ENG 216 Final Project Pitch Ideas 

Essay 1: 

For the first essay discussing the work of Robin West’s “Law and Literature,” I will identify the three structural reasons she lists in her conclusion and a bit of a brief overview of how, despite her critiques throughout the piece, for example, from feminist legal theory, that the concluding thought identifies still how essential this work is. The structural reason that I found most compelling was the first – which recognizes that “…both law and literature and feminist legal studies are interdisciplinary fields” and “Both movements are seeking to expand the contours of legal scholarship by bringing in heretofore excluded voices”(Wesr 216). 

→ From here, I want to devote a paragraph (maybe two) to unpacking why this is the most compelling to me. First, the emphasis on the interdisciplinary status of both law and literature and feminist legal studies is, I think, essential as a cover-all type lens. It offers a variety of entry points to many points of her critique, such as the use of canonical literature. I think this section would benefit from a quote from Brontë’s TWH as it highlights this untraditional way of expanding voices in the legal narrative – here, a woman who has legally no identity can illuminate and critique matters of divorce/separation, child custody, and marital abuse through literature. A piece of primary literature might work well here…

The other paragraph I had in mind was on the subjective experience of objective legal norms → I thought a quote from Bodichon might be useful in setting up the idea of women as legal objects/transfer of property and not a legal subject – coverture quote, perhaps. It could also extend to Haggard’s MMW – though it is legal satire, it is an untraditional method in calling into question women’s objectification within legal scholarship. For example, the scene where Augusta’s being questioned as if she is solely an object – the will – and that her being cannot be separated from her legal objectivity. 

As for challenges or skepticism toward West’s concluding argument, I might look to her idea that to understand the practice of narrativity, you can look through disciplines outside of the legal academy as well → this brings up that question/skepticism of how much can be done when working with texts that are canonized or portray limited voices → brings to mind her own example of Huck Finn and how we have so many of those seemingly inclusive narratives that still have yet to be centered on the voice of say an enslaved person or a woman. Here a primary source might be an interesting connection. 

Conclusion on again why law and literature studies prevail and how her first structural reason, to me, does the best job in making a straightforward course of action that allows for both feminist legal scholars and law & literature scholars to advance what areas are important to them and has the most flexibility to challenge the shortcomings of the law and how we interact with it. 

Essay 2: 

I will choose to be the director of a new student exchange program and decide whether I’ll admit women and which of the heroines would spend a semester at UNE. First, I would look at Cobbe’s essay “The Education of Women” and use her reasoning to ground my decision about whether UNE will admit women – which will be a yes. Taking quotes such as “Amount the ways in which it may be possible to effect such improvements, a high education manifestly stands foremost – a great good in itself, and needful for nearly all further steps of advance” and “ I hope to have now in some measure demonstrated – first, that some improvement is needed in the condition of young women, and that a better education is one of the stages of such improvement. Secondly, that a high education does not make women less able and willing to perform their natural duties, but better and more intelligently able and willing to do so…” (88). 

 Then use the novels to explain which heroine would most likely succeed in the 21st century, which would have the most difficulty, and why. → Here, I would most likely use the heroine of Juliet from Allan’s “Type-Writer Girl” to be the most likely to succeed in the 21st century, and I can delve into the “new woman” examples to justify. I also have a primary source from The Dictorinary of Victorian London, a poem highlighting the objections to the new woman. I can use that in contrast to Cobbe’s essay to persuade against that objection. To the heroine that would have the most difficulty, I might look to Ruth from Gaskell’s novel Ruth in that she belongs to the generation before the new woman and, with very religious and moral sentiments, might find it harder to adapt to that new woman mentality that Juliet already embraces – maybe bring up some connections to the tensions that might emerge as we see women who embraced this confining and patriarchy driven mindset that their behavior is dictated by the rules and obligations men in society put on them (i.e., Ruth who even though she does work outside the home has very internalized notions of how she should act vs. Juliet who doesn’t let men’s perception of her alter what she does). 

Conclude with restating the goal of admitting women to UNE and using another Cobbe quote…I may also pull in some of the Parliamentary debate on women’s education if I can find some and that the more significant effects on society are well worth the initial discomfort in normative roles. Then bring back the idea of the novel heroine within literature and the optimism they bring in, highlighting and emulating the reality we could bring to women’s education.