Charlotte Brontë's novel, “Shirley” was written in 1849. Although this novel is secondary in both quality and popularity, addresses many social issues and dilemmas of Bronte's time period, such as business, religion, and most importantly, the gender inequality that women faced throughout the Victorian period. Most of this story is about two women, Shirley Keeldar, the protagonist, and Caroline Helstone, another very important character. These two women come from very different backgrounds and social positions, yet this is what brings them into deep conversations about 19th century social issues. In Charlotte Brontë's feminist piece, “Shirley,” the conversations between the characters, the development of the main character, Shirly Keeldar, and the time period in which the novel was published all contribute to creating Brontë's feminist work. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay “Shirley” is a novel that seeks to promote and express what 19th century women endure and go through socially. This novel does not undermine women's issues, but instead exemplifies them and expresses how things must change for not only women's livelihood to increase, but for the betterment of society as a whole. A quote that exemplifies this theory is found on page 164: “If men could see us as we really are, they would be a little astonished; but the smartest, most acute men often delude themselves about women: they do not read them in the right light: they misunderstand them, both for better and for worse: their good woman is a strange thing, half doll and half angel; their evil woman is almost always a demon” (Brontë 164). This quote is powerful because it shows that how men view women affects everything. It conveys that when men take the time to see women for who they truly are they would be amazed, but men viewed women as excessively good but lacking in substance or skill. This is also shown in the numerous conversations that Shirley and Caroline have throughout the sprawling novel. Caroline is a rather poor woman, raised by a male figure, her uncle. On the opposite spectrum, Shirley is a woman who has been bequeathed a fortune and an entire company. She is independent and has the economic ability and social position to live like this, while Caroline is forced to depend on her uncle. These two very different upbringings are expressed in the way they live and also in the way they see their lives as women. The different points of view are shown through this short conversation that takes place on page 171, “'Caroline,' Miss Keeldar suddenly asked, 'wouldn't you like to have a profession – a trade?' «I wish it fifty times a day. As it is, I often wonder what I came into this world to do. I long to have something engaging and obligatory to fill my head and hands and occupy my thoughts.' '[….] But hard work and cultured professions, they say, make women masculine, coarse, unfeminine.'” (171). This conversation directly addresses how women felt and were perceived in the 19th century. Also conveying how society viewed women who had ambitions and pursued the profession they desired, as “masculine” and “uncouth.” To pursue a career or perform a task that involved hard work, women almost had to give up their femininity. This theme and idea appears continually throughout the novel that women are not seen for who they truly are but only for what menthey wish they were and instead of pursuing individual careers and goals, women seek to marry and “woo” a man. A second aspect that demonstrates that it is a feminist novel is the protagonist herself, Shirley. Many critics feel that Bronte did not involve the main character enough in the story but her character, Shirley, still exuded many feminist views and barriers that women of that time period faced. Shirley's background and upbringing allowed her to break the standards society had set for women. For example, she grew up in a very wealthy family, who hoped to have a child to carry on the family name and receive their estates after their death, however, after eight years of marriage they realized that Shirley was everything they wanted. could bear, and they decided to give her the same rights they would have for a child. This was a transitional time in Shirley's life, because much of the Victorian era was focused on gender separation and social class, which meant that women often had to become wives of a wealthy husband to achieve social standing and achieve economic stability. However, Shirley did not need a husband to become economically stable or rise in social class because she owned property of her own in a society where women traditionally could not receive without a husband. However, despite financial stability and his possessions, pursuing a career was still against social standards, and he began to reflect on his life realizing this in his thought process on page 293: “'I feel like there's something wrong somewhere. I believe that single women should have more to do – better chances of interesting and profitable employment than they have now [….] Look at the numerous families of girls in this neighborhood […] the brothers of these girls are all over the world of business or professions; they have something to do. Their sisters have no earthly work but housework and needlework, no earthly pleasure but an idle visit, and no hope, in all their life to come, of anything better. This stagnant state of affairs makes their health worse. They are never well, and their minds and views are reduced to a marvelous narrowness'” (293). With these thoughts, she began to criticize society itself, both men and women, conveying that it is degrading to women that the only respectable position a woman can obtain is that of a wife. And on the other hand, that women degrade themselves by using methods to snare and trap their husbands, “'The great desire, the sole purpose of each of them is to get married, the majority will never get married; they will die as they live now. They plot, plot, dress to ensnare their husbands. The gentleman ridicules them; they don't want them; they keep them very cheap'” (294). In this quote he once again points to the fact that men do not see the value of women, as expressed in the first quote, and also how women degrade themselves by pursuing only the materials and skills that make them worthy supporters of their wife, and yet not they do it. pursue talents or characteristics that benefit them in life and make them people of value, not just women who simply look for and fight for a husband. Charlotte Brontë focuses on this theme and expands on it throughout her novel, encouraging women to be more independent, pursue professions, and break the social expectations and restrictions placed on women in the Victorian period. To express and show this in a relatable way, Brontë creates her main character Shirley, who faces social ridicule and comespursued by many suitors, because the company believes that she should not live alone or run her own business. ; nevertheless she does it, and succeeds, sending the message to society that women can still be feminine and desirable while pursuing professions and dreams of their own. Finally, as previously mentioned, the time period in which the author of “Shirley” lived also influenced the production of this novel and helped shape it into the feminist novel it is to this day. Charlotte Brontë, for example, was a middle-class citizen, so although she grew up in a wealthy family, she still had to earn a living if she didn't marry, and the only option for women was to be a governess or governess. a housewife during the Victorian era, then became a housekeeper. This led to her career as a writer and increased her love for it, and although she was very much against marriage and violently opposed and rejected a proposal from Rev. Nicholls, eventually, due to social pressures, her opposition to marriage became he weakened and although she claimed not to love him, they married in 1854. This was also another issue faced by the Victorian period: marrying for social reasons or financial stability, rather than for love. Marriage was logical and almost a necessity for women if they wanted to thrive in life and make a difference in the world around them. For this reason, Brontë's works often featured independent women and women who married for love, two areas much frowned upon in the 19th century, and although she was unable to advocate for women's rights outside of her writings, she was able to address the issue of gender inequality directly in this novel and showed the flaws in the thinking of the society she lived in. “Shirley,” when taken as a whole, is a feminist work and forces readers to think about social standards and gender differences. It allows readers to see not only the flaws of Bronte's period but also of their own time period. It pushes readers to realize not only that changes need to occur, but also that thought without action does not lead to reform. The protagonist, Shirley, has been fortunate to lead a life where she has had the ability to live independently and has done so while acting with the grace and class of a true woman. Yet, in the end, Shirley still marries Louis. This expresses how marriage is not wrong or weak, but instead considers the idea that when women become dependent on it and this is their sole purpose in life, that is when women degrade themselves and make themselves seen as inferior. Shirley marries a man outside her social class and for love, and her friend Caroline also marries for love, and a man outside her class, Robert. This shows that women can still marry, but not only to increase and elevate social and financial position, but for love, and furthermore, women can marry outside of social position. This is revolutionary and gives women value and purpose because they no longer marry to survive but for fun and love. Ultimately, this expresses how women should not be dependent on men but are instead responsible and able to control their own livelihood and well-being. In fact, the main idea of ​​the entire novel can be summed up in the main quote mentioned in this essay, "'If men could see us as we really are, they would be a little astonished; but the cleverest, keenest men often delude themselves about women: they do not read them in the right light: they misunderstand them, both for better and for worse: their good woman is a strange thing, half doll and half angel; their bad woman is almost always a demon'” (164) .. 2017.