A Feminist Study Of Lady Audley’s Secret

Lady Audley’s Secret is the first major work written by Mary Elizabeth Braddon. The novel, published in1862, was popularly received by female readers and became one of the bestsellers in the19th century. As time passed by, however, both Braddon and her works fell into oblivion both by critics and readers. It is not until the20th century when the American feminist Elaine Showalter rediscovered her novels in A Literature of Their Own did Braddon and her works regain attentions from critics and readers. The novel is mainly about a beautiful woman committing bigamy, murder and arson. As a poor woman from the bottom of Victorian society, the heroine, after being deserted by her husband, is forced to escape from home, change her name and commit bigamy in order to live a better life. To maintain her social status and cover up her crime, she tries to get rid of her first husband and murder those who threaten her status. Current studies of this novel are only about female images, lacking a comprehensive feminist interpretation. The thesis conducts a feminist study of the novel within the context of the Victorian culture to examine the ambivalence in its characters and women writing, the living condition of women in the Victorian period, female madness and its cultural critique. Braddon presents in the novel a panorama of Victorian women’s life. In the Victorian era, women are exposed to patriarchal oppression:they are not independent individuals in society and family, either the sexual objects or the subordinate servants for their husbands; their poor financial income leaves them no choice but depending on their husband and family; the discrimination both in employment and education only provides them with tedious and boring jobs; the double standards of social law entitle men with privilege but deprive women of independent existence, being a part of their husband’s legal property after marriage; they do not share the same right with men when it concerns a divorce; social conventions have prejudice against women, the principles of ideal womanhood not promoting the development of women but furthering the oppression of them; the severe punishment for those who deviate from the ideal woman is to confine them in the excuse of madness. Under these oppressions, women characters in the novel show ambivalent images, both the docile image internalizing patriarchal ideology and conforming to patriarchy and the rebel image fighting against it. The ambivalent images of characters also reflect the ambivalent attitudes of the author towards patriarchy, both conforming and rebelling.Combined feminist study and the Victorian cultural study, the thesis explores not only the duality in the characters but also the ambivalence in the author with view to Victorian culture in Lady Audley’s Secret. It is hoped that this paper will enrich feminist and cultural study of Braddon’s works. There are five chapters in the thesis:Chapter one introduces Braddon and her novel Lady Audley’s Secret, gives a brief survey of Braddon studies at home and abroad, and states related critic theories and the purpose and significance of the thesis.Chapter two analyzes the ambivalence in characters and women writing, presents double images of women characters, both docile conformist and passionate rebel, and dual attitudes from men characters towards women, both cruel persecution and understanding. It also points out women writer’s duality in Victorian culture.Chapter three starts from the analysis of women’s living condition in Victorian society, explores the subservient status of women in society and family, analyzes the situation in economy and education, and studies the restriction and influence of law and social conventions.Chapter four analyzes female madness in the context of Victorian culture, studies its definition and punishment of madness in patriarchy, and reveals that the nature of madness is both the product of patriarchal oppression over the development of women and women’s subversion.Chapter five summarizes the main ideas of the previous four chapters and the features of Braddon’s works, comments on both advantages and limitation of this novel.