The different ways that authors from the eighteenth century portrayed various issues relating to female power and agency in their published writing. In their published works, some eighteenth-century authors portrayed various issues relating to female power and agency in a variety of ways. The paper examines these three pieces of literature: The Woman's Labor, The Reasons that Inspired Dr. S to Write "The Lady's Dressing Room," a Poem by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. Finally, on Saturday, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's The Small Pox will be followed by Mary Collier's An Epistle to Mr. Stephen Duck. It will describe how the authors of these three works convey their views on female agency and authority. The Woman's Labor by Mary Collier
The woman's labor
The woman's labor is response work to Stephen Duck, a male working-class poet who criticized what he saw as the female laziness in working fields. Collier expresses all the back-breaking labor that women have to go through and their exploitation in different areas as one of the best critiques that are in English Literature. She provides an insight into the eighteenth-century background of the women working conditions, issues of gender and the economic status of the women at that time. She was infuriated by the poem that Stephen duck had written regarding the women. Collier goes to the extent of describing the double shift that women have to undergo to get wages that can sustain them and their families; field- and- domestic labor. They have little time to get the much-needed rest that they deserve. The poem contains that feminist touch as she decries women exploitation that is seasonal work perils and domestic labor. Her critiques are levelled towards the patriarchal social structure. She goes to the extent of arguing about the women education which in her opinion acts as the equalizer that is much needed in the sexes (Collier, 1).
She even goes further to the extent of publishing his work at her expenses to put her point across. Her distinctive voice in these works possesses a challenge to the dominating literary culture that existed in the eighteenth century.
The Reasons that Induced Dr. S. to Write a Poem called "The Lady's Dressing Room" by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu
"The lady's dressing room" by Jonathan Swift and the reason that induced Dr. S to write a poem called the lady's Dressing room by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. These two poems have a way to indicate the systematic breakdown that exists between the male and female illusion that is within the gender and social conventions that exists within the high society. The necessity of feminism identification is deeply rooted in the poems. In Montagu poems, he described what is seen as the doctor who tries to meet with a prostitute, and in the long run, he is not able to perform his duties as a man.
"The Reverend Lover with surprize/ Peeps in her Bubbys, and her Eyes,/ And kisses both, and trys–and trys./ The Evening in this Hellish Play,/ Beside his Guineas thrown away,/ Provok'd the Preist to that degree/ he swore, the Fault is not in me" (Montagu, 1)
In her context, she uses what is known as satire to bring out the suggestion that the Dr. is lashing out all of his anger towards the women due to his sexuality dissatisfaction. She looks at the Dr.'s violence as one of the reasons that he cannot get his bedroom affairs under control. This peace presents that kind of mindset that was held by the men and women of the eighteenth century (Montagu, 1). The tone of the poem asserts the author's view of Dr. S works in regards to what the message that she sends to the reader. She brings out the norm of identity. Growing to greater lengths to depict the kind of life that existed during that era, she empathises on the morals and virtues of the women thus portraying the manner in which women were constrained by the cultural norms that existed. From this context, one can take the fact that it's the society stepsons that made him satirical target thus leaving out the aspect of women sexuality. These Strephon are the one that places men and women into different situations that exhibits feminine ideals that are inefficient. In the long run, they maintain the unrealistic ideals towards the women (Montagu, 1).
Saturday, The Small Pox by Lady Mary Wortley Montagu
Saturday is considered as one of the last series of the poem. Its function traditionally was to close the collection of the eclogues; a poem about someone's death. Its primary purpose of showing the image that is left when one dies leaving the rest to lament the loss of the potential and beauty that they had. In Montagu poem, the author uses Flavia though not dead to lament about herself. She suggested that her life has already come to an end thus not worthy of living because of the loss of her ability to flatter and flirt. In this context Montagu uses smallpox as an emphasis of death; the discussion that is often stressing on women and smallpox instead of the danger that looms over losing one's beauty—that is, turning out seriously and lastingly disfigured. Flavia point of view in the poem is that there is no difference between her living and dying because she has lost everything that she considers as making her a woman. Montagu uses her feeling to express the main ideas of female power and agency that they uphold (Montagu, 1).
Conclusion
The eighteenth century was considered as the point of tumult and revolutionary changes that where occurring in the private and public spheres. Poems were used to for various reasons across the globe. There was the absence of highly literary ambitions, and their purpose was rendering the use of the codes of prestige poetry ridiculous. However, the women writings showed the aspect of tolerance and flowering, the constrictions and repression. The three works that have been used in these paper ooze out that potential that the female has, they are deemed as the fight that the feminist had. The politics locations are primarily used in both the context to bring out the issues of gender having implying the emphasis on the experience being lived. Feminine realms depicted in these poems are looked upon an alternative to money and power ranks that are male-dominated. They used imagery to portray the picture to the reader of what was happening and addressing the issues at hand. Like in The Woman's Labor. An Epistle to Mr. Stephen Duck by Mary Collier he presents the image of women's dedication and their toughness when looking at the aspect of work. She portrays them as the pillar of growth as the balance between the two shifts that they have to endure to support their male counterparts.
In the works of Montagu, she depicts the fact that women are looked down upon, but they have that power and capabilities as their male counterparts. It's the beauty that they have that places them up on the social realms of wealth. It's not just about the money and powers that are male-dominated. Both writings consist of the critical archive that is about the heterogeneous and the contextualized epistemology of the eighteenth-century women. They reclaim the women voices through use of various themes with various structural styles that map out resistances spaces. The differences that exist in these narratives conclusion not only show the ways that represent the women but also the degrees of the agency, inequality and even the choice of action that the principal female figures uphold. Through the characters that the two writers use, they represent the different experiences and the models of the women in the society. Both works have a female representation as a connecting factor in regards to the area that they are portrayed in. The underlying identity that portrays the different women identities that is within a specific culture and also across the cultures that exist.
Works Cited
Collier, Mary. "from The Woman’s Labor. An Epistle to Mr Stephen Duck." 2006. Poetry Foundation. 12 December 2017 .
Montagu, Mary Wortley. The Reasons that Induced Dr. S. to write a Poem called "The Lady's Dressing Room". n.d. 12 December 2017 .
—. "Town Eclogues: Saturday; The Small-Pox." n.d. Poetry Foundation . 12 December 2017 .
