At a time when women were considered as second-class citizens with very limited social roles and opportunities for life advancement, English writer Charlotte Bronte produced what many experts consider as one of the most radical feminist literary pieces ever written. The context of its writing relative to the content of the novel is what makes Villette a radical literary work. It narrates the life story of Lucy Snowe and how her character develops as she meets new characters. The author used gender ambiguity as means to direct the attention of the reader to the social construction of gender and how this construction prevents both men and women from establishing amiable relationship built on mutual respect and recognition. The main protagonist and the other characters are portrayed as having a certain degree of gender vagueness at one point or another. It can be argued that the use of gender ambiguity is the strategy of Bronte to question the status quo during her time. The double narrative also allows the readers to unite with Lucy and see the story unfold from the viewpoint of the protagonist. It can be argued that this strategy is an effective means of empowerment; the readers are exposed to the alternative views of the society and as they progress with the novel, they also increasingly become value-neutral.
Gender ambiguity is most apparent in the character of Lucy. The novel started with Lucy as a mere 14-year old English girl staying in the residence of Mrs. Bretton. Staying in the same household is the son of Mrs. Bretton named John Graham. Another character is the then eight-year old Polly who visits the Bretton residence frequently because of her affection toward Graham. In the latter chapters of the story, Graham will reappear as Dr.John and he and Polly (who will later acquire the name Paulina Home de Bassompierre) will rekindle their intimate relationship and later will get married. The first instance of gender ambiguity in the character of Lucy is when she was comforting a sobbing little Polly after being “not appreciated” by John Graham. Polly had a crash on Graham even while a little girl. Lucy told Polly that she has to accept her fate as a woman and that her misgiving is a result of the role society attached to being a woman. Evident in this reasoning of Lucy is her early belief that social relationship is mediated by gender and not by other factors.
All throughout the novel, Lucy Snow shows a progression of gender perspective. She started as a young woman who is dependent, unassertive and passive and in all aspects, is conforming to the traditional conception of women. This personality of Lucy is shown during her stay in the residence of crippled woman named Miss Marchmont. She worked as the caregiver of the old lady and during her stint, she felt cherished and relevant. She felt how it is to be a daughter. She is later of the reasoning that being with Miss Marchmont is one of the happiest times of her life as she finally found a home. Her presence also rekindles the hope of Miss Marchmont after previously leaving in severe loneliness because of the passing of her husband. She finds fulfilment and taking care of Lucy like a daughter. The mentality of both Lucy and Miss Marchmont is consistent with what the 19th century society expects from a woman. Lucy finds fulfilment in being a daughter while Miss Marchmont rediscovers her perceived relevance by acting as a mother to Lucy. The situation, however, changed when Miss Marchmont died. However, it can be argued that this part of the story is Bronte’s way of signalling an important transition for the main protagonist. While the death of Miss Marchmont is a great loss, it is also an opportunity for Lucy to be independent and attain empowerment. In essence, the event will pave the way for Lucy to see what is being a woman outside of the traditional social construction of being a woman.
In a series of fortunate events, Lucy left England and travelled to a French-speaking region called Villette. She is able to land a job as the caregiver of the three daughters of Madame Beck. Soon, Madame Beck also employed her as a teacher of English for her boarding school for girls. Lucy experienced culture shock during her early days at the pensionnatt. The personality and approach of Madame Beck is totally different from that of Miss Marchmont. However, Madame Beck also provided her with the opportunity to acquire traits and competencies that will make her autonomous. These skills will be proven to be instrumental in the latter development of Lucy as an educated, empowered, independent and autonomous woman. This elevated social stature caused by the improved self-esteem enabled Lucy to engage with critical skills and composure the male characters in the novel such as Doctor John and Mister Paul. The improved self-esteem allows Lucy to question the perspective of the male characters about women and their roles in the society. Because of her eloquence and firm belief, the characters were convinced and some of their views reconsidered.
