Isabel Allende The Evolution Of A Liberated Women Essay
The Evolution of a Liberated Female Isabel Allende’s novel, Daughter of Fortune is an account of a young female that is forced to confront and overcome her innermost sentiments. Eliza Sommers, Allende’s protagonist of the story, embarks on a quest from her home in Chile to San Francisco; she is demanded to defeat numerous gender obstacles and near death situations. Ultimately, Eliza’s journey symbolizes a woman’s transformation from naïve girlhood to cognizant adulthood while prevailing in a patriarchal society. At this time in South America, feminism was not common; men were, without exception, dominant in these countries. Eliza first encounters the restraints of being a woman in her home. Her adoptive mother, Rose, insists
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This statement distorts Eliza’s understanding of society; she now believes men can, and will control every aspect of her life, including her body. Eliza displays this corrupt feminine definition when she develops sexual feelings for a man named Joaquin. Joaquin epitomizes passion to Eliza. Influenced by her immature zeal, she falls in love with a man who is not in love with her, but rather in love with the idea of socialism. Their “love” affair results in an accidental pregnancy. Joaquin abandons Chile and Eliza for riches in Califonia, and Eliza chases after him. She loses her baby while on the journey to San Francisco. The loss of her baby symbolizes the shedding of her past identity. In California, Eliza decides to embrace a new selfhood - one of a man. She is hopeful and wants to seize new opportunities, yet because of her tainted past, Eliza believes she cannot be free in the new environment unless she espouses a male identity: that of which she feels is the only role in society that is free of restraints. At first, Eliza is aggressive in her pursuit of who she is and what she wants; she soon finds, however, that even though she has accepted a masculine way of life she lacks the physical strength of a man. Discouraged that her gender has again restricted her, she beings to accept that she must define herself as a
This statement distorts Eliza’s understanding of society; she now believes men can, and will control every aspect of her life, including her body. Eliza displays this corrupt feminine definition when she develops sexual feelings for a man named Joaquin. Joaquin epitomizes passion to Eliza. Influenced by her immature zeal, she falls in love with a man who is not in love with her, but rather in love with the idea of socialism. Their “love” affair results in an accidental pregnancy. Joaquin abandons Chile and Eliza for riches in Califonia, and Eliza chases after him. She loses her baby while on the journey to San Francisco. The loss of her baby symbolizes the shedding of her past identity. In California, Eliza decides to embrace a new selfhood - one of a man. She is hopeful and wants to seize new opportunities, yet because of her tainted past, Eliza believes she cannot be free in the new environment unless she espouses a male identity: that of which she feels is the only role in society that is free of restraints. At first, Eliza is aggressive in her pursuit of who she is and what she wants; she soon finds, however, that even though she has accepted a masculine way of life she lacks the physical strength of a man. Discouraged that her gender has again restricted her, she beings to accept that she must define herself as a