Question

Ideas:

Although female characters in The Wind in the Willows are few and occupy little space in the text, other characters fill this feminine void to some extent act through their thoughts and actions, which may be thought of (by the standards of the early twentieth century anyway) to be stereotypically female.

Discuss.

Answer 1

The Wind in the Willows is a young adult novel by Kenneth Grahame that was published in 1908, the writer has taken animals such as a Toad, a Rat (rent boats), a Mole, and a Badger, rabbits, (toll collector), Otter, etc. these characters represent human beings, as they drink and smoke, own house, rowboats, drive, and steal cars, eat ham and eggs for breakfast, escape from jail write poetry, Toad comb his hair, Mole has a black velvet smoking-jacket (representing male characters), The female figures are the jailor's daughter, barge woman.

Stereotyping is how man and women define themselves, The washing of cloth which Toad was made to do as washing cloth is supposed to be a job of a housewife when he took the help of the barge woman, the animals showed the characteristic of forgiveness that is also a characteristic of a woman. The sending of a gold chain and locket shows kindness and gratitude. Rat acting like a kind and gentle lady teaches about boating to Mole, like how a mother teaches a child. Badger preparing food for his visitors and making them comfortable is a stereotyping feminine work... The character of the jailor's daughter is one of the female characters who are kind and gentle and helped Toad escape from the prison.

Although there are few female characters, characteristics of female and stereotyping as in the 20^th centenary are depicted by these animal characters.