paper 1

Asiah Smikle

Prof. Brady

English 102

14 March 2019

Gender Inequality

Gender inequality acknowledges that men and women are not equal and that gender affects in an individual’s lived experience. Gender inequality has been a detriment to women’s lives all around the world in the post-modern era. The first woman’s rights movement was conducted on July 19 to the 20th in Seneca Falls. In the United States today women are seen fairly equally because of the help of all the feminists who fought for those right before some of us were even born yet. Different parts of the world have different views on what a woman’s role should be in society.  In the time period of both Antigone by Sophocles, and A Streetcar named Desire, as the reader you can tell that women had a totally different role in society, then the average woman you would come across today in the United States.

Antigone by Sophocles, has a strong female figure as the main character. Antigone was filled with courage, passion, and anger, all respectable qualities in a woman. Despite the fact that she should follow the laws lay down by Creon, Antigone was strong enough to follow her heart in doing what she felt was right. She was a strong believer in the Gods and believed that their laws should be obeyed above those of men. The Gods had set forth a law that everybody deserves proper burial rights.  Antigone’s devotion to the Gods and their laws superseded the laws created by Creon. She states “Yes; for it was Zeus that had published me that edict, not such are the laws set among men by the justice who dwells with the Gods below; nor deemed I that thy decrees were of such force, that mortal could override unwritten and unfailing statues of heaven. For their life is not today or yesterday, but from all time, and no man knows when they were first put forth” (Sophocles, 442 B.C.E.). In Ancient Greek society, women have restrictions regarding their freedom having to follow a set of strict rules as well as laws. Antigone was seen as a threat to Greek Society because of her determination to give her brother a proper burial. Antigone’s actions had been upsetting gender rules while putting political pressure on the hierarchy.

In Streetcar Named Desire gender inequality is seen through Blanche and Stella with their dependency on man. Both Blanche and Stella define themselves in terms of the men in their lives, and they see relationships with men as the only bridge to happiness and fulfillment. Blanche is the southern belle and acts as a delicate, innocent version of femininity because she strongly believe that it makes her more attractive to men. In order to fill the woman’s ideal role in life back then, she tries to hide who she really is. Blanch insist that her sister Stella get away from her abusive spouse Stanley. Her solution also involves being dependent on a man. Blanche’s marriage in her youth lead to a disastrous ending, leaving her to seek emotional fulfilment through relationships with men. Blanche sees marriage as her only path to being happy. Mitch becomes her golden ticket to that. Stella’s femininity is based not on illusion but on reality, she does not hide who she is, or what she has to overcome. Stella does choose her physical love for and dependence on Stanley over Blanche’s shenanigans. Stella takes the abuse of Stanley in order to continue living her life the way she pleases. Eunice Stella’s friend is also a Woman figure who shows how she’s dependent on men when she tells Stella “Don’t ever believe it. Life has to go on no matter what happens, you have to keep on going” (Williams, A Streetcar named Desire).. Both sisters portray how women’s lives were during those time periods, in two different ways.

Male dominance is not something we really see in the US anymore, but in certain countries that’s all they know. In Saudi Arabia women for so long until this day are very dependent on their spouse. In fact “Some husbands won’t allow their wives and daughters to take rewarding job because they might have contact with men in the course of their work” (Murphy, Laws of Men). In Saudi Arabian society the male “guardian” over the female has full control over her life. Us woman in the United States find that to be odd, but for Saudi Arabian  women that is reality. Men are even able to put their hands on women with no

Consequences. Researchers have seen efforts made to help Saudi Arabian women receive more rights and freedom. “Saudi Arabia issued its first drivers license to 10 women on [June 4th] as the kingdom prepared to lift the world’s only ban one female drivers in three weeks” (The Associated Press). What sounds absurd to women all over the world is just a Saudi  Arabian woman’s harsh reality.

Women all over have fought so long for their rights. During the time period of both "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "Antigone" by Sophocles, women weren’t at all as independent as the women of today’s day and age. Some women were fierce believers like Antigone and others were scared and alright with the way things were like Blanche, Stella, and Eunice. Every society and has its own way of what a woman should do, and what type of role we should play. Something so small to me such as voting that is such a normal thing for your American women now, would turn heads in a time period like that of both Plays. Imagine what women in the earlier time periods had to go through, and how dependent they became on Man.  The world is evolving, women gain more and more respect each and every day as time goes by. Looking back at both places you can see the difference of a woman’s role in society.