Sexism
Sexism is when one gender dominates the other. Nowadays, our society often illustrates women to be weaker than men. There are certain professions that both sexes are not deemed to share the same opportunities. For example, most of the construction workers are male and not female because women are not strong enough physically. On the contrary, most teachers are female and not male because women are good care takers who are likely to have more nurturing personality than males. Women are still struggling to fight for equality in communities and work places in this male dominated society. Men often view women as slaves because society is affected by older days, where women were obedient and loyal to men. In the novel Pride and Prejudice, the author, Jane Austen pictures a setting where stereotypical gender roles are portrayed; men hold the power against females. This leads to sexism where one gender dominates the other. There are many examples in this novel, the most important are: In the Bennet household, when Mr. Bennet passes away the heir to estate goes to Mr. Collins, who is Mr. Bennet’s clergyman cousin. Mr. Bennet has five daughters and no sons and according to customs at that time only a male can be the heir to a property. Mrs. Bennet wasn’t concerned about her daughter’s education as during those times, women weren’t given equal opportunities in the education field. Men took all the good and high- paying jobs and women were expected to work at home and look after the children, if any. Women weren’t given the right to decide who they wanted to marry, normally the mother decides that. Elizabeth, one of the sisters in the Bennet household refused Mr. Collins proposal much to the dismay of her mother as her only purpose in life was to see her daughters marry rich and handsome men. Therefore all these arguments prove that sexism is present in the novel, Pride and prejudice where males dominate females. All of these arguments prove that the novel is based on sexism,