Humor As a Defense Mechanism In 19th-Century Women's Writing

Author

Hannah Mae Shelby, Arkansas State UniversityFollow

Date of Award

11-18-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

English, MA

First Advisor

Rachael Isom

Committee Members

Deborah Chappel-Daniel; Janelle Collins

Call Number

LD 251 .A566t 2021 S54

Abstract

Women in Western societies have been repeatedly placed into inferior, gendered roles by their patriarchal societies, which often left them with little hope of autonomy apart from a male companionship. Women writers during the nineteenth century, especially, were chastised for daring to write beyond the sentimental because many male critics and writers believed that women were not capable of complex writing. The women featured in this thesis weaponized humor—such as irony, sarcasm, and narrative quips—to create intriguing narratives while also commenting on gendered oppression. Works by women from the British Regency era to the American fin-de-siècle center on female characters who openly question gender-specific expectations laid upon them by 19th century British and American societies. With humor, each author points to the limitations placed on women in society and in literature while also advocating for change.

Rights Management

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Shelby, Hannah Mae, "Humor As a Defense Mechanism In 19th-Century Women's Writing" (2021). Student Theses and Dissertations. 300.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/300