A language of signs : obtaining power in Elizabeth Inchbald's A simple story
- UNCW Author/Contributor (non-UNCW co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Gena B. Walker (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW )
- Web Site: http://library.uncw.edu/
- Advisor
- Katherine Montwieler
Abstract: Elizabeth Inchbald’s A Simple Story (1791) is a groundbreaking novel that makes a
complicated argument concerning feminine power and the possibility of undermining masculine
authority. Inchbald, a trained dramatist and actress, uses her knowledge of theatrical gesture to
demonstrate how eighteenth-century women could obtain a significant level of power by using
their bodies as communicative instruments. The female characters in the novel forge an
authentic feminine language for themselves through the performance of emotion and force their
male counterparts to communicate with them in a discourse the women control. By impelling
the male characters to use their system of language, the female characters forward their own
desires and obtain a significant level of power and autonomy, thus, usurping the patriarchal
system to a notable extent.
A language of signs : obtaining power in Elizabeth Inchbald's A simple story
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Created on 1/1/2009
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Thesis
- A Thesis Submitted to the University of North Carolina Wilmington in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of English
- Language: English
- Date: 2009
- Keywords
- Inchbald Mrs. 1753-1821 A simple story -- Criticism and interpretation
- Subjects
- Inchbald, Mrs., 1753-1821. A simple story -- Criticism and interpretation