Graduation Year
2015
Document Type
Open Access Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
English
Reader 1
Thomas Koenigs
Reader 2
Sarah Raff
Reader 3
Christine Crockett
Terms of Use & License Information
Rights Information
© 2015 Rachel S. Grate
Abstract
In this thesis, I claim that the gaze is central to the courtship process in Austen’s novels. I also propose that an analysis of the gaze is crucial to understanding the gendered power dynamics that are central to these relationships. We tend to think of male gazers as having all the power, but one of Austen’s subversive arguments is that women can also be subjects of the gaze and transform through it. However, limits exist to their power. As I will argue, while men are able to simply project their transformative gaze, women must first use their gaze to perceive their societal position before successfully having a transformative effect.
Recommended Citation
Grate, Rachel S., "Love at First Sight? Jane Austen and the Transformative Male Gaze" (2015). Scripps Senior Theses. 662.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/662
