this way, Glaspell expresses her concerns about the suppressed role that women are placed in and challenges others to question what they have accepted as normal.

Edna St. Vincent Millay challenges the accepted role of women in her poem "I, Being Born a Woman and Distressed." Like Glaspell, she presents woman as they are viewed. This is seen in the first five lines of the poem (Millay 895):

I, being born a woman, and distressed

By all the needs and notions of my kind,

Am urged by your propinquity to find

Your person fair, and feel a certain zest

To bear your body's weight upon my breast

In this case, however, Millay is focusing on how women are seen as sexual beings, with this their primary purpose. In the first five lines, Millay appears to be accepting the male view of women. However, the entire poem is actually a way of Millay taking a man's power from him and putting herself in control. Importantly, while the general view of women as sexual beings might be accepted, this does not mean that women are supposed to accept that view. Millay's poem is a statement saying that men are not putting her in that place, but that she is in that role because she chooses to be. This changes though at the end of the poem with the following lines (Millay 895):

I shall remember you with love, or season

My scorn with pity - let me make it plain:

I find this frenzy insufficient reason

For conversation when we meet again.

In the first half of the poem, she was stating as if she accepted how men saw her. In the final lines, she is reclaiming her power by telling the reader that this is not suitable and not enough. One of the important points about the use of the poem genre, is that the poet is using her own voice to express her opinion directly. Unlike Glaspell's use of drama, there are no characters or situations to deliver the message. Instead, Millay is just stating exactly what she thinks and speaking directly to a male reader. Millay also makes good use of voice and tone in the poem to maker her point. Note that in the first line, Millay is stating that she is a "distressed woman" with "all the needs and notions of my kind." The meaning of this suggests a passive woman controlled by others. However, Millay's tone and voice is always strong and direct. This creates the sense that women are not as they appear. Even if a woman's appearance might suggest weakness or control by others, this does not mean that the person is not strong and in charge. This is one way that questions are immediately introduced, with the message to men being that women may not be what they seem to be or what you want them to be. There is a contradiction in this, as Hubbard (105) notes, where the speaker of the poem "submits to no one but herself." The poem also effectively uses the sonnet structure to make it point. One of the main features of the sonnet structure is the final two lines, which typically introduce a new idea that adds meaning to the remainder of the poem. As noted, the entire poem has Millay seeming to suggest that she accepts the male view of woman and accepts her place as a sexual being. In one way, it is confronting and challenging men, simply by stating so directly that she is well aware of her place. But it is not actually contradicting or stating a problem with this. The final two lines change this (Millay 895):

I find this frenzy insufficient reason

For conversation when we meet again.

In these lines, Millay adds to the poem by showing that it is not acceptable. This line also changes because Millay has now turned from recognizing herself as being judged to judging men. And finally, she is now giving a direct order to the male reader, saying that it is not acceptable. With this line understood, the beginning of the poem has new meaning, with it now representing not how things are, but how things should change. This shows how the form of the sonnet is used to represent the kind of change that Millay is trying to induce. Much like Glaspell, she wants men to gain a new view of women and reconsider how they see things. She wants to challenge people to look at things in a new way. The major difference is that she does it via a direct message to the reader, rather than a message delivered via the interpretation of characters and events.

The next work to be considered is Charlotte Perkins Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper." In this work, Gilman uses the short story genre to express her opinions and make her statement about the role of women. The short story is narrated by a woman who is in the repressed role of women. The story follows the woman as she descends into madness and eventually returns from madness with an understanding of who she is and how she has spent her whole life repressed. Like Glaspell, the short story genre means that the story is told via the events that happen. However, the short story elements adds another element because it is able to get inside the narrator's head and show what the experience is like for her. The short story effectively uses the basic short story structure to make its point. This means that the story begins with a problem, follows the evolution of that problem through the middle portion of the story, and emerges with a conclusion that resolves the problem. Via this process, the main character undergoes a major change. One of the interesting things is that at the beginning, it is not really known what the problem is. The narrator notes that it has something to do with the house repeating that, "there is something queer about it" (Gilman 541). However, beyond this she does not have any clear idea of what is wrong. The middle portion of the story is essentially her exploration to find out what is wrong. It can be considered as a personal struggle, where she allows herself to find out who she is and what she needs. The problem Gilman faces is that she is trying to show women about a problem that will not be obvious to them. In short, she is trying to show how the roles of women have become so accepted by society that they are not even noticed. And without seeing the roles, there is no possibility of questioning them. This is similar to Glaspell's view of people accepting the rules of society simply because they are there. Gilman's solution to this problem is to have her character descend into madness. If madness is considering as a state of seeing an altered reality, this becomes a method by which the narrator can gain a view of herself that goes beyond her accepted views. She can be set free from in-built expectations and can see a broader picture. Even in this, the narrator still struggles to define the actual problem. However, she allows herself to let go and eventually realizes that she is trapped by her own role. The breakthrough occurs when she tears the wallpaper from the walls. After tearing down the wallpaper she says, "I've got out at last ... In spite of you and Jane. And I've pulled off most of the paper, so you can't put me back!" (Gilman 553). This is the narrator's turning point where she finally realizes that she has been trapped by her role in society. Tearing down the wallpaper is not a major event for her life and does not mean that she is actually changing the situation for herself. Instead, it represents that she has changed and can now see beyond what is accepted for woman and can see that was in a role. She may not have freed herself physically and she may remain in the role of woman. The difference is that she is freed intellectually and now has knowledge of her role. In this way, the story shows a transformation, where the narrator journeys from a point where she is blind to her role, to a point where she sees it clearly. It is this same transformation that Gilman wants her readers to experience. Another important related to the way the genre of the short story is used is that the genre is one where the reader journeys with the character. Unlike a play where a person is watching the characters, or a poem where the reader is seeing what the poet has to say them, in a short story the reader becomes the character. They are allowed inside their world and travel with them. Gilman makes good use of this by setting up the story where the reader does not initially know what is wrong with the narrator. The reader knows only as much as the narrator knows, which is that something does not feel right. This motivates the reader into wanting to find out what is wrong and makes them part of the journey. The narrator and the reader then travel together on a journey of discovery. This is also assisted by Gilman's use of a first-person narrator, which creates a strong link for the reader. In effect, the reader experiences what Gilman experiences, gains the understanding she gains, and changes as she changes. This makes the short story an enlightening experience, with enlightenment Gilman's key goal. In addition, the intense struggle of the narrator and the first-person narration creates strong empathy for the character. The effectiveness of this can be considered by comparing the result with Glaspell's "Trifles." In "Trifles," it was shown that women are placed in a role in society and how the rules of society are so ingrained that they are not questioned. While this shows the problems in society for women, this does not necessarily make the reader care. In fact, the women in "Trifles" seem to fare quite well. Minnie did suffer because of her husband, but she took control of the situation, and it seems that she will get away with her actions. In addition, while the play tells the viewer that Minnie suffered in her marriage, it does not make the suffering personal. "The Yellow Wallpaper" is different because it makes the suffering very personal. The reader experiences the narrator's madness and this makes the emotional impact on women clear. This adds a sense of motivation to want to change things, something that "Trifles" lacked. Gilman also effectively uses metaphor to express her point. The wallpaper itself is main metaphor. It represents how women are confined. This is made clear where the narrator refers to the women behind the wallpaper (Gilman 552):