The Shift in Power 1650
The recent influx of sexual allegations is a positive development in how power is used in today’s society, and in the direction, society is heading. The involvement of women in the development issues of the 1970s in the United States brought the attention of the U.S policymakers (Ben-Jochannan 83-96). Women challenged the assumptions suggesting that modernization will increase gender equality automatically. The effort of women led to the amendment of Percy in 1973, which required sensitivity of gender for social impact across all development projects (Ben-Jochannan 83-96). The Percy amendment aimed at helping women to integrate into the State economies of their nations. Liberal feminism came out as an emphasis on equal opportunity for all gender. Significant players in different donor agencies come out to encourage imitative changes for development planners to review on planning and development policy bearing women in mind. The discussion of this paper focuses on feminist magnification on how women raised their voices from male domination, leading to the development of the feminist movement. The Yellow Wallpaper and the Nile Valley Civilization, are two discussed concepts that introduce gender and development factors women experience and their emergence. The discussion also provides an explanation of third world people concerning gender relations and men and women experiences in economic, political, and social life. The discussion challenges the simple generalization and characterizations of pre-colonial societies with their rich in difference and diversity that neglect women.
The Yellow Wallpaper
The Yellow Wallpaper is the Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s protagonist that show the struggle of women as they seek freedom of thought. The protagonist is locked in the mental prison of the machination of her husband. From a feminist point of view, it is the commentary on the women’s state in the 1800s, which shows the struggle of the author with the male-dominated society (Gilman 265-265). John, the husband of the protagonist, made this theme clear through his characters, as the writings and thoughts of Jane in the context she is placed, describe women imprisonment and the control of men over women. John is an example used in the text for a dominating spouse, a husband who holds power over his wife. John treats his wife as an inferior, as the wife says that John laughs at her, and in her thoughts, she says that one expects such in marriage (Gilman 265-265). John sees the thoughts and ideas of his wife as laughable, and he does not take any of them seriously until it’s too late for Jane to be rejuvenated from madness. Later, the role of John as a leader and protective husband is reversed when Jane takes control over her thoughts, John becomes like a woman, as he faints like a shocked woman when Jane breaks the hold and become over him. In accepting to take over his husband, Jane reversed the roles of tradition between a wife and husband, the shock of John also reveals further control of his wife over him as he is seen as the woman in the society.
The feminist views expressed by the author are the dialogue and thoughts of Jane. She desired to speak out her ideas and opinions of breaking the most challenging barriers in society. Jane said that she writes for a while despite them, which implies that she felt dressed to the point of expressing herself via writing, the issue which she felt more exhausted from hiding her thoughts from her husband and the society (Gilman 265-265). On one side, Jane felt the pressure of staying under the care of her husband, as she said that her husband takes all the care from her, and she felt ungrateful with no value. Jane is pressured by society to thank her husband and worship him because all responsibilities and control have been taken away from her hands by the husband, making her feel useless and imprisoned. The views of feminist are accentuated through the surrounding thoughts of Jane, as the entire of the setting of the story is about the insanity and scorn from the female protagonist.
The context of Jane is like a prison, she wishes for the walls to be prepared, but her husband refuses. The husband said that after the wallpaper is changed, it will be the heavy bedstead, followed by barred windows, and then the gate at the head of the stairs. As Jane feel repressed by the gates and bars, the husband refuses to change her setting, as he wishes to keep Jane imprisoned. However, the most common use of the environment is to emphasize feminist views that come from the wallpaper itself, “At night in any kind of light, in twilight, candlelight’s, lamplight, and worst of all by moonlight, it becomes bars! The outside pattern I mean, and the woman behind it is as plain as can be.” (Gilman 265-265). The gates and bars from the paper itself represent the psychological prison Jane goes through. All of Jane’s thoughts are entirely devoted to the paper, she is held captive by it, and she is unable to shift her mind from the strange dimensions of paper pattern. All of this connects to the context of a woman trapped behind the paper, which is the mind of the protagonist is not free throughout the story even if she has removed most of the paper. This story is a tool of expressing the feminist views of the author; it illustrated both mental and physical hardship women face in this present period. The actions of John express these ideas together with the thoughts of Jane and the entire setting of the story. Through the description of “Yellow Wallpaper,” Gilman speaks of the psychological struggle and the imprisonment of women by society. In the minds of Gilman, gender roles have to be terminated from the social order for women to have freedom.
