Close Reading - Ruskin's Sesame and Lillies

“The man’s power is active, progressive, defensive. He is eminently the doer, the creator, the discoverer, the defender. His intellect is for speculation and invention; his energy for adventure, for war, and for conquest...But the woman’s power is for rule, not for battle, -- her intellect is not for invention or creation, but for sweet ordering, arrangement, and decision….Her great function is Praise: she enters into no contest, but infallibly judges the crown of contest. By her office and place, she is protected from all danger and temptation.” (line 68)

The contrast in the words Ruskin uses in describing a woman’s “role” vs a man’s role is undeniably present. In describing a man’s role, Ruskin uses active words that imply an energy of “doing and creating” as he says. And while the words to describe women aren’t exactly outwardly derogatory, they definitely imply a sense that women should remain less active and less aggressive than men.  Perhaps Ruskin was simply attempting to make sense of the biological differences between men and women. Men are often stronger than women, and their bodies are built differently than women’s bodies. And while I did really like the place where he states that a “woman’s power is for rule, not for battle,” but it was what followed that that made me cringe. What Ruskin implies by saying “ her intellect is not for invention or creation,” is that women lack the creativity that he sees men possessing. Then, he had to put the word sweet in front of ordering, taking away from the vision of a powerful woman he appears to genuinely be trying to paint. It just kind of goes downhill after that. I think my favorite part is when he says “she is protected from all danger and TEMPTATION.” Temptation? Really? Temptation from what? And what does it mean that a woman’s great function is Praise? What do these two lines really say about Ruskin (and other males?) perceptions of women? That they are more apt to fall victim to temptation from other men and that what they say has the most value when they’re praising others? I’m still not sure what to make of it.

Ruskin frames the male species as being innovative, creative, and physically and emotionally strong. Then, he paints women as very much a “ruler” but more so someone who would rule over a household rather than a country. “Sweet ordering” and “arrangement” makes me think of a mother, instructing her children on what to do, making sure the house is in order, and making arrangements and decisions about household matters, while the man brings the metaphorical bacon home from battle. Of course, this is more responsibility than women previously had, when men not only wanted them to remain illiterate and uneducated but simply embody a beautiful woman they could come home too, without having much substance. Arguably, elements of this passage could be applied to modern stay at home moms, who have the place in the household to make bigger decisions and direct those who also live in her household.