Gender Roles Represented by the Four Main Characters in Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

Abstract: Margaret Mitchell’s one and only novel, Gone with the Wind, was an instant hit when it waspublished in 1936. The novel is a romantic tragedy that takes place in a very traditional society inthe state of Georgia in the United States before, during, and after the Civil War. Keeping the oldtraditions is one of the priorities for the Southerners, particularly the ones that have to do withgender roles. However, the war brings changes of which most prominent families highlydisapprove. A few seize the opportunities during Reconstruction, while most of them remain inpoverty in order to keep the old traditions. My essay will focus on the four main characters in thenovel, Scarlett O’Hara, Rhett Butler, Ashley Wilkes, and Melanie Hamilton. Rhett represents theNew South and is attracted to Scarlett who is a mixture of the old and the new. She is madly in lovewith Ashley, who represents the Old South. Ashley is attracted to Scarlett but choses to marryMelanie, who is more like him. The purpose of this essay is to look at gender roles and social norms in the novel, notjust in relation to individuals but also how society as a whole treats those who refuse to follow theunwritten rules. How does this affect the lives and relationships of the four main characters? Whatsocial norms define the society these characters live in, and what are their individual attitudes tothese norms? Southern society is secure as long as the established social norms are not challenged,and these include traditional gender roles. The characters in Gone with the Wind are heavilyinfluenced by gender roles and social norms, and some to such an extent that their conduct andreputations can matter more than the actual person. It is possible to rebel against the system only ifone has the self-sufficiency and financial means to do so, as is the case with Scarlett and Rhett.They break away from the traditional gender norms, but their freedom has serious consequences.Ashley Wilkes, on the other hand, has the financial means to succeed but he is so affected by hisrole as a perfect Southern gentleman that he dares not apply new ideas in his life in order to survivefinancially, and this makes him feel unfulfilled. His wife Melanie Hamilton fulfills her role as agreat lady, which means she is socially and financially dependent on her husband. In analyzing theconstraints and consequences of gender roles, I will make use of feminist theory, with particularfocus on Simone de Beauvoir’s concept of the Other and her definition of narcissism, and Hilary M.Lips’ explanation of social-cultural theories and prescriptive gender stereotypes. In Gone with theWind, traditional gender roles, like the old South, are imaginative, unattainable and ultimatelydestructive. The most conventional characters cannot fully attain or embody the gender roles, whilethe most non-conformist characters nevertheless long for them, and everyone suffers for it.