English

Hanita Hanim Ismail,Wan Roselezam Wan Yahya,Forough Barani

doi:10.17576/gema-2017-1701-09

Abstract

Samuel Richardson's Pamela (1740) discusses the tribulation of a lady servant and her triumphs against the vicious young master while both Daniel Defoe's Moll Flanders (1724) and Roxana (1744) present the distress of two low-class women in the eighteenth-century man’s world with great drive to champion for good fortune. All three novels are clear discussions of eighteenth-century femininity and domestic issues. Yet, the literature review is absent of specific discussions on ideas and types of masculinity during the eighteenth century, particularly its power operationalization. Hence, this paper aims to associate the operationalization of masculine power and the presence of heterotopias, which is linked heavily to the period’s emphasis for politeness. The eighteenth-century English politeness, I argue, is instrumental at constructing masculinity and those without are emasculated of their manliness. As such, this paper depends on socio-historical framework as means to trace eighteenth-century masculine power which is enabled by specific heterotopias. Masculine power is firstly analysed through the use Fairclough’s Three-tier Analysis Framework. Then, types of heterotopias are identified and evaluated in order to associate the presence of this variant with the operationalization of masculinity by using Foucault’s heterotopia where this paper shows that certain heterotopias are the enablers of both desired and deviant masculinity. The novelists also pay different focus in urban and rural heterotopias. Finally, characters’ choice for certain heterotopias empowers deviance and desired masculinity. DOI: http://doi.org/10.17576/gema-2017-1701-09

Highlights

Richardson’s Pamela (1740) and Defoe’s Moll Flanders (1724) and Roxana (1744) are the most often studied eighteenth-century novels, either for its generic or functional purpose
Mr Andrews, whose daughter works for Mr B, confronts the aristocrat after his daughter ran away in fear of losing her chastity
All three discourses take place in certain heterotopias – discourse near a bend along a road while discourse in the second home, belonging to Mr B’s family, discourse (ii) in the Dutch Merchant’s home and discourse (iii) in the home of the brothers, it is important to note that each heterotopia occurs within intended selection

Summary

Introduction

Richardson’s Pamela (1740) and Defoe’s Moll Flanders (1724) and Roxana (1744) are the most often studied eighteenth-century novels, either for its generic or functional purpose. While the subject of women’s liberation is approached from different angles, there are critics who explored Roxana and Moll Flanders as invaluable texts that locate women as the Self All these interestingly shape an observation – that there is an apparent neglect (or rarity) of studying men from these novels. Inasmuch, such an observation can be linked to several serious questions on eighteenth-century issues like –Would honour and reputation be visible contingent factors of possessing power in these novels (Foyster, 1996; Dabhiowala, 1996)? Inasmuch, such an observation can be linked to several serious questions on eighteenth-century issues like –Would honour and reputation be visible contingent factors of possessing power in these novels (Foyster, 1996; Dabhiowala, 1996)? Or is power reiterated differently across space (Habermas, 1991)? Are female characters in these novels expected to behave differently in the conceptualisation of honour and reputation (Foyster, 1996)? What about the question of a servant’s right to take leave (Tadmor, 1996; Vickery, 2008)? Yet, what is common about the three novels is the apparent misuse of power which the men exhibit, calling upon further investigation

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