RMST 202

Reading Bombal’s novel The Shrouded Woman, as a woman, I felt deeply appreciated that a book like this existed in such a time. I’m not quite sure how prevalent female authors were at the time or how popular their works were, but I’m glad that Bombal had the opportunity to share her perception of a woman’s world. The novel goes beyond viewing women as an object. Bombal gives the female characters lively personalities, often even more so than she does with the men. She gives her female characters depth by exploring the complexity of women. That is not to say that women are more complex than men, but during this time period and even today though less, women are often overlooked or given stereotypical personalities in media in comparison to men. Bombal allows us to see the life of women in all its pleasures, struggles, and feelings. The novel acknowledges and addresses the harsh pressure of gendered expectations on women, and how they can never truly escape it. Even after death, people will still think of the woman through that artificial lens. The novel resonated with me because it explores the diversity of women and was perhaps able to change some of the readers’ perceptions of women after reading the book.

Overall, I found this novel the most straightforward from our past course texts. This is partly because I found the text easy to read and because I was more engaged in the storyline and characters, specifically Ana Maria. I also enjoyed reading about Ana Maria’s experiences and feelings after her death, I felt that it broke down a wall and represented how the memory of ourselves lives on even after death. I found the way death was portrayed in this text very thought-provoking, even though everything in Ana Maria’s life was already said and done, I still felt that emotional connection with her as she reminisces her life. Ana Maria recalls her experiences and expresses her regret in some situations, yet she is still able to be at peace with herself in the end. I find this a bit bittersweet, but also realistic, as it demonstrates that we will always wish we could change a part of our past, but since we are unable to do so, we have to accept it and live (or die) with it.

My question is, how do you think Ana Maria’s story would be different if it were to be told in the present tense, or rather, if she were not dead? Would it gain more or less meaning?