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Contradiction of Ideas in George Bernard Shaw's Mrs Warren's

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Contradiction of Ideas in George Bernard Shaw's Mrs Warren's Contradiction of Ideas in George Bernard Shaw’s Mrs Warren’s Profession Rendriyanto Setiawan 1213009037 Abstract Mrs Warren’s Profession categorized as play unpleasant by its author George Bernard Shaw, is one of world most famous and controversial plays. The play, unlike other play during its era, uses the corruption and hypocrisy from the upper class of Victorian Era society as the theme. The play is purposed by the author as a scathing criticism to its theme. This purpose is materialized on the ideas represented by the two major female characters in the play. Uniquely, these ideas differs greatly to one on another until it looks like a there is decent contradiction on it. From this point, this paper aims at finding out ideas represented by the two major female characters. There are two major female characters being analyzed, Vivie Warren, a Cambridge graduate and Mrs Warren, both Vivie Warren’s estranged mother and a brothel owner. The finding of the major female characters ideas takes lengthy but worthful steps. The writer first has to read the script of the play five times. The first and second one are to know the overall of the drama and take notes of interesting things on the play. When the writer does those two steps above he also selects the narrations and dialogs in the play are related to the topics and also reads and analyzes other books and sources related to the topics of the thesis. Those steps above are essential to gather data that will be used to reveal setting, characters, plot and, theme of the play in order to do the analysis. He later read the play three more times to group the topics on the play, categorizes the idea of the major female characters and make sure all ideas are on its correct place. Keywords: contradiction, ideas, Mrs. Warren’s Profession Introduction There are many kinds of art but they can be classified into three subdivisions. They are visual arts, literary arts and performing arts. One of the most famous arts is literary arts or famously called as literature. Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs (1989) state that literature refers to either written or spoken composition that is designed to tell stories, dramatize situation, interest, entertain, stimulate, broaden, and ennoble readers. From the previous statement it can be 1 said that literature has broad benefits and trademark. Mainly literature is designed to entertain and amuse people that have a contact with literature. However, their benefits do not stop and stuck only solely into that one. Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs again state that literature also helps people to grow in the same time both personally and intellectually. Intellectually, literature helps people connect themselves to the broader cultural, philosophic and religious world which people become part of. In personal way because literature deals with issues, problems and themes that live within the society it enables people to develop a perspective on the events around them. On later stage people who are exposed to these revelations in turn make a new great deal of impact in the society. People will make creation and distribution of new ideas, thought, perspectives and philosophical way into to the society. One of the most famous literature genres is drama. Drama is most likely the closest literature branch with people. Dr. Samuel Johnson stated that stated that a novel or story must indeed “true to life”; through humor, fable, and so on. Moreover than that, people sense of what is “true to life” can be modified and enlarged by people experience of the work of literature itself. (as cited in Liliana, 2003). In the world of drama, there are not many drama that can fulfill those characteristics above. One of them is Mrs Warren’s Profession. Mrs Warren’s Profession takes the opposite theme from play or drama that George Bernard Shaw creates later. Sosialist Chinese philosopher Du Yang states that Mrs Warren’s Profession boldly exposes shameless degradation as the product oppression from capitalist system (as cited in Crawford, 2003, 160). The author, George Bernard Shaw in the preface of Mrs Warren’s Profession, The Author’s Apology, stated this practice of oppression unjustly is targeted towards the women by making them deeply plunged in poverty while the upper class enjoys prosperity from this oppression (Shaw, 2009, p.10). He further stated that every man and woman present will know that as long as poverty makes virtue hideous and the bribery of the rich makes vice dazzling, their daily hand-to-hand fight against prostitution with prayer and persuasion, shelters and scanty alms, will be a losing one. He later stated that it is no defense of an immoral life to say that the alternative offered by society collectively to poor women is a miserable life, starved, overworked, fetid, ailing, and ugly. The man who cannot see that starvation, overwork, dirt, and disease are as anti-social as prostitution—that they are the vices and crimes of a nation, and not merely its misfortunes. He proclaimed that Mrs Warren’s Profession simply affirmed that Mrs Warren’s Profession is a play for women. Lastly, he proposed via the play for women to stop become Victorian Women, 2 women who lived in accordance to the social convention of Victorian Era and starts to live as New Woman, woman who is independent, strong, skillful and equal with men. Before we go to our analysis it is best to know better about what Victorian Women and New Woman. Victorian Women In Victorian Era, marriage was possibly one of the most significant points in a woman’s life. The majority of women did not have the option not to marry because it was simply a necessity for survival. It happened because society prevented women from making their own living, so there was an inescapable dependence upon men’s income. It is expected also for women from middle social class to marry men from the upper social class. It happened in order to give them more respect: “Barred by law and custom from entering trades and professions by which they could support themselves, and restricted in the possession of property, woman had only one means of livelihood, that of marriage” (Kent 86). Secondly, to be even considered as a potential wife, women had to be not only virgins, but were expected to remain innocent and “free from any thought of love or sexuality” until after they had received a proposal (Kane 97). After a woman married, her rights, her property, and even her identity almost ceased to exist. By law she was under the complete and total supervision of her husband: thus through marriage, husband and wife became one person; whatever view he presented was the unquestionable truth (Perkin 73). New Woman New Woman was a feminist ideal that emerged in the late 19th century and had a significant influence on feminism well into the twentieth. The term “New Woman” was coined by the writer and public speaker Sarah Grand in 1894 (271). It soon became a popular catch- phrase in newspapers and books. The New Woman, a significant cultural icon of the fin de siècle, French terms for end of the century departed from the stereotypical Victorian woman. She was intelligent, educated, emancipated, independent and self-supporting. The New Women were not only middle-class female radicals, but also factory and office workers. The New Woman pushed the limits set by patriarchal and male-dominated society. 3 Ideas of the Female Major Characters There are two major female characters analyzed in this research, Vivie Warren, a Cambridge graduate and her estranged mother and chain of brothel owner, Mrs Warren. An apple will never be far from its tree. Something that is also applied in the case of the two major female characters analyzed in this research. Even though they are have familial relationship both of them also have their own ideas which are represented through their opinion about certain issues and topics that rose throughout the whole of the drama and we will try to find out below. Vivie Warren . Vivie Warren is a 22-year-old Cambridge graduate middle class Englishwoman with distinguished appearance. Personally, she is described to have such an amazing attractiveness among the women on her era even in such a degree which is described by the author of the play as an attractive specimen. It is revealed also throughout the analysis that Vivie Warren adopts the characteristic of New Woman. Vivie Warren is living her life freely and antagonizing the social convention of the Victorian Era. Below is the line that shows Vivie Warren is living her freely VIVIE [striding to the gate and opening it for him] Come in, Mr Praed. [He comes in]. Glad to see you. [She proffers her hand and takes his with a resolute and hearty grip. She is an attractive specimen of the sensible, able, highly-educated young middle-class Englishwoman. Age 22. Prompt, strong, confident, self-possessed. Plain business-like dress, but not dowdy. She wears a chatelaine at her belt, with a fountain pen and a paper knife among its pendants]. PRAED. Very kind of you indeed, Miss Warren. [She shuts the gate with a vigorous slam. He passes in to the middle of the garden, exercising his fingers, which are slightly numbed by her greeting]. Has your mother arrived? VIVIE [quickly, evidently scenting aggression] Is she coming? PRAED [surprised] Didn't you expect us? VIVIE. No. PRAED. Now, goodness me, I hope I've not mistaken the day. That would be just like me, you know.
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