The Bloody Chamber Quotes Flashcards
“I’m sure I want to marry him”
Explores the impact of society on the human psyche (must marry well to be respected)
Shows the relationship between marriage and ownership
“All the better to see you with”
Intertextuality
Animal instincts - the predatory nature of men
Gender roles (for women to be subordinate to men)
“Lionine”
Intertextuality
Explores the Gothic characteristics of the supernatural and animal imagery
Enhances the Marquis’ beastly nature
“Funeral lilies”
Motif for death and the relationship between the Marquis and the protagonist
Foreshadowing (gothic technique)
“Great pistons ceaselessly thrusting”
Sexualisation of inanimate objects-women are more than just a mans ideal¬ so innocent
Shows women also have desires & are instinctual and animalistic (to an extent)
“That face lay underneath this mask”
Example of unexplained/hidden desires (gothic)
Mask similar to lionine qualities of Marquis
You can never truly be happy until honest with yourself & others in your relationships
“Inspecting cuts on the slabs”
Objectification gives the reader a sense of unease
Slabs=cold/inhuman like the Marquis
Cuts=treats his wives as fine cuts of meat
“My little nun has found the prayer books, has she?”
Shows the innocence of women and the lust / animalistic desires of men
Shows he feels that sex is a religion
“It must have been my innocence that captivated him”
The innocence of women
Shows men’s desires for women to be virginal and naive
Already aware of why he wants her
“Lovely, blind humanity”
Juxtaposes the stereotypical portrayal of men in Carters stories - perhaps a portrayal of women’s ideals
“Put a..bullet through my husbands head”
Role reversal
Shocks the reader - would expect a nurturing woman to hesitate before taking a human life
Is the Marquis a man or beast?
“My eagle featured, indomitable mother”
Masculine attributes blur gender lines
“The faery solitude of the place”
Isolation - foreshadowing
Suggests hints of the supernatural
