ENG353Y1 Lecture : Anne of Green Gables 1
Document Summary
19thc values, but also 20thc values-point of transition, particularly in politics and feminist traditions. Gender: seems to support idea of new woman, first way feminist woman, especially in the way anne is portrayed, as a rebellious figure. Avonlea seems to be a matriarchal figure, offering rebellious figure in anne, but also reinforcing gender boundaries. Sexuality and gender roles often go hand in hand. To be a good girl, one had to be heterosexual. However, critics have seen homoeroticism explored through anne and diana, but the novel ultimately dismisses it. Reinforcement of heterosexuality is inevitable b/c of the times. Depiction of canada as a nation continuously associated w/ england, as integral to the definition of identity. Motherhood in the novel closely associated w/ empire-building. To be a mother was to be a good citizen of the empire. Born in p. e. i. in 1784, her mother died when she was 21 months old, and her father left, leaving her a pseudo-orphan.
