[Ttha-potm] gender of persona query

[David Havird]

> I've been wondering about my own comment regarding the masculinity or
> femininity of the persona and thinking in particular about a possible
> suggestion of misogyny in the comparisoon of the sweetly
> seductive 'blink and smile' of the Pleiads at the ethereal hour
> of four and the 'grisly grin of things by day'. In consequence
> of that, could the persona's admiration of the 'blithe uncare' of the
> unseen, scythe-sharpening whistler towards his 'stern stewardship' be
> admiration for an idealised masculinity which the persona feels he fails
> to live up to? 


Intriguing!  My mind turns immediately to FFMC, the curious misogynistic
asides regarding the seductive Bathsheba Everdeen and the ... well, I
wouldn't characterize Gabriel Oak's attitude as "blithe," but "stern
stewardship" fits his life fairly well: I see this man, whose name implies
an "idealised masculinity" (certainly as contrasted with that of Boldwood
and Troy), sharpening those shears.

David

-- 
David Havird
Professor of English
Department of English
Centenary College of Louisiana
Shreveport, LA 71134-1188
http://personal.centenary.edu/~dhavird/
Tel: 318.8695085
Fax: 318.8695411