The Nile Valley Civilization
The Civilization of Ancient Egypt by Paul Johnson (1978) express how the sexual division of labour did not allow women to participate in the trade or become officials (Ben-Jochannan 83-96). Ancient Egypt’s social organization show stated that inheritance should come from maternal line, men to manage their families and occupy all leadership positions. The Nile was the only source of water that Egypt depended on enabling the hunters and nomads to transform into the agricultural economy as the Nile provided fertile alluvial deposit and enabled transport route. From the feminist view, Egyptian women were locked out of development, not owning anything and subjected to male leadership. In ancient Egyptian society, women afforded high status, as that of the mother recognized the status of the child. Women could become high-ranking priestess, singers, and temple dancers. Peasant women herded livestock, draw water and worked in the fields (Ben-Jochannan 83-96). Women also occupied authority positions such as superintendent at weaving workshop, dining hall manageress, and head of wig workshops. Women health care was important, but women from royal families enjoyed more privilege as they were allowed to own land, houses, servants, and slaves and retain these rights even after marriage. Women were also allowed to inherit properties from their husbands and parents and also adopt children.
From the feminist point of view, women locked out of their freedom of life as they were put to death by their loved ones when they were found unfaithful in marriage. Among the royal families, leadership was dominated by male prerogative through the female line. Kinship passed to the husband of the eldest daughter of the king. It was Queen Hatshepsut who broke the ancient rules by becoming the woman leader through the struggle of succeeding male dominance (Ben-Jochannan 83-96). Queen Hatshepsut and other women rulers intruded their druthers to succeed them, gaining freedom for women leadership. The monarch ruling did not become entirely absolute when Egypt retreated into collectivism of its past regulation proving it ineffective against the persistent external invasion. Eventually, the county was overtaken with new people, religion, and language replacing the ancient civilization. The feminist point of view suggests that gender division for labour and leadership in the society of today is not fixed. The subordination of women and male dominance are not eternal or natural. The change towards more equitable society is possible, the change that could bring potential fulfilment to all human beings, both women and men. In order to change this difficult relations between men and women and implement an equitable society, the systems of subordination and inegalitarianism have to be examined and challenged in the countries and the entire world. Besides, considerations should be placed on the organization of work with the impacts of modern life and work on the environment.
Conclusion
The policy of identity is the common concern in the current debates of feminist development with an increased sensitization on cultural realities and material diversity of everyday life. Feminist development recognizes the need for fundamental revision even if mechanisms to undertake this revision remain elusive on the ground. Women have struggled as evident in the Yellow Wallpaper and the Nile Civilization, and it is time they emerge from male dominance. Power relations hinders the environment in which visions of a perfect world are generated. They also prevent the settings in which framework is produced on routine measures and in which practice and research are undertaken. It does not mean that an attempt should be given to communicating with each other and corporate in establishing a better world, rather global links among the feminist should be increased because practitioners suggest that dialogue is more productive.
In an increasing global but uncertain and unequal world, it is crucial to make an effort of understanding where a group or an individual is coming from, and how they are viewed concerning the specific economic, cultural, and historical environment. Strategy for gender equality is becoming important agendas, engaging in consultation to determine how to intervene in support rather than criticism as the effort to strive women in improving their situation. Reorganizing of underlying assumptions of male dominance and feminist development outline important process to bring social change. By making the assumptions on the underlying goals and visions of feminist development, the invitation to critical dialogue will open up many voices of women and strengthen the potential collective revision on male dominance what will open up equality across all genders.
Works Cited
Ben-Jochannan, Yosef. “The Nile valley civilization and the spread of African culture.” New dimensions in African history (1991): 83-96.
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “Why I wrote The Yellow Wallpaper?.” Advances in psychiatric treatment 17.4 (2011): 265-265.
(Ben-Jochannan 83-96)