Women in world literature have gone through a noticeable transformation. From the loyal Penelope to the not-so-beautiful Jane Eyre, they have come to a point where they can no longer be taken for granted as the ‘weaker sex’
IN critics’ opinion, the journey of the ‘heroine’ in world literature begins from biblical times. Biblical figures such as Eve, Virgin Mary, Esther, Ruth and Jezebel were the first ones to be depicted as heroines. These figures were presented as extremely beautiful, but, in one way or another, inferior to men. It is said that Adam and Eve were not permitted to eat from the tree of knowledge. A serpent persuaded Eve to eat the fruit from the forbidden tree, and she gave some of it to Adam. Thus, they turned into mortals and were exiled from heaven. Eve was made to be known as someone who did not have self-control. This means that women in world literature weren’t shown as powerful characters in the days of yore. From such a beginning, the heroine in international literature has now developed into a completely different creature.
In classical literature, different heroines often pushed certain boundaries to prove a point or to introduce a new idea. One thing that remained unchanged was the social status of such heroines. In this period, they either came from a noble class or were queens or princesses.
Homer and Sophocles, two renowned writers of the classical era, display their heroines in quite a different manner. Homer’s epic poems, The Odyssey and Iliad contain two famous female characters, Penelope and Helen. To elucidate our discussion, here we can draw some parallells between the two heroines. They are both very beautiful, hail from high society, and are loved by men.
In our discussion, beauty, so far, seems to be a recurring trait in female protagonists. Penelope is presented as a woman who is optimistic. She waits for Odysseus for 20 years and does not betray him. However, Penelope and Helen are both treated like “possessions”. Helen of Troy is kidnapped; and Penelope’s suitors give the impression as if she’s a trophy that they are fighting to get their hands on. These heroines don’t appear to have much control over their lives.
One other writer of classical times was Sophocles. In his play, King Oedipus, the heroine, Antigone, is depicted as a strong woman. And this is where the transformation in women characters began taking place in world literature.
Antigone is very different from the weak and helpless Penelope. She is a headstrong woman, who is determined to fight for what she believes in and defies the king. This kind of courageousness was a rarity at the time the play was penned.
Here, a paradox between Penelope and Antigone can be noticed. We can assume that the authors now wanted to bring new ideas into literature. For this reason, we can infer that Sophocles wrote about a heroine who was bold at a time when women didn’t have the courage to voice their opinions. However, he also showed the consequences of her disobedience. Sophocles was not necessarily trying to show that women standing up for what they believed in was a great thing, but the character he created, Antigone, was/is truly heroic.
The next stop of a heroine’s journey in literature is the middle ages. Feudalism and the code of chivalry were taking new forms in Europe during the middle ages. For this reason, literature written in this era reflects feudal ideas. One of these ideas, knights trying to woo their beloved ladies, is a common theme that can be found in literature written in the middle ages. These women that the knights expressed their undying love to were often displayed as being guilty of infidelity. In this respect, one particular example is that of Guinevere from Lancelot. She is the love of one of King Arthur’s knights, Lancelot. He is completely devoted to her and she takes unfaithfulness to the limit and marries someone else.
The heroines of mediaeval times, like those of classical times, were often thought of as trophies for knights to show off. They too were extremely beautiful and hailed from high society. The problems they faced were very similar to the problems that women of classical times confronted. They couldn’t have their own opinions and many a time were ruled by men in their lives.
Some characteristics of heroines carried on to the next age, the Renaissance. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that in most cases women have been treated shabbily in both English and Urdu literature. To be more specific, it can be said that they have been portrayed more as a commodity or pleasure-giving sex-objects and less as living, breathing individuals who also have feelings and emotions. In this regard, one potent example that springs to mind is of Shakespearean plays.
William Shakespeare is second to none. It would be an understatement if one said that he’s an unparalleled writer, the man who created a number of diversified characters. But when it comes to portraying women, he is no different. In fact, in some ways he even surpasses his contemporaries and treats women quite contemptuously. Be it Desdemona, Cleopatra, Viola or the more stereotypical Ophelia and Cordelia, he portrays them with equal disdain and a kind of indifference that is pretty questionable. Even in his more romantic plays, he treats womenfolk very mercilessly and seems to have no sympathy for them. Mentioning Shakespeare’s treatment of women would be incomplete without discussing one of his comedies Twelfth Night. It is one play that created a ripple in the world of theatre in the 16th century, and is still considered a cogent example of Shakespeare’s misogynistic behaviour. The drama with its confused identities and strange kind of comedy ends in a strange manner, leaving the reader wonder what was the play about. Women, to Shakespeare, are essential commodities without whom men cannot live; but they never have identities of their own. Every relationship they are involved in and every feeling they have is related to patriarchy. They are created to facilitate the existence of men and are never taken seriously as individuals who have their own minds. To give verity to the observation, the oft-quoted line from Hamlet, “Frailty thy name is woman,” would suffice.
