In The Wide Sargasso Sea (1966) by Jean Rhys, there are several instances that include
feminist themes and perspectives through its story and characters such as Antoinette,
Christophine, and Antoinette’s Aunt Cora. However, the novel as a feminist evaluation is a
Patriarchal narrative apparent in Mr Rochester. Patriarchy is a system that oppresses and
restricts women, preventing them from making their own decisions on work, sexuality,
motherhood, or having children. In the novel, the women are at a constant disadvantage.
This Patriarchal narrative is also evident in Antoinette’s mother, Annette, who was extremely
young when she married Antoinette’s father, Mr Cosway. Mr Cosway lived a very debauched
lifestyle before his marriage to Annette and continued to do so after the wedding with no regards
for his wife (Kulkarni, 2018). After Mr Cosway’s death, Annette is left to run her household
alone; however, she and her children are left in poverty resulting in her getting remarried to an
English gentleman in order to provide for herself and her family (Rhys, 1966). This is indicative
of the fact that a woman in that era was completely financially dependent on her husband.
Furthermore, Mr Rochester, who ends up becoming Antoinette’s husband, is the primary
representative and enforcer of the system of patriarchal norms that confines Antoinette both
mentally and physically (Kendrick, 1994). He physically imprisons in an attic above his house
after he has an affair with his servant, Amelie, resulting in Antoinette having a mental
breakdown and going “mad” (Rhys, 1966). Her mental confinement comes in the form of Mr
Rochester gradually changing her Creole identity that he connotes to her madness into
something more English. He starts calling her Bertha and makes her behave in a manner that is
more appropriate for a woman of English high society. Mr Rochester also uses sexual
intercourse as a way of controlling Antoinette/Bertha. He initially regularly engages in sexual
intercourse with her and then later on in their marriage refrains from being sexually active with
her as a way to punish her for not being truthful about the mad streak that runs in the women of
her family (Rackwitsz, n.d.). Another way of controlling Antoinette is financially. Since she is his
wife, he has full control of her estate (Rhys, 1966).
The biggest feminist character in the novel is Christophine who is a black servant at the Coulibri
Estate that Antoinette grew up in. She is a mother to three children from three different men and
yet she is not married to any of the men saying "I thank my God. I keep my money. I don't give
it to no worthless man." (Rhys, 1966, 110). She also encourages Antoinette to take her own
money and to leave Rochester by using herself and her own independence as an example of
how Antoinette’s life will be without him (Rhys, 1966) which is an extremely feminist way of
thinking and behaving for the early 1800s. Christophine consistently shows her dislike and
distrust for male figures and their thinking. She is open in her hatred for Mr Rochester and when
Mr Rochester starts to question his wife's sanity, she becomes more vocal in defending
Antoinette against him (Rhys, 1966).
Similarly, Antoinette’s Aunt Cora is a single woman living on her own; however, unlike
Christophine, she has been married and is now widowed (Rhys, 1966). She is one of
Antoinette’s main caregivers and takes her in when her mother, Annette, is sent away to be
cared for for her mental health after the fire at Coulibri Estate. Aunt Cora enrolls Antoinette into
a convent school to help her gain some sort of her own independence (Rhys, 1966). She cares
for and nurtures her until she remarries an English gentleman and moves to England. After her
new husband passes away though, Aunt Cora remains independent and visits both England
and Jamaica on her own accord(Rhys, 1966). On her deathbed, she gives Antoinette a silk
pouch and two valuable rings in order to help Antoinette gain her own financial independence
(Rhys, 1966). Aunt Cora is a majorly feminist character in Jean Rhys’s The Wide Sargasso Sea
(1966) because she is a woman that remains completely independent throughout the novel
which is set in the early 1800s. A woman being independent from a man in that era is almost
completely unheard of and yet she faces no tribulations and manages to live a comfortable life
as a single woman. A further indication of her feminist streak and independence is how she is
able to care for Antoinette and provide for her all on her own (Rhys, 1966).
Finally, Antoinette, the main female character, is a symbol of feminism. Throughout her life, she
faces major injustices. As a child, she is excluded because she is of Creole descent and once
her mother marries Mr Mason, she is further controlled by the man mainly by not being given a
choice in who she is to get married to. Furthermore, the injustices continue once she gets
married to Mr Rochester. She goes from being controlled by her mother’s new husband to being
controlled by her own husband. She is mentally, emotionally, and physically manipulated by Mr
Rochester however, she consistently makes her own choices in many aspects (Rhys, 1966).
First, she spikes him with a love potion to create desire in him when he starts to hold back from
her, then she is not afraid of fighting against him when she finds out about his affair with their
servant, Amelie. She is also not afraid to attack her step-brother, Richard, when he comes to
visit her. This act indicates her feminist streak as she partially blames him for forcing her into a
marriage with Mr Rochester and she is willing to fight for herself and her freedom (Rhys, 1966).
Antoinette’s final act of feminism is at the end of the novel when she ultimately takes her
freedom into her own hands and jumps off the roof of the burning Thornfield Hall (Rhys, 1966).
The Wide Sargasso Sea (1966) by Jean Rhys is a novel that embraces many feminist themes
and perspectives. These themes and perspectives are clearly evident throughout the novel’s
storyline and female characters yet, there are also quite a few characters that are anti-feminist
which makes sense since the story is written in a Patriarchal narrative. This Patriarchal
narrative, however, is not to condone the misogyny and sexism prevalent in the 19th century. It is
a way of critiquing that. This novel is also feminist because of the fact that it allows Bertha
Mason, referred to as Antoinette in The Wide Sargasso Sea (1966), from Charlotte Brontë’s
Jane Eyre (1847) to have her own voice. It provides readers with an opportunity to understand
Bertha’s side of the story and to view her as less of an antagonist as she is portrayed as in Jane
Eyre (1847).
Reference List
Rhys, J. 1992 [1966]. Wide Sargasso Sea. New York: W. W. Norton & Co.
Kendrik, R. 1994. Edward Rochester and the margins of masculinity in Jane Eyre and Wide
Sargasso Sea. Papers on Language & Literature 30(3), pp. 235-256.
Panizza, S. 2009. Double Complexity in Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea. Quademi di Palazzo
Serra, 17(2009), pp.1-19.
Rackwitsz, A. n.d. Manipulation and Sex in “Wide Sargasso Sea”. University of English.
Kulkarni, M. 2019. Feminism in Jean Rhys Wide Sargasso Sea. Sanshodhan 8(1): 133-137.
DOI: 10.53957