"Night and Day" was interesting because it showed a very different world than the one shown in "The Golden Bowl". In "The Golden Bowl", a very traditional idea of marriage and equality was portrayed, (the women were very submissive to their husbands and marriage was for money and a title, not love). Instead, "Night and Day" showed a very different approach, not only on romantic relationships, but on the females' role in society.
In "Night and Day" there are four main characters: Katharine Hilbery, Ralph Denham, Mary Datchet and William Rodney. Katharine is an upper class woman who is initially engaged to William, but calls off her engagement because he seems more interested in her cousin than her. At the time, for someone, especially a woman, to call off their engagement because of love. While there were definitely people who married for love, most marriages revolved around money or "gaining" something, so this was a refreshing change of pace.
Mary Datchet is a truly interesting character because of her rather unsuccessful love life and colorful personal life. It was typically believed at the time, (not to generalize) that an unmarried woman was a little... off, for lack of better words. What makes her even more interesting is the fact that worked for an organization for the enactment of women's suffrage, (giving women the right to vote etc). Mary was a very strong, out-spoken female, a rarity at the time.
"Night and Day" was a true story about the advancement in women's rights, something that was so frowned upon at the time. It demonstrated the changing of social norms and that love and marriage can, (and should) go together. I found it to be a pleasant change of pace from "The Golden Bowl" which showed what really was "normal" back in early 20th century London. I think that this book proves that with a combined effort, social norms can be changed for the better, and that all it takes is a joint effort.
No comments:
Post a Comment