Females Victims & Social Class in Crime Texts
English Lit: AQA A Level Atonement - Specification B, topic 7.4.2
Presentation of Females as Victims & Social Class
When thinking about the significance of victims in Atonement and other set texts, you should think about the representation of females as victims of male violence and the presentation of social class.
Female victims in crime texts
- Many of the victims in crime texts are young women who suffer male violence and abuse. For example:
- Porphyria in Porphyria's Lover;
- The Duchess in My Last Duchess;
- Nancy in Oliver Twist;
- Rose in Brighton Rock;
- Ophelia in Hamlet.
Questions about female victims
- Why are so many of the victims in crime texts female? Does this reflect social and historical contexts in which women are denied independence or self-expression?
- Is the ‘young woman as victim’ an outdated stereotype? Do more modern crime texts continue to use this genre convention?
Importance of social class
- To what extent does social class play a role in the suffering of victims?
- Are they, like Robbie, victims of society’s codes and conventions?
- Consider, for example, the young victims of Peter Grimes, the “toiling slaves” who are abused by their “savage master”.
Test yourself on Females Victims & Social Class in Crime Texts
Young females victims of male abuse in crime texts.
Which characters are victims in Peter Grimes?