A lot has changed between the Victorian era and the present, and Possession is into exploring the burdens and limitations that social conventions can put on women during any age. Byatt tells about women who strive to break free from those burdens and limitations, and she's equally interestedin women who choose to live within them. Whether the novel is zeroing in on the lives of British gentlewomen in the nineteenth century or the lives of second-wave feminists in the twentieth, it has a lot to say about the ways in which women's lives, ambitions, and opportunities are shaped by their social circumstances.
Questions About Women and Femininity
- What was Blanche Glover's occupation before she came to live with Christabel LaMotte, and what were her feelings about it?
- Where was Christabel LaMotte living before she moved in with Blanche Glover? What were her duties and responsibilities there, and how did she feel about those?
- What are some similarities and differences between the ways in which Blanche Glover, Christabel LaMotte, and Maud Bailey imagine their respective forms of seclusion and isolation?
- How do their physical appearances affect Christabel LaMotte's and Maud Bailey's lives?
Chew on This
Although Possession sometimes seems to be poking fun at second-wave feminism—or even critiquing it outright—deep down, the novel is shaped by a number of feminist values, of one kind kind or another, and demonstrates keen insight into the ways in which women's lives are shaped by social values hostile to them.
On the surface, the novelseems to agree with Virginia Woolf's idea that women need "rooms of their own" in order to accomplish their goals. However, Possession also suggests that it's counterproductive for women to isolate themselves completely. When life beckons, the novel suggests, women ought to make sure that their "rooms" don't become icy, isolated "tombs."