Jean: “Miss Julie has a great deal of pride about some things–but not enough about others! Just like her mother in her lifetime; she thrived best in the kitchen or the stable.” (pg 3)
Julie: “But I should not do it, mark you, for there is a difference between us.” (pg 32)
These two quotes both perfectly demonstrate Strindberg’s idea about woman. Strindberg feels that woman are inferior to men and even though they try to be equal to men, society will not allow them to be. The first quote by Jean shows the reader what Jean thinks about woman. Jean in this quote, like Strindberg, is saying how woman are best in the kitchen and the stable. By this he means that even though women may think they are good at something, they really aren’t because they should be doing domestic chores like being in the kitchen. The second quote by Julie shows that she recognizes the differences between men and women. Even though it is optimal to believe that men and women are equal, in reality they aren’t always treated that way. In the eyes of the author, men are always superior than women regardless of what women think. Even though women may think they are equal, they really aren’t. Julie in this quote is accepting this difference between her and Jean because Jean is a male and Julie is a female. Both of these quotes back up Strindberg’s notion that there is a big difference between men and women, in the men’s favor. I think that Strindberg says “half woman” he means that one woman is only equivalent to half a man. I think half woman means that woman only have half the say of men, and in general are only worth half of a person.
1 response so far ↓
j.yusufova // Mar 18th 2016 at 11:45 pm
Reply to f.falconite,
I found your intepretation very interesting and I agree that Strindberg’s notion of this big difference between men and women is shown through Julie’s action. Because of her mother she learns how to have such a distinction from the men in her life. Although it seems like this makes he independent, it is clear that men affect her in many ways. I like the quotes you used especially the quote where jean talks about how prideful she is. This plays into the notion of Strindberg that women attempt to be very prideful.
You must log in to post a comment.