This blog is part of blog task given by Professor Megha Trivedi Ma'am.
Blog: Women, Marriage, and Aphra Behn’s The Rover - A Closer Look
Aphra Behn’s The Rover is a fascinating play that explores themes of love, marriage, and freedom, set against the backdrop of a society where women are often expected to follow strict rules and behave in certain ways. Behn, one of the first professional female writers in English literature, used this play to comment on the role of women in her time, and many of her characters challenge the traditional expectations of women. In this blog, we will delve into three important questions that come up from The Rover. These questions help us understand Behn’s views on marriage, women’s rights to express their thoughts, and the women characters that might represent Behn herself.
1) Angellica’s View on Marriage and Prostitution: Is It the Same?
In The Rover, one of the most memorable characters is Angellica Bianca, a beautiful and wealthy courtesan who makes a bold statement about marriage: “What is a marriage but a financial negotiation?” According to Angellica, marriage and prostitution are very similar, because both involve a woman giving something up in exchange for financial or material benefits. Angellica believes that, just like a prostitute sells her body for money, a woman in marriage also sells her independence and freedom in exchange for security, wealth, and status.
Do I agree with Angellica’s view?
To some extent, I do agree with Angellica’s perspective, especially when we think about the historical context of the play. In the 17th century, women had very few options when it came to supporting themselves. Most women couldn’t work for a living and had little control over their own finances. Marrying a man was often the only way to ensure a stable life. In this sense, marriage could be seen as a business transaction, where a woman’s role was to maintain the household and provide heirs, while the man provided financial stability. Angellica, who is a courtesan and uses her beauty to gain wealth, is aware of the transactional nature of relationships between men and women.
For example, we see how Hellena, another important female character in the play, faces pressure from her family to marry for wealth and status. Her brother Don Pedro wants her to marry a man with money and position, not out of love but out of social necessity. Hellena, however, wants to marry for love and passion, as she refuses to settle for a marriage without personal happiness.
However, not all marriages in The Rover are purely transactional. Hellena, unlike Angellica, seeks more than just financial security. She desires true love, even though her family sees marriage primarily as a way to secure her future. This contrast shows that while marriage in the play has financial elements, there is room for emotion and love to play a role in the decisions women make.
Thus, while Angellica’s view about marriage being similar to prostitution holds some truth particularly in the context of women’s limited social roles the play also suggests that love can be an important part of marriage, and not all women view marriage purely as a financial exchange.
2) Virginia Woolf’s Tribute to Aphra Behn: "A Room of One’s Own"
Virginia Woolf, a famous feminist writer, said in A Room of One’s Own, “All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds.” Woolf believed that Behn was a groundbreaking writer who paved the way for other women to become writers and express themselves openly. According to Woolf, Behn was one of the first women to earn a living through her writing, at a time when society didn’t believe that women should have careers or be independent. Woolf thought that Behn’s works, like The Rover, were essential because they gave women a chance to voice their opinions, challenge societal expectations, and write about their own experiences.
Do I agree with Woolf’s statement?
Yes, I completely agree with Woolf’s tribute to Behn. When we look at The Rover, we see how Behn gave her female characters the freedom to think for themselves and make their own decisions. At the time when the play was written, women were expected to stay silent and obedient. They had limited freedom to express their desires or make their own choices. However, Behn’s characters do not follow these traditional expectations. They speak their minds, pursue their desires, and take control of their own lives. Through these characters, Behn showed that women, like men, could have complex emotions, make mistakes, and take risks.
Take Hellena, for example. She is one of the strongest female characters in The Rover. Hellena refuses to settle for a loveless marriage arranged by her brother, Don Pedro. Instead, she makes the bold decision to pursue Willmore, the Rover, even though her family disapproves. Hellena's actions in seeking love on her own terms represent Behn’s belief in a woman’s right to choose her own future, rather than being controlled by others. Her independence is a direct reflection of Behn’s own life and beliefs. Just as Hellena rejects the role of a passive woman in a marriage, Behn also rejected the passive role that society wanted her to play as a woman writer.
Another example is Angellica, the courtesan who uses her beauty and wealth to gain power and influence. While Angellica’s independence comes from her ability to control men with her sexuality, she still represents a kind of freedom. She chooses how to live her life, despite the societal judgment that women like her face. While Behn may not have been a courtesan, she shares Angellica's boldness in making her own choices.
Behn’s portrayal of women like Hellena and Angellica shows how Behn used her writing to give women a voice. In a world where women were often silenced, Behn used her characters to demonstrate that women were just as capable of having their own desires, making their own decisions, and speaking up for themselves.
3) Which Female Character Represents Aphra Behn?
When we look at the female characters in The Rover, it’s clear that each one represents different aspects of Behn’s own personality and beliefs. Behn herself was a woman who lived a life of independence, adventure, and defiance against societal norms. So, it’s interesting to consider which of the characters in The Rover might best represent Behn herself.
Hellena is perhaps the character that most closely represents Behn’s views. Hellena is bold, independent, and refuses to be controlled by society’s expectations of women. She wants to experience love and adventure, rather than simply marry for security. Her determination to pursue Willmore, despite her brother’s wishes, shows that she is not afraid to take charge of her own life. In many ways, Hellena’s pursuit of happiness and independence mirrors Behn’s own life. Behn, like Hellena, was a woman who lived a life full of adventure, challenging traditional roles and doing things that were unexpected of women at the time. Behn’s own experiences such as traveling to foreign lands, working as a spy, and becoming one of the first women to make a living through writing are reflected in Hellena’s independent and adventurous spirit.
On the other hand, Angellica, the courtesan, also represents Behn in some ways. Angellica’s confidence, sexual freedom, and control over men show a different kind of independence. She may not be as free from societal expectations as Hellena, but she still asserts her power over the men around her. Angellica uses her beauty to gain influence and wealth, which reflects the ways women in Behn’s time had to use what they had to survive in a patriarchal society. Although Angellica’s character is more tragic than Hellena’s, her ability to take control of her own life and choices makes her a complex reflection of Behn’s own life.
Florinda, the more traditional character who is focused on love and marriage, represents the conventional view of femininity at the time. She is less independent than Hellena or Angellica and follows her father’s wishes for her marriage. While Florinda is a kind and loving character, she doesn’t show the same rebellious spirit that Behn herself might have identified with.
Conclusion:
Aphra Behn’s The Rover is not just a comedic play about love and relationships; it is also a bold statement on the roles women were expected to play in society. Through characters like Hellena and Angellica, Behn shows that women can be independent, powerful, and assertive. While Angellica’s view of marriage as a financial transaction highlights the social realities of the time, Behn’s other characters, like Hellena, represent a more hopeful vision of love, freedom, and personal choice. Behn’s contribution to literature, as Woolf said, paved the way for future generations of women writers to speak their minds and take control of their own stories. Whether through Hellena’s adventurous spirit or Angellica’s boldness, Behn’s legacy continues to inspire women today to break free from societal expectations and claim their own voices.
References:
Images:
https://betterlivingthroughbeowulf.com/behns-comedy-masks-feminist-protest/
https://www.redbulltheater.com/the-rover-2017
Other references:
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