William Shakespeare wrote many plays in the first decade of the 17th century that contained some strong female characters. Two of them are Juliet, from Romeo and Juliet, and Imogen from Cymbeline. Both characters introduced a new kind of heroine: she stands up for what she believes in. Both characters fight for true love. However, they have very little independence, like most noble women living during the Renaissance. Their fathers choose who their husbands will be and they are given little or no say in making their own decisions. The concept that a heroine must be beautiful and should be from a noble class seems to still exist in Renaissance literature. Imogen is the daughter of a king, and Juliet is from an aristocratic family. Both are astonishingly beautiful. Imogen displays strong emotions, sharp wit and courageous spirit throughout the play. Though she is beset by a series of misfortunes, she is determined to fight for her happiness.
Juliet has very similar traits. Unlike the heroines from previous times, she exhibits strong passion and emotion just like Imogen. She defies her parents for what she believes in. This is the beginning of a new kind of heroine that we see in the Renaissance.
Thomas Hardy, who is otherwise famous for his pathetic themes and fatalism, leaves Shakespeare behind when it comes to developing demeaning women characters. He leaves no stone unturned to show frailty of women and their inability to muster up strength. Selfish Eustacia, selfless Abigail, the victim of circumstances Tess, and arrogant Arabella suffer from myopia. They cannot look their fate eyeball to eyeball and lack the guts and courage to rethink what has gone with wrong their lives. Almost all women characters of Hardy are delicate, fragile ladies who are dependent on their male counterparts to pull them out of a calamity, natural or man-made. If they throw themselves into trouble, like Arabella, they can never accept their mistake and do anything to get out of a torrid situation. They silently moan and groan, but every time the solution to the problem, even in hindsight, comes from male characters, because women lack experience and sagacity.
The 18th and 19th centuries mark a quick and very interesting change to the portrayal of women characters in literature. This is probably because of the fact that more women writers started contributing to literature at the time. In this regard, the two novels that instantly come to mind are Jane Eyre and The Little Women by Charlotte Bronte and Louisa Mary Alcott.
In the 19th century, Bronte did something very daring. The heroine she presented, Jane, was not “beautiful”. Up until the first half of the 19th century, most readers took for granted that the heroines in novels were supposed to be beautiful. Instead, Jane Eyre is a small, plain, mousy looking young woman. Not only that, she never blossoms into a beautiful woman. Jo isn’t hideous looking, but she is definitely no beauty queen.
These days, the woman in literature is a different species. She is no longer the dummy installed to run after the hero or to greet him with open arms when he returns from brave ventures triumphantly. Believe it or not, even contemporary literature contains heroines whose lives do not seem to be in their own hands. A particular story, Shabanu, by Suzanne Fisher Staples, displays its heroine in present-day Pakistan. She runs away in order to escape her marriage to a man that her father picked for her.
Contemporary American literature portrays women as equal to men. They no longer need men’s protection in this cruel world. In She’s Come Undone, by Wally Lamb, Dolores Price, a very unconventional heroine, faces many problems throughout the course of her life. Her father is a violent man who leaves her and her mother, and goes away. Her mother is a crazy woman who is admitted to a mental hospital. Her custody is granted to her grandmother, where, as a young girl, she is hurt and betrayed by a man she once trusted. As she grows into a woman, she loses self-respect and starts putting on weight. Determined to give herself one more chance, she starts to turn things around, accepting what has already happened.
So, with the passage of time, the heroine in world literature has changed a lot. Now, the reader can easily relate to her. She has become less dependent on men, and in many cases has her life in her own hands. Her journey, though, hasn’t yet ended. It will continue and change as long as society takes new shapes.
Women in world literature have gone through a noticeable transformation. From the loyal Penelope to the not-so-beautiful Jane Eyre, they have come to a point where they can no longer be taken for granted as the ‘weaker sex’ 
