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Women's relationship with men - power imbalance - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Analysis: A blunt, almost grotesque description that reveals both his physical and moral laxity.
        Interpretation: “Slack” implies laziness or lack of resolve, while “twisted” could suggest something corrupt or morally bent. This phrase reduces him to a figure of ridicule or pity, undermining his delusions of grandeur.
    - - refused money -> pride -> hubris -> tragedy
      - cares more about honour than money despite being broke
      - Analysis: This nostalgic, delusional remark reflects his obsession with ancestral pride and social status.
        Interpretation: John clings to the idea of nobility despite his current poverty, using it to justify inaction and entitlement. Hardy uses this to criticise the emptiness of inherited status and the dangers of living in the past.
    - - views prince as the "breadwinner", doesn't care about familial suffering
      - Analysis: This ironic statement exposes Durbeyfield’s selfishness. Hardy contrasts his brief burst of energy with months of neglect toward his responsibilities.
        Interpretation: His misplaced priorities — working harder for personal gain or status than for his family — underscore his negligence and vanity. This also highlights the injustice Tess faces, as she is forced to carry the burdens her father abandons
  - - - Puts a physical barrier between himself and Mariam. Abandonment and separation due to conformity with social stigma
    - - Jalil is a coward because he is more worried about how his image is portrayed in society than doing what is right for his own better. Also it shows that is other wives are not any better than him because they are just sitting in silence
    - - Shifting the Blame
      - Jalil’s use of “don’t do this to me” flips the emotional burden back onto Mariam, making her pain about his suffering.
      - Instead of acknowledging Mariam’s rightful anger or emotional hurt, he centres himself, which suggests emotional immaturity and self-preservation.
      - This illustrates the kind of selective affection he offers her — he wants the benefits of fatherhood without the consequences.
      - The outburst “God damn it” is uncharacteristic of Jalil’s normally polished, composed persona. It reflects a moment of raw emotion, perhaps guilt or desperation.
      - Hosseini shows how emotional neglect can be more damaging than material absence — Jalil’s wealth means nothing when what Mariam needed was love and presence.
- - - - cyclical focus on lips
    - - power imbalance + manipulation
    - - motif of red - destructive nature of their union
    - - Patriarchal power, "demolishing the doll of English literature"
  - - - brutality, power, violent verbs
    - - inevitable suffering, execution + decision\
    - - Domestic abuse of women. Patriarchy and Politics.
      - Almost 90% of women in Afghanistan have experienced at least one form of domestic violence,
- - - - Tess is submissive towards Alec, highlighting her vulnerability. Persephone and Hades.
      - disassociation AROUND MEN
    - - The visceral imagery of 'blood' and 'ray' suggests that Alec's desire will tarnish Tess for the rest of her life,
      - Bedecked in symbols of nature and fertility, Tess is innocent but her body is sexually mature, shows tragedy of her fate, colour symbolism of Alec's sex and violence, P42
    - - Tess's lack of consent foreshadows the rape, image of out of season strawberries like her sexuality,
      - Sexualised, suggests tess's passivity
  - - - Describing Rasheed’s face as "houndlike" evokes imagery of a predator — a dog that hunts, tracks, and asserts control. This immediately introduces an imbalance: Mariam is positioned (subtly, subconsciously) as the prey. The hound is traditionally loyal, but also forceful and dominant, especially when untamed — a characteristic Rasheed exhibits in his sexual aggression and control over Mariam. The houndlike quality hints at a man who follows primal instincts, which mirrors his coercive and controlling approach to sex and marriage.
      - The "long... triangular face" suggests severity, not softness. There’s no mention of warmth, kindness, or gentleness. Instead, the geometry of his face — angular, sharp — creates a cold, possibly threatening image. This physical description is emblematic of the emotional and sexual coldness Rasheed will later subject Mariam to, where intimacy is not mutual but one-sided and exploitative.
    - - -'forcing' highlights Mariam's lack of control + choice
      - -foreshadows Rasheed's violent nature
      - -the ring could symbolise how she is stuck with him
    - - invisibility, lack of hope for this journey, second journey, disillusionment, Phase 2 Journey back to The Slopes, Angel's departure p.253. - passive acceptance of Angel's rejection, contrasts Mariam's active rejection of Jalil. Later - Tess exhibits more feelings of anger and resentment in her letter - more impulsive. Phase VI - p.354 - anger finally emerges - Tess - 'you are cruel, cruel indeed' 'it is all injustice I have received at your hand'