Analysis of the other wife
The Other Wife Analysis
The Other Wife is a short story written by Sidonie Gabrielle Colette. Colette is credited for challenging rigid attitudes and assumptions about gender roles. “The Other Wife” is about a French aristocrat and his second wife has a brief encounter with his ex-wife in a restaurant. The story’s point of view is 3rd person omniscient. An analysis of how France 20th century gender roles influence the multiple personalities of a husband, wife, and ex-wife.
Gender roles have played a major part in society. According to the book “The Psyche of Feminism” “A gender role is a theoretical construct in the social sciences that refers to a set of social and behavioral norms that are considered to be socially appropriate for a specific sex” (Pebbles 101). France’s society in the 20th century rooted the idea that women are subservient to men. It has only been in the past one hundred years that some women have started to have the same rights as men. Women have fought for rights that establish the same social, economic, and political status that men have. Colette addresses the issue of gender inequality in France in her short story "The Other Wife." She mentions Alice’s hat. “A good catholic woman in France never walks around with her hair down or without a hat unless she is selling something”(Pebbles 222). Women are instructed to wear hats. Not to do so is to dishonor her head. The man is considered the head of a woman. A man is placed in subordination to Christ who is his head. “The man is also the authority under Christ making the woman subordinated to the man and under his authority” (Pebbles 306). The dominance of the male over the female is displayed in the public restaurant.
Colette establishes a complete feminine identity that goes against the traditional French definition of femininity. The ex-wife or the other woman has pale skin, lustrous hair and blue eyes. “Pale skin was prize because women with porcelain skin were valuable and
The Other Wife is a short story written by Sidonie Gabrielle Colette. Colette is credited for challenging rigid attitudes and assumptions about gender roles. “The Other Wife” is about a French aristocrat and his second wife has a brief encounter with his ex-wife in a restaurant. The story’s point of view is 3rd person omniscient. An analysis of how France 20th century gender roles influence the multiple personalities of a husband, wife, and ex-wife.
Gender roles have played a major part in society. According to the book “The Psyche of Feminism” “A gender role is a theoretical construct in the social sciences that refers to a set of social and behavioral norms that are considered to be socially appropriate for a specific sex” (Pebbles 101). France’s society in the 20th century rooted the idea that women are subservient to men. It has only been in the past one hundred years that some women have started to have the same rights as men. Women have fought for rights that establish the same social, economic, and political status that men have. Colette addresses the issue of gender inequality in France in her short story "The Other Wife." She mentions Alice’s hat. “A good catholic woman in France never walks around with her hair down or without a hat unless she is selling something”(Pebbles 222). Women are instructed to wear hats. Not to do so is to dishonor her head. The man is considered the head of a woman. A man is placed in subordination to Christ who is his head. “The man is also the authority under Christ making the woman subordinated to the man and under his authority” (Pebbles 306). The dominance of the male over the female is displayed in the public restaurant.
Colette establishes a complete feminine identity that goes against the traditional French definition of femininity. The ex-wife or the other woman has pale skin, lustrous hair and blue eyes. “Pale skin was prize because women with porcelain skin were valuable and