More often than not, Lucy portrays both the tendencies of men and women based on social construction. She is portrayed as a cold, firm and mild-mannered woman at times, which is usually a male personality. At times, she becomes highly temperamental, passive and emotional that is characteristic of 19th century women. The gender ambiguity in the character of Lucy is also evident in the way she expresses sympathy towards other characters. She sympathizes with Polly because of her reluctance to accept the sad social reality of women. She believes that women like Polly should be sympathized with primarily because of the struggle of compromising individual happiness in order to conform to social expectation.
In contrast, women like Ginevra Fanshawe do not deserve the sympathy of others. Ginevra is an 18-year old student at the pensionnatt of Madame Beck who frequently hurls derogatory remarks on Lucy. To Lucy, Ginevra does not deserve sympathy for the simple reason that her situation and view on being a woman contradicts her belief that she is in a pitiful condition. It is a usual occurrence that Ginevra will express misgiving about her condition but Lucy is quick to maintain that such negative sentiments are baseless. First, unlike Polly, Ginevra fully accept the social construction of being a woman. Her concept of woman achievement is that of being able to attract men and “break their hearts.” She also believes that the worth of a woman is defined by her physical attributes. Because of this belief, Ginevra considers Lucy as of lowly status because she is neither beautiful nor worthy of respect.
Moreover, gender ambiguity is also evident in the other characters in the novel such as Madame Beck and Dr. John. Madame Beck often asserts that she is not the conventional women. She is neither passive nor uncritical. She is self-directed, astute and focused. While her approach was earlier perceived as cruel by Lucy, she later realized that this personality and perspective can propel her career and make her worthy of social recognition. Eventually, she was able to adopt the personality of Madame Beck. The first instance of this character progression is during the first day of Lucy as an English teacher. Aware that she is being watched by Madame Beck, Lucy asserts her authority over the students even portraying strong personality and hostile attitude. She summoned unruly students and imposed stringent measures so she could earn their respect.
However, there is something wrong in this perspective. By assuming the personality and perspective that are traditionally possessed by men, Madame Beck and Lucy are not different from Ginevra. They also define achievement based on how societies define achievements by men. They believe that the only means of empowering is by showing the same personality and viewpoints as men. By having this mentality, it can be argued that they are also reinforcing the superior status of men in the society. Not only do this personality and perspective reinforce the superiority of men; it also perpetuates it. This adoption of Lucy and Madame Beck of male traits and outlook is likely to also be emulated by the students in the pensionnatt.
The most glaring scene where gender ambiguity was directly revealed by the author is in the chapter “The Hotel Crecy” when Ginevra asked Lucy the question, “Who are you, Miss Snowe?” (Bronte 341). Lucy replied that she could not fit into one category, citing that she has many roles which indicate her complex and fragmented nature. These include the gender orientation of Lucy as will be revealed in the various scenes in the novel. Bronte clearly conceptualized the character of Lucy as someone which cannot be categorized in either of the two poles in the binary of gender.By depicting Lucy as capable of assuming both the identity and roles of a man and a woman at the same time, the author is also saying that it is also true that Lucy is neither man nor woman. What Bronte was attempting to impart using the motif of gender ambiguity is that the binary opposition of gender is being used to prescribe certain norms to people that they need to fulfil to gain social acceptance. A failure to satisfy such social expectations will render an individual deviant and a target of any form of social sanction. It is clear that Bronte is emphasizing that women are the victims in this social arrangement. By dismantling the binary of gender, women are also emancipated from the constraints of the patriarchal society.
In its entirely, Villette is an effective representation of the sad realities facing women and how women can also overcome these realities in order to maximize their potential without fear of social sanctions. The use of gender ambiguity was carefully employed by Bronte. The main goal of using this motif is to bring up the injustices perpetrated against women without further victimizing them. She was careful in assailing the binary of genders without being biased to women at the same time. Gender ambiguity was not also observed in the character of Lucy. Madame Beck also demonstrates gender ambiguity in numerous times when her actions are not in consonance with her gender orientation. She sees women empowerment as the ability to assume male traits and tendencies in order to become acceptable in a patriarchal society.
Work Cited
Brontë, Charlotte. Villette. Broadview Press, 2005.
