To me, “A Very Surprising Narrative of a Young Woman, Who Was Discovered in a Cave” was nothing like the stories or "fallen" women that we have been reading. I couldn't have been more relieved to read a story that wasn't so depressing.
Obviously, The Panther Narrative has many differences than many other texts we have read. The first main difference that I noticed was that this woman has confidence, stands up for what she wants, and gets out alive. She's in love with a man that her father doesn't like, so does she obey her father and leave the man? No! She runs away with him! Also, she fights back against the man who wants to sleep with her and cuts off his head! What I thought was interesting was that she isn't even punished for this. She gets rewarded in the end with her father's money.
This story shows change because the woman disobeys her father, runs off with her lover, kills a man, and nothing bad happens to her in the end. Not only is she not killed, but she isn't punished at all. I think this shows how the authors are not teaching anymore with these texts, they are entertaining. In the earlier texts, ministers were using them to teach young women what not to do and what will happen (death and a lifetime in hell) if you do what the "fallen" women did. In The Panther Narrative, the writer doesn't really seem to be teaching anything. The story seems like an adventure narrative used to entertain its readers, especially women.
The Panther Narrative seems like it would attract women readers and give them a source of entertainment, not scare them by threatening their lives. The woman in this story is portrayed as strong, smart and fearless, which is something for other women to look up to. I think this shows how societal views of women as either an evil witch or a pure goddess has changed dramatically.
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4 comments:
Hi, Katie,
I agree that it's very refreshing to see a woman act outside of male authority and not only survive, but be rewarded--by the praises of the men who found her in the cave and by her inheritance. As a survivor in the wilderness, her independent spirit was striking, and it seemed to me that by allowing this character to inherit her father's wealth, the author was opening another door for her to continue living independently. Even back in civilized society, she will not be forced to rely on any male figure to survive financially. How nice to see a female character avoid the rope and instead end up with some hefty purse strings!
I was so happy that this story ended happy too! She totally got away with murder (virtue intact!) and then gets a ton of money! I definitely think that this woman could have been seen as a role model for other young women to follow. While it probably wasn’t advisable to run away from home in the first place, she ended up coming out on top in the end. It didn’t turn out so well for her “lover,” but I guess he had to die for her to take care of herself and show her strength. If he had been there, she couldn’t have done that.
Hey Katie! I totally agree with you about how the Panther Narrative was so different because it only entertained and didn't teach. That's what I found so interesting about the other stories that we read, was that they always had a hidden message from those creepy ministers. I liked, also, how this was a story about a woman who did what she wanted for love, in a sense at least, and it didn't end badly for her at all. It makes me wonder a little bit about whether or not a female wrote the narrative. I guess we'll never know.
Katie, I agree with your assessment that the Panther Narrative was a happier ending. I love this woman's spirit. I also love it that she made her own choices and was willing to pay the cost1 (domesticating her cave had to have been a bit....narley!) I think the relief invovled with this story is that it is simply, entertainment. My kind of reading.
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