속박된 여성으로부터 벗어나기:『평생 족쇄에 채워져』를 중심으로

초록

This paper examines how Lillie Devereux Blake, 19th-Century American activist and writer, attempts to deconstruct the constructed images of womanhood of her day in Fettered for Life (1874). Paralleling woman’s oppressed status to the “fettered” state of slaves, Blake explores woman’s possibility for freeing herself from the bondage of womanhood. Blake depicts a panoramic version of women’s “fettered” lives across class differences. Blake shows how women are subject to a constructed image of womanhood in the lives of Flora Livingston and Henrietta Winthrop, among others, who lead a socially-prescribed woman’s life. In contrast to these cases, Blake presents an alternative image of womanhood by creating Laura Stanley, who endeavors to make her own living and to make her voice heard. In addition, Blake makes a trenchant critique of stereotyped images of womanhood by creating Frank Heywood, who strategically crossdresses and works as a journalist in the public sphere, and Cornelia D’Arcy, who chooses to be a female doctor and an active participant in the women’s rights movement. Despite the ambiguous ending of Laura’s impending marriage and the unavoidable limitations of Frank’s crossdressing, Blake advocates the need for feminist activism and women’s suffrage in Fettered for Life, by presenting a multi-faceted view of the woman question, and making a strong case for ways to reform the status quo.

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