Since their debut in the nineteenth century, Anna from Tolstoy’s "Anna Karenina", Emma from Flaubert’s "Madame Bovary", and Edna from Chopin’s "The Awakening" have been misunderstood due to a lack of scientific knowledge regarding female physiology and psychology, as well as the climate caused by the patriarchal societies in which the novels are set.
Close readings of the primary texts and an examination of the biological and evolutionary principles in Brizendine’s "The Female Brain" and Yuval Harari’s "Sapiens", as well as previous criticism concerning the characters, reveal the motives behind the characters’ decisions. Contrary to prior criticism, the three protagonists were neither angels nor monsters; they were mere humans, controlled by their physiology and instincts, and constrained by a dictatorial patriarchy, resulting in their deviant actions and their suicides.
Table of Contents
1. The Lives and Deaths of Anna, Emma, and Edna: A Scientific Approach to Anna Karenina, Madame Bovary, and The Awakening
Goal and Themes of the Publication
This paper aims to re-evaluate the tragic fates of the literary protagonists Anna Karenina, Emma Bovary, and Edna Pontellier by moving away from traditional literary criticism that labels them as mentally unstable or socially deviant. Instead, it applies a scientific lens—drawing on evolutionary biology, neuroscience, and sociological context—to argue that these characters were reacting to their own biological nature while being stifled by the rigid constraints of a patriarchal society.
- Biological and hormonal drivers in female behavior and decision-making.
- The impact of nineteenth-century patriarchal repression on independent women.
- Scientific perspectives on infidelity, social isolation, and suicide.
- The role of neurochemistry (dopamine, oxytocin) in romantic attachment and distress.
- Comparative analysis of literary character archetypes under modern scientific scrutiny.
Excerpt from the Book
The Lives and Deaths of Anna, Emma, and Edna: A Scientific Approach to Anna Karenina, Madame Bovary, and The Awakening
Life for the typical woman in a first-world nation in the late nineteenth century was far from idyllic. Women were refused the same rights that men received and were treated like property rather than as independent individuals, and next to nothing was understood of the differences between female and male health and psychology. Naturally, literature reflected society, enhancing and exaggerating the climate of the nineteenth century culture. In the late 1800s, a handful of common themes—infidelity, oppression, and suicide—appeared in literature across the world, represented by Russia’s Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, France’s Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert, and the United States’ The Awakening by Kate Chopin. The novels, each of which were written and published in the mid- to late-nineteenth century, reveal similar images of life, love, and death. Since their debut, Anna, Emma, and Edna have been both condemned and praised for their seemingly outlandish behavior, but incorporating evolutionary, biological, and sociological influences reveals that the women were merely acting upon their own nature, and were thwarted by an oppressive patriarchy, which ultimately lead to their demises.
Since Anna Karenina, Madame Bovary, and The Awakening made their appearance, Anna, Emma, and Edna have been deemed mentally unstable, wildly irresponsible, and, according to some, unfit for the general public. The three fictional women who did not fit into the stereotypical mold of what was considered to be a proper woman were associated with insanity (Jasin, 5-6). It was generally thought that all women should behave much like men, and that if they became too emotional, something must be wrong with them. Prominent nineteenth century physician, S. Weir Mitchell, stated in his book Fat and Blood, which discusses his popular rest-cure treatment primarily employed for “hysterical” women, that people should maintain “the healthy mastery which every human being should retain over her own emotions and wants” (29).
Summary of Chapters
1. The Lives and Deaths of Anna, Emma, and Edna: A Scientific Approach to Anna Karenina, Madame Bovary, and The Awakening: This section introduces the historical and societal framework of the nineteenth century and establishes the thesis that the protagonists' outcomes were products of biology and systemic oppression rather than individual insanity.
Keywords
Anna Karenina, Madame Bovary, The Awakening, Female Physiology, Evolutionary Psychology, Patriarchy, Suicide, Infidelity, Dopamine, Oxytocin, Romantic Attachment, Nineteenth-Century Literature, Mental Health, Social Oppression, Autonomy
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper examines the literary characters Anna Karenina, Emma Bovary, and Edna Pontellier through the lens of modern science, challenging historical interpretations that define their actions and suicides as symptoms of mental illness.
What are the primary thematic fields covered?
The work bridges the gap between literary analysis and scientific inquiry, focusing on evolutionary biology, hormone-driven behavior, and the sociopolitical restrictions placed on women in the nineteenth century.
What is the central research question?
The research seeks to determine whether the deviant actions and suicides of these literary figures were manifestations of insanity or rational responses to biological needs within an oppressive, patriarchal environment.
Which scientific methodology is utilized?
The author employs a scientific, multidisciplinary approach, integrating findings from neuropsychiatry (Dr. Brizendine) and history (Yuval Harari) to re-contextualize the behaviors of female protagonists in fiction.
What aspects of the characters' lives are analyzed in the main body?
The text analyzes the characters' marital dissatisfactions, their instinctual drives toward infidelity, their biochemical responses to romantic attachment, and the devastating impact of societal rejection on their mental well-being.
Which keywords define this work?
Keywords include female physiology, evolutionary psychology, patriarchy, romantic attachment, and literary character analysis.
How does the paper differentiate between the three protagonists?
The paper distinguishes Anna as a character devoted to a single lover, contrary to Emma and Edna, who navigate multiple relationships and stronger desires for independence and selfhood.
Why does the author argue that these women were not "monsters"?
The author argues that they were humans driven by legitimate biological needs and hormones, whose pursuit of fulfillment was unfairly categorized as "hysteria" or "insanity" by the standards of their time.
What role does the "patriarchy" play in their suicides?
The patriarchy is presented as a structural force that denied these women autonomy, equating their rebellion with moral failure and ultimately depriving them of any socially acceptable path to happiness.
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- Natalie Perdue (Autor:in), 2018, The Lives and Deaths of Anna, Emma, and Edna. A Scientific Approach to "Anna Karenina", "Madame Bovary", and "The Awakening", München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1312621
