Well- behaved women do not make history

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Well- behaved women do not make history

‘Alice in Wonderland’ directed by Tim Burton did not bag laurels just for the colorful portrayal of the Mad Hatter, but a complete reworking of the character of ALICE. A well mannered, soft spoken, delicate darling Alice, made it to the gumption list of the maverick heroines. She takes on the evil queen in a fight and refuses to marry the prince. Manjula Padmnabhan’s ‘Unprincess’ is a maverick girl who takes on her own battles and knows her mind.

Heroines of the yesteryears were about sacrifice, eternal love and duty. They were not supposed to flirt, throw a tantrum to acquire their heart’s desire or eye their friend’s suitor. Even if such human feelings surfaced in them they were to camouflage their true spirit under a garb of politeness and sweetness. No doubt women were always scheming and plotting – cause they could never be forthright and open about themselves and their desires. They were certainly not supposed to be assertive, and let the whole world know whom they loved and be selfish and ruthless in pursuit of their goals in life.

We would have heavily frowned upon such heroines and we did exactly that down the ages. Madame Bovary, Hester Prynne, and Scarlet o’ Hara were read with censure rather than admiration and sympathy. But now the tables have turned and when we read Scarlet O ‘ Hara we see her as a brave woman who survives the civil war with hard work and a has no nonsense attitude about herself. We view her more realistically and admit that the reason Rhett Butler is attracted to her in the first place is because of her forthright attitude and outspokenness.

‘Well behaved women do not make history’ said Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. Creations of writing and imagination, literature has created legendary heroines who in retrospect rank high on the list of FIESTY HEROINES. Who are these heroines who compete for a place in the elite list? They don’t need to wrestle with stalkers, or kick sick men in their asses,  they just need to be smart, confident, gutsy, vivacious, articulate and very clear to know their minds and make unhindered choices; female protagonists, whom we have read and who have stepped out of print and become our close companions and confidantes.

Shakespeare’s Cleopatra has been objectified, declared a temptress a “whore”, an enchantress who made Antony “the noble ruin of her magic.” This threat has much to do with Cleopatra’s beauty and expressive sexuality.  Cleopatra is self-involved, a narcissist. The dichotomy of a manipulative seductress versus an able leader will always stay with her image as 19^th century artists painted her with the asp applied to her breast rather than the arm where it bit her – clearly indicating the fact that she was more an object of desire than a strong woman   ; nevertheless, her charisma, strength, and indomitable will makes her one of Shakespeare’s strongest, most awe-inspiring female characters.

Hester Prynne in ‘The Scarlet Letter’ wears the scarlet letter on her bosom with gumption and lives with her daughter in the same place that ostracized her. She also never breathes out the name of the father of her child. Shamed and alienated from the rest of the community, Hester becomes contemplative. She speculates on human nature, social control, and larger moral questions. Hester’s tribulations also lead her to be stoic and a freethinker.

Elizabeth Bennet is never intimidated in ‘Pride and Prejudice’. Jane Austen thought her ‘as delightful a character as ever appeared in print’; a woman who is delightful for reasons other than those of beauty alone. She is characterized by wit, independence and a courageous ability to admit her mistakes. She wants to be seen as a rational and autonomous human being in the same way as men are. She tells Mr Collin as much.

Jo March, the rebel and tomboy of ‘Little Women,’ beseechingly asks her mother why she cannot be content to sew, cook and look after babies like her sisters. The restlessness and adventurous spirit drives her to travel and finally she falls in love with her writing and the professor. Her struggle to blend family life and responsibilities with a creative profession could be a precursor to the choices women make today.

Catherine’s wildness in ‘Wuthering Heights’ is the rejection of her gender identity as defined by a bourgeois society. The heliographic on the walls of her room at Wuthering Heights is the symbolic remnant of her struggle – Catherine Earnshaw, Catherine Heathcliff and then again Catherine Linton. Her practicality makes her choose to be a lady over her wild passion for Heathcliff, which is her real self. Catherine is a women’s anguished voice which revolts; a haunting presence, always to remind of that which is denied to her – of what she actually wanted to be.

In Anna Karenina the theme is one of adultery, a romance which shakes the foundation of a society steeped in hypocrisy. Anna is unforgettable for her refusal to observe the proprieties exacted in such a liaison  - remember she adamantly argues with Vronsky and goes and attends the opera in her regal attire.

If we were to shift the narrative from fictional to real life women who live in our societies and create such colossal feminine characters then Maya Angelo, Alice Walker, Anita Desai would take the lead. Anita Desai is unique in portraying a wide gamut of Indian women in her novels. What really struck me was that in one of her interviews, she candidly admitted that she loved her writing passion and would yearn for time to herself away from her responsibilities of family life and children – to return to her first love – WRITING ; very akin to Virginia Woolf’s – a room of one’s own.

With translations Indian regional literature has become mainstream now. I have recently encountered bold real life heroines in the images of Karaikkal Ammaiyar ( Tamil mystic saint), Andal, Akka Mahadevi (Kannada Literature), and Muddupalani (Telugu poetess). Mahashewta Devi, Kamala Das are bold examples of women who have left larger than life size images for posterity.  

If you are attracted to some people and characters, it is an indication of the fact that you harbor some of their characteristics and aspire to be even more like them. Well, if that holds true and you admire these maverick heroines, you could make history too! Happy International Women’s Day!