Cyclic Segregation and Chauvinism

Cyclic Segregation and Chauvinism.

The tendencies of humanity seem to cycle at a constant. The nature of society has thus remained the same. From the script of Lady Windermere’s Fan produced in 1892, to our modern day trivialities, the connection between the societal values has remained in accordance with each other. This association is namely the union of men and women. Because of their distinct differences not only physical, but the way they perceive each other mentally, the two are at a constant dissent and remain on a figural level, segregated. Oscar Wilde seems to argue this with the use of values in his characters, The Duchess of Berwick, Lord Darlington and Lady Windermere. They speak strongly, genuinely, and resolutely. From the communication of such qualities, the personnas portray an almost herofication of gender roles as they engage in politics of man vs. woman, or - if you will - woman vs. man.

Publicized today, yet just as existent as earlier years, is the stereotypical female chauvinist. The assumption that men are liars, possessing of ulterior motives and underminers of women is made apparent within the Duchess of Berwick’s characterization of values. The Duchess scolds Lord Darlington, dictating, “ I won’t let you know my daughter, you are far too wicked”. The audience is later informed that this woman has developed her opinion on what she has heard from others, rather than what she has personally witnessed. She warns her daughter not to “believe a word he says” - a preconceived notion that the man is a liar. In reality, the Duchess of Berwick does not bare the onus of evidence effectively, as she applies her own universal understanding of men in general, to Lord Darlington in specific. In addition, she only further emphasizes her hostility towards men when she asserts, “Oh, men don't matter. With women it is different. We're good.” This is the very essence that underlines inequality. Referring to women as “different” and “good” implies that men are, in fact, the opposite of good.

It becomes visible from this woman’s interpretation of men, that she is held under past assumptions, biased opinions from perhaps personal experience. This is the case for, even today, many women.

The Duchess perpetuates and projects feminine superiority, however she does address, perhaps, the core of her bitterness; this time, with reason. She continues by revealing “we (women) are positively getting elbowed into the corner. Our husbands would really forget our existence if we didn't nag at them from time to time, just to remind them that we have a perfect legal right to do so”. In particular, the phrase “elbowed in the corner” connotes a powerless, lonesome, and forgotten feeling that women - especially in that time period - assumed in their societal role. A line from Martin Luther King Jr.’s �I Have a Dream Speech’ uses similar language. Specifically, King uses the phrase “languishing in the corners” to communicate the downtrodden state of his people. Similarly, being “elbowed in the corner”, as the Duchess argues, connects to the same powerless, unequal and unimportant status assumed. She makes use of the words “right to do so” as it represents her acknowledgment of a woman’s sense of entitlement. We can therefore point out that by assuming a female chauvinistic attitude, it is her way of claiming power. Even today, many women today fall under this complex. They build up the facade of superiority only to act as a shield against the men they assume are all the same.

Quite, contrastingly, Lord Darlington depicts an interpretation of the loose values of man. He argues that in “marriage - a game - by the way, that is going out of fashion - the wives hold all the honours.” The distinction and comparison he evokes - calling marriage a game - deprives it of its sacredness and purity of union. The word �game’ connotes; competition and a sense of battlement. Competition leaves, in most cases, only one winner, meaning a superior. This only underlines an inequality within genders. A game illicits feelings of amusement, scheming, and recreation.