The most obvious gender stereotype presented to me in the story is the emotional investment that Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters have in the case. This presents a stark contrast to Holmes, who always performs his detection with a high degree of professionalism and an unbiased approach. In particular, Mrs. Hale came into the case knowing the accused very well, and her attachment only grew as the case unraveled. Eventually, their bias leads them to hide evidence that would incriminate their friend. This could be viewed as a perpetuation of the stereotype that women's emotional nature inhibit their ability to be rational.
That being said, their emotional investment doesn't hinder their ability to actually solve the case, only their ability to present it unbiasedly in court. The women actually go into the case with a completely open mind, willing to consider anything and everything as evidence. They are able to think rationally and clearly about the evidence they find, and draw conclusions based on an objective approach rather than on their attachment to their friend. The men, on the other hand, have a very closed view of the case, and think that the "evidence" that the women are considering is silly. Their emotion only comes into play when they hide the bird in order to prevent their friend from being convicted. Their emotion did not hinder their examination of the case, but their sympathy caused them to tamper with evidence, which, depending on your view of the story, could be a positive or negative trait.
Now that you mention it both these stories AND Northanger Abbey was very gender-distinctive. Here are some of the stereotypes I noticed:
ReplyDeleteIn “A Jury of Her Peers,” the women are concerned with traditionally “womanly” items in Mrs. Wright’s house. They worry about her preserves; they notice the untidy kitchen, where things are left unfinished. They examine her quilt and what I assume is her sewing box (counter-stereotypically, I do not, in fact, myself sew). The women are also concerned with the quality of Mrs. Wright’s clothes. So not only do these women sympathize with Mrs. Wright, as Mark said is stereotypical of emotional women, but they also base their assumptions and their sympathy from very feminine duties and items.
Though Mrs. Wright killing her own bird does not coincide with what is overall a very gender-predictable story (and believe me, I am a bit disappointed none of the blog posts were about how she did kill it; I would have liked to comment about the evidence I thought supported that fact, but anyway), if you accept that her husband did kill the bird violently (broken cage door) then that further establishes men as being strong, violent, and overbearing, and also places women – Mrs. Wright – in an inferior position as the victim.
The one anomaly then, is that Mrs. Wright is a murderer. That neither fits the stereotype, nor fits the image of Mrs. Wright (as compared to Mrs. Peters and whoever the other lady was, Mrs. Hale? because I imagine the three are similar).
So amidst all the blatant stereotype, why does the main event not follow that stereotype?