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This study bears upon woman and her image in Emilia Galotti by Lessing, who exerted strong influence on the German theatre of the eighteenth century. His tragedