•  
  •  
 

International Review of Humanities Studies

International Review of Humanities Studies

Abstract

This study examines how social construction influences the representation of female autonomy through the transition of medium and temporal context. Its primary focus is to compare the mechanisms of masculine domination in Gustave Flaubert’s classic novel Madame Bovary (1856) with Posy Simmonds’ graphic novel adaptation Gemma Bovery (1999). Utilizing Hutcheon’s adaptation theory (2013) and de Beauvoir’s existential feminism (1949), complemented by Freytag’s dramatic structure analysis (1900) as the main framework, this research proceeds from the premise that the transposition from text to visual medium has significant implications for changes in narrative strategies and plot. This study highlights the differing manifestations of masculine domination in both works. In Madame Bovary, masculine domination manifests as structural pressure and 19th-century social norms. Emma faces restricted agency as the legal and economic systems of the era were entirely male-centric. Consequently, Emma’s pursuit of agency is stifled by 19th-century structural inequality. This dynamic undergoes a modern transformation in Gemma Bovery, where masculine domination shifts from overt social restriction to constant surveillance and narratorial objectification. Through the graphic novel format, Gemma is placed under the constant surveillance of a male character who also serves as the narrator. This demonstrates that despite the shift in temporal context, women’s position remains vulnerable to male objectification. In the final analysis, the deaths of both protagonists reinforce a common thread; both Emma and Gemma fall victim to an environment that prioritizes male expectations and ego over women's safety and freedom.

Bahasa Abstract

Penelitian ini menelaah bagaimana konstruksi sosial memengaruhi representasi otonomi perempuan melalui peralihan medium dan konteks waktu. Fokus utamanya adalah membandingkan mekanisme dominasi maskulin dalam novel klasik Madame Bovary (1856) karya Gustave Flaubert dengan adaptasi novel grafis Gemma Bovery (1999) karya Posy Simmonds. Menggunakan teori adaptasi Hutcheon (2013) dan feminisme eksistensial de Beauvoir (1949), serta diperkaya dengan analisis struktur dramatik Freytag (1900) sebagai kerangka utama, penelitian ini beranjak dari asumsi bahwa alih wahana dari teks ke visual berimplikasi signifikan pada perubahan strategi naratif dan alur. Penelitian ini menyoroti perbedaan manifestasi dominasi maskulin dalam kedua karya tersebut. Pada novel Madame Bovary, dominasi maskulin hadir dalam bentuk tekanan struktural dan norma sosial abad ke-19. Emma dihadapkan pada keterbatasan ruang gerak karena sistem hukum dan ekonomi saat itu sepenuhnya berpusat pada laki-laki. Akibatnya, setiap upaya Emma untuk mencari kebebasan pribadi selalu berselisih dengan realitas masyarakat yang tidak memberikan akses setara bagi perempuan. Sementara itu, dalam Gemma Bovery, bentuk dominasi ini mengalami perubahan. Melalui format novel grafis, tokoh Gemma ditempatkan di bawah pengamatan konstan tokoh laki-laki yang juga bertindak sebagai narator. Hal ini menunjukkan bahwa meskipun konteks zaman telah berubah, posisi perempuan masih rentan terhadap objektivikasi oleh laki-laki. Kematian kedua tokoh utama ini pada akhirnya menegaskan benang merah yang sama; baik Emma maupun Gemma sama-sama menjadi korban dari lingkungan yang memprioritaskan ekspektasi dan ego laki-laki di atas keselamatan dan kebebasan perempuan.

References

Baetens, J. (2018). Stories and Storytelling in the Era of Graphic Narrative. In I. Christie & A. van den Oever (Eds.), Stories (pp. 27–44). Amsterdam University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv5rf6vf.6

Berlatsky, E. L. (2015). Does that change anything? (Post) feminist implications of Gemma Bovery. In S. E. Tabachnick & E. B. Saltzman (Eds.), Drawn from the classics: Essays on graphic adaptations of literary works (pp. 127-146). McFarland.

