Isabel Allende's 'Daughter of Fortune'

Isabel Allende’s Daughter of Fortune tells the story of Eliza Sommers, an orphaned Chilean girl brought up by a rich Victorian spinster and her rigid brother. The novel centers on the quest for her identity and the search for her lover who has gone off to the American West-Coast to seek his fortune during the height of the gold rush.

Several points in this novel might be of interest to a feminist critic. The fact that this is a novel written by contemporary female author about a woman during a time of rigid social precepts and gender roles (The setting is the Americas in 1820-1849) lends itself to the discussion of those conditions and as to whether or not they exist in our own time.

One of the first things that would be of interest to any reader approaching this with a feminist lens is the conditions of Eliza’s birth, adoption and upbringing. Like many other orphans in fiction Eliza is literally left on the doorstep of Rose Sommers and her brother Jeremy. Since both are unmarried, there is some concern as to what to say when asked about the little girl’s origins. Rose insists people would just accept the truth but rumors swirl that the Eliza was the product of an elicit affair between Jeremy and a native Chilean. The idea that this rumor persists for quite some time and only manages to cause only minor embarrassment to Jeremy in social circles highlights the fact that a man (especially a man with some power and degree of respect) could have an illegitimate interracial child and not have to deal with anywhere near as much problems as a woman. Had Rose put on a bit of weight in the last year and Eliza been just a little lighter there’s no telling what sorts of problems could have followed her arrival. Interestingly enough, it is revealed that Rose’s other brother John was in fact Eliza’s father with a native Chilean woman. Though he John is presented in the novel as a “progressive” male he still has this failing. Even his “progressiveness” is seen as a factor or product his nature being counter to the social norms and therefore somehow wrong.

While Rose is saved from the ignominy of being branded a slut she still has an almost worse appellation: “spinster”. Everyone knows it; it’s even on the back of the book. Rose is in her early thirties when the book opens and it’s clear from the offset that the arrival of Eliza presents her with the first opportunity she’s ever truly had to be a mother of any sort. Motherhood as a conformation of womanhood is a major feminist issue; the idea that a woman isn’t really a woman on her own she’s only a woman if she bears offspring which in turn have to be conditioned to fit these pre-existing cultural molds. This is exactly what Rose intends to do; declaring from the offset to make Eliza a “proper English lady” even if it kills one or the both of them. This is knowledge that Eliza learns in the “light”, proper social actions that Rose and Mr. Sommers can show off and be proud of. The knowledge that she learns in the “dark” from Mama Fresia is knowledge that goes against this. Secret almost mystical knowledge that taps into an aspect of womanhood that doesn’t not fit in to the ideal codified notion of femininity espoused by the upper class world of the Sommers and their friends.

But this just scratches the surface. Rose’s own past of rebelling against these social norms paints Eliza’s own upbringing as an attempt to redeem herself for breaking code. And there is also Eliza’s time spent as a man, the comparison of the woman-run brothel and young prostitutes in Chinatown as well as Tao Chi’en’s relationship with his wife all lend themselves to feminist investigation as well.

Feminist Critique

“...subjects include the images and stereotypes of women in literature, the omissions of and misconceptions about women in criticism , and the fissures in male- constructed literary history”

When I read Showalter’s essay one thing that stood out to me is the fact that a lot feminist literature is based upon the male’s perception of women. A female character in a book or novel written over 50 years ago has a woman staying at home taking care of the household and the children; she is not going to be a lawyer or a doctor.

In “Things Fall Apart” women are portrayed as caregivers and mate's for thier men . In the story Ekwefi is Okonkwo’s second wife who has had 10 live births, and only one child that survived. The survival baby is of course a girl, who is not really accepted because she is not a boy. Okonkwo’s main concern is that his wife has failed to give him a male baby to carry out his legacy. This man also beats his wife and leaves her and her only daughter crying .This notion of the first born son is extremely over rated; the fact that only males are important in this world is completely ridiculous for the simple fact that without woman there is no future. This story to me explained what woman in those days endured , because it was thier role in society.

Another example of a woman’s role in society is the story “Girl” that we read a few weeks ago. In this story the mother is actually giving her daughter a set of guidelines for when she becomes a woman. The guidelines include how to cook, clean, iron, and tend to her husband’s every need. This story infuriated me because the mother is teaching her daughter how to become a housewife and a child bearer. I guess the point I’m trying to make is that the reason woman are portrayed or stereotype this way in literature is because men has made it this way. Men have this perception on how women should or shouldn’t be, and I think that our history proves that.

Showalter suggests that one of the main problems with feminist critique is that it is still male- orientated She goes on to say that we don't really know what women think or experience because their thoughts or experiences were strongly influenced by a male's ideology.