Pastors and Masters · Theme

Gender Roles

How Pastors and Masters develops Gender Roles.

Women's limited roles are explicitly debated, with Miss Basden and Emily discussing women's suffrage, divorce laws, and being classed with 'paupers and idiots,' while men like Francis Fletcher patronizingly praise women's 'province.'

Where it surfaces

III
Miss Lydia asserts that preaching is not a woman's business, while Emily and Theresa discuss the limitations placed on women in marriage and work.
Chapter VII
The chapter features a heated debate between Francis Fletcher and Miss Basden on women's intellectual capabilities, suffrage, and divorce laws, highlighting conflicting views on women's place in society.