Women used to have a role in society back then. In terms of culture, men were superior and held all the power. Women only had access to the kitchen and no other areas of the house. Many males found success in the arts and were well-known for their creations. Among these individuals are Lev Tolstoy, Dante Alighieri, and William Shakespeare. In the society at large, gender discrimination was pervasive, and the arts were not exempt. Though they were not as well known as their male peers, some women did manage to overcome the obstacles and rise to fame as artists. Authors Anne Akhmatova and Charlotte Bronte. Their journey was not easy, and they faced so many challenges along the way before becoming famous artists in history.
Charlotte Bronte
Charlotte was a novelist and a poet. She lived in the 19th century, a time where women took the backseat in the society. Gender roles were defined, and men were the default leaders. During her time, the kinds of books that girls were allowed to read were limited as compared to those given to boys. Girls could only access certain forms of literature. Boys read everything, but girls only read books that had a feminine figure who would teach them how to be good wives and mothers in the future. Due to this limitation, the forms of writing that females could do was limited.
In writing, women had a set limitation. They had restriction rules which they had no choice but to follow specific rules set aside. The rules were accepted by the society and had been set by men. After the death of her two sisters, Charlotte remained as the eldest child of Patrick Bronte, and since their mother had died, she had to protect her younger siblings. After her mother and sisters’ death, she was pulled out of school brought home. She and her siblings started writing about an imaginary world thus growing her interest in arts.
Charlotte Bronte was never impressed by the suppression of women in the nineteenth century. She, therefore, took it upon herself to change this notion (DeLamotte,85). First, she was determined to become a writer. One of the very few that existed those days. In her writings, she focused on addressing issues that faced women in the 19th century. Issues involving suppression of women and women put down by men. By becoming a writer, she tried to change the notion the society had on women. She proved that even a woman had the brains to be an author. She always said that when people looked at her regarding her writing, they were not allowed to judge her as a woman, rather they were to judge her as an author. She wrote a novel, Jane Eyres, which she is best known for. In her book, she demanded equality between men and women. She argued that men should not be the dominant being. Women also have a right to everything a man gets, without discrimination of gender.
Anna Akhmatova
Anna was a poet from Russia. She lived in the 20th century. She lived through the time when Joseph Stalin was the ruler. Stalin ruled the Soviet Union for two decades. He was a dictator who made the lives of the citizens unbearable. Anna fell victim of his dictatorship. Stalin and his administration were not for the idea of her writing (Altham, 6). This was mainly because in her writings she mainly attacked Stalin and boldly stated the harshness of his government. Her artworks were confiscated by Stalin and censored. People were not allowed to gain access to them since they were against him. Anna also lived in a time where women were not appreciated. They were deemed to be the weaker sex and thus had no right to a voice. She also used her poems to air out her predicaments to the world.
Anna in her background also faced another challenge. She was born Anna Andeyevna Gorenko. She started writing using her full names, but at some point, she faced opposition from her father. He said he did not want to be associated with her poetry since they were based on opposing the government. Therefore, for her art works, she had to change her name. She started using her grandmother’s name, Akhmatova.
Connection of the two women in relation to a book
Using The Guerilla Girls book ‘Bedside Companion to the history of Western art,' we see the similarities of these two women and the Guerilla Girls. The guerilla girls in their book mainly argue about the male domination in the world of art and its unfairness (Guerrilla Girls, 45). They say that even females have a voice that should be heard. They should not be put down because of the gender. Charlotte and Anna also have these same views. They believe a woman is much more than a man’s trample. They fight for the rights of a woman to be heard. They use art to show that even females have a brain that can work to be artistic.
My creative process
In my poem, I aim at proving the same thing as the women above. I aimed at showing that women can be more than just helps, wives and mothers. Women have a brain too and should not face suppression. According to me, women were meant to be helpers of man, in the beginning, not to be overshadowed by him. The plan was to help each other in this life. In its place, the man took advantage and took our rights. He made the woman become a servant to order around, and voiceless. He took away the rights of a woman to speak and air out their predicaments. In my poem, I focus on airing out the views of the voiceless.
Let me out
Hello,
Anyone there,
I need to break out
Break out from this jail I was born into
I need to breathe the sweet air of freedom.
Can anyone hear me?
Anyone. Can you hear my cries?
I have been shut down
My lips are sewn together
They say it’s to calm the weather
They say my lips cause trouble,
But,
How would they know?
They have never given me a chance
I have been on lockdown
From birth till date
I have followed rules
I have obediently concurred with the…
The inhuman oppression
The trample on my dignity
The trample on my feminity
Without a voice, I concurred.
But it’s over now
I need to voice the voiceless
I must come out
I must talk
I shun the thread on my sewn lips
I discard the air of submission
To beasts who see no human
The beasts who see a being meant to
Sit back without a word
Stay hard; tears at bay
No! I will talk
We shall arise.
The days of feminist teary days are over
It’s a new dawn.
Works Cited
Altham, Joseph. "The Idea of the Monument in the Poetry of Anna Akhmatova." ICLLS 2016 (2016): 6.
DeLamotte, Eugenia C. Perils of the night: A feminist study of nineteenth-century Gothic. Oxford University Press on Demand, 1990.: 85-90
Guerrilla Girls (Group of artists). The Guerrilla Girls' bedside companion to the history of Western art. Penguin Group USA, 1998.:45-49
