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The roles of men and women have been the same throughout many civilizations over time. The thought that a woman could be as strong and self sufficient as a man is a new and mostly American idea. In Joan of Arc; Her Story a biography of Joan of Arc, by Regine Period, it is shown that the life that she led disproved gender stereotypes and discriminatory behavior towards women. The gender rules of warfare for men and women basically stated that women were to have no part of war.
A womans prerogative was to stay at home and to do what the man told her to do. She could not be affluent because she could not own property. She herself was property of her husband. As a young girl, her manner was that of a typical fifteenth century girl. She was extremely pious, as natural for a woman of that time. She was said to be loved by her village for her good nature.
At age thirteen she began to hear voices of the saints. There are many different theories as to what actually happened ranging from bipolar disorder (mood swings) to bovine tuberculosis. What is more important, however, is what she prophesied. She foresaw many things such as Frances defeat at Orleans, or the real identity of the Dauphin. When she went to him to ask for an army, he disguised himself as a courtier and placed a decoy on the throne.
Joan, who had never seen the Dauphin before, walked up to him in the crowd, and presented herself to him. Later, in private, , she described her visions to him, under the condition that he could not tell anyone else. She was given her Army, and set out to fight the English. Several things about Joan's incident with the King counter stereotypical behavior. A woman would never be admitted to an audience with the king unless she was a relative, or very rarely, a courtier. Joan was neither.
Also, no person gave the King orders, and certainly never commanded him to keep secrets. Joan not only defied stereotypes in her actions, but in her manner as well. She was insurgent and unafraid, whereas most other women and even some men of her time would cower at the battles she fought. She always spoke her true opinion, and was hesitant to do so. It is argued that one main reason for Joan's burning at the stake was because many men felt threatened by a woman who was in an occupation considered exclusive to men. In conclusion, Joan of Arcs manner and actions contrasted prior discriminations and stereotypes towards women.
She was a person who was greatly ahead of her time; a feminist equal to Susan B. Anthony or Elizabeth Cady Stanton. What she did not only helped France to victory, it also led her to become recognized as a Saint more than 500 years later.
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Research essay sample on Joan Of Arc Men And Women
