Resurrection · Question
How does Resurrection develop the theme of Sexual Exploitation and Women's Position?
Answer
Resurrection by Leo Tolstoy develops Sexual Exploitation and Women's Position across the chapters the companion marks for this theme.
Máslova's fall from innocence into prostitution and prison illustrates how women, especially those of lower classes, are objectified and victimized by men, while society blames them for their own degradation. Her internal justification of her role as a prostitute reflects a survival mechanism in a patriarchal world.
Katúsha's life is a series of sexual exploitations: seduced by Nekhlúdoff, assaulted by a police officer and a forester, and eventually forced into prostitution by economic necessity.
Máslova's role as a prostitute ('Lúbka') and her exploitation by Smelkóff and the brothel system are central to the charges against her.
Maslova's testimony reveals her powerlessness: she was coerced by Smelkoff and manipulated by Kartínkin, yet she is the one on trial for her life.
Evidence in the book
- Chapter II
Katúsha's life is a series of sexual exploitations: seduced by Nekhlúdoff, assaulted by a police officer and a forester, and eventually forced into prostitution by economic necessity.
- Chapter X
Máslova's role as a prostitute ('Lúbka') and her exploitation by Smelkóff and the brothel system are central to the charges against her.
- XI
Maslova's testimony reveals her powerlessness: she was coerced by Smelkoff and manipulated by Kartínkin, yet she is the one on trial for her life.
- Chapter XVI
Nekhlúdoff's predatory pursuit of Katúsha, a servant, exemplifies the sexual exploitation of women in a patriarchal society, where her resistance is overridden by his animal passion.
- Chapter XVII
Nekhlúdoff's predatory pursuit of Katúsha, a servant, highlights the power imbalance and exploitation inherent in their relationship.
- XIX
Máslova's past as a prostitute and her current status as a prisoner underscore the exploitation of women, while Kitáeva's testimony reveals the commodification of women's bodies in the brothel system.
- XXI
Máslova is blamed as a temptress and 'decadent' woman, while the man who seduced her remains unpunished, highlighting gender inequality.
- Chapter XXIX
Máslova is objectified by male convicts and even by the men in court who previously looked at her approvingly, reflecting her vulnerability as a woman.
