Critical appreciation ToolBox

• What can imagery create

  A sense of longing and escape or tranquility and beauty

  Imagery can often contrast women in literature and their desire for freedom
• What is a common motif in literature

  Windows are a common theme for women in literature and often symbolise a desire for transparency

  This can link to the yellow wallpaper and her desire for transparency
• What do rooms for women in literature represent

  Independence and breaking free of the confines of patriarchal structure
• What can direct speech and dialogue represent

  assertiveness and refusal

  straightforwardness

  determination

  Contrast of defiance to traditional roles emphasising agency of women in literature

  Delve into psyche and motivations of women in literature
• Determination links to texts

  The Handmaid's tale of 2005

  Echoes Offred's refusal to accept rules of a dystopian society

  Challenge prescribed roles of women
• What can Irony within texts represent

  Irony can represent pressures to conform to roles

  Can link to juxtaposition and underscores absurdity of experiences of women
• What can adversity represent


  suffering and disillusionment linking to the bell jar
• What can internal conflicts represent


  anxieties linking to Edna in The Awakening set in 1899 - limitations ultimately leading to suicide
• What could symbolism represent

  uncertainty and ambiguity vice versa

  metaphors often symbolise incomplete perceptions and disillusionment

  Attempts to navigate life without constraints
• What could marriage link to 


  Optimism and hopes to marriage despite uncertainties could link to Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice as she approaches marriage with mixed feelings of optimism and skepticism. There is navigation of autonomy and fulfillment