Delarivier Manley
If you think that female
relationships aren't important and have no affect on society, think
again!
Although female relationships and their influence may have been previously hidden,
Delarivier Manley exposes the power that female alliances can have on society.
Manley, who is quickly becoming one of the best known female authors, bases
her works in scathing political satire of politicians and aristocrats. In addition
to the political side of her writing, Manley explores female relationships and
how women have used them to influence society and politics.In addition, her
writings demonstrate how quickly society can become suspicious of female bonds.
[15]In "The Secret Memoirs and Manners
. . .from the New Atlantis, an Island of the Mediterranean", she explores
the female relationship between noblewomen and servants, and how these sexualized
relationships
are viewed in the social and political sphere. Specifically, "Secret Memoirs"
exposes the relationship between Queen Anne and one of her advisors, Sarah Churhcill.
"Manley's immensley popular attack on . . . Churchill's intimacy and powerful
influence with the queen [are] perceived as emblematic of an indecorous appropriation
of political power practiced by those aristorcratic ladies - in-waiting who
enjoyed special access to their monarch throuh sex and position." [16]In
addition to satirizing the political implications of female intimcay in "New
Atlantis," Manley "presents a variety of 'wonders' including an extended
description of a 'new Cabal' of women who eschew the company of men in facor
of an idealized
practice of female intimacy. [17]
The Secret Society of Bristish Gentlewomen urges you to carefully look at the models presented by Manley. On one hand, the satire of Queen Anne and Sarah Churchill demonstrates to you how powerful the alliances between women can be. They also show how quickly public opinion can turn against those suspect of sexual impropriety.
Her presentation of the Cabal, however, introduces the same sort of woman who is condemned in The New Atlantis. By presenting both models of female relations (idealized and sexualized), Manley clearly demonstrates the power and importance of feminine bonds in today's society.
Read
the exciting beginning to Manley's The New Atlantis!
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