Town and Country Lovers: A Feminist Criticism

What is Feminist criticism? Dobie defines Feminist criticism on page 97 as, "The premise that unites those who call themselves feminist critics is the assumption that Western culture is fundamentally patriarchal, creating an imbalance of power that marginalizes women and their work. That social structure, they agree, is reflected in religion, philosophy, economics education - all aspects of the culture, including literature. The feminist critic works to expose such ideology and, in the end, to change …

…the illiterate cashier. Why not the other way around? Perhaps her reason was what was socially accepted. Women are always known to be a step or two behind men. The men are more dominating and powerful while the females are thought to be more submissive and sensitive. These are the stereotypes that hinder women. Perhaps by using these stereotypical concepts, the story was written more believable to the readers. By: Mika Mokko © 2004