Burgess, A. (2024). Novel. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/art/novel

Campbell, E. (2007). What Is a Graphic Novel? World Literature Today, 81(2), 13–15. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40159289

Canevaro, L. (2011). A woman of consequence: Pandora in Hesiod's Works and Days. The Cambridge Classical Journal, 57, 9–28. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/cambridge-classical-journal/article/abs/woman-of-consequence-pandora-in-hesiods-works-and-days/313644F15FDA07A4C18463D7BA93C632?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=bookmark

de Beauvoir, S. (1966). Les belles images. Gallimard.

de Beauvoir, S. (1949). Le deuxième sexe. Tome II: L'expérience vécue. Gallimard.

Elleström, L. (2019). Transmedial narration: Narratives and stories in different media. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01294-6

Flaubert, G. (1880). Madame Bovary (E. Marx-Aveling, Trans.). Public Domain Edition. (Original work published 1856).

Freytag, G. (1900). Freytag's technique of the drama: An exposition of dramatic composition and art (E. J. MacEwan, Trans.). Scott, Foresman.

Ghaderi, A., & Ghaderi, A. (2021). “Bovarique” bodies from 19th century France to 20st century London. Tête à Tête: Journal of Francophone Studies, 1(1), 4. https://repository.lsu.edu/tete_a_tete/vol1/iss1/4

Hussain, H. M. (2022). Feminism and social constructivism in Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary. International Journal of English and Studies (IJOES), 4(2). SP Publications. https://www.ijoes.in/papers/v4i2/9.IJOES-Habeeb(45-47).pdf

Hutcheon, L., & O’Flynn, S. (2013). A Theory of Adaptation (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://moodle.studiumdigitale.uni-frankfurt.de/moodle/pluginfile.php/555118/mod_resource/content/3/Hutcheon_A%20Theory%20of%20Adaptation.pdf

Kelly, D. (2008). Reconstructing woman: From fiction to reality in the nineteenth-century novel. Pennsylvania: Penn State University Press.

Mahi, Y. N., & Meskine, M. Y. (2022). Le jeu onomastique dans le roman graphique Gemma Bovery de Posy Simmonds [The onomastic game in the graphic novel Gemma Bovery by Posy Simmonds]. 6(311-319). https://www.researchgate.net/publication/364088052_Le_jeu_onomastique_dans_le_roman_graphique_Gemma_Bovery_de_Posy_Simmonds_The_onomastic_game_in_the_graphic_novel_gemma_bovery_by_posy_simmonds

Restiyani, A., & Rusdiarti, S. R. (2023). Transformasi resistensi perempuan dalam novel Sitti Nurbaya karya Marah Rusli ke serial musikal Nurbaya [The women’s resistance transformation in the Sitti Nurbaya novel by Marah Rusli to the Nurbaya musical series]. Diglosia: Jurnal Bahasa, Sastra, dan Pengajarannya, 6(2), 607–624. https://diglosiaunmul.com/index.php/diglosia/article/view/685

Sarkar, S. (2021). Tracing Proto-Feminism: Articulation of Women Voices in French Revolution. In N. Nila & R. John (Eds.), Transnational Feminism: New Voices and New Articulations (pp. 68–75). Upanayan Publications.

Shiff, R. (1988). Art History and the Nineteenth Century: Realism and Resistance. The Art Bulletin, 70(1), 25–48. https://doi.org/10.2307/3051152

Simmonds, P. (2014). Gemma Bovery (L. Sztajn & J.-L. Fromental, Trans.). Editions Denoël. (Original work published 1999).

Snyder-Hall, R. C. (2010). Third-Wave Feminism and the Defense of “Choice.” Perspectives on Politics, 8(1), 255–261. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25698533

Thon, J.-N. (2016). Transmedial narratology and contemporary media culture. University of Nebraska Press.

Download

Share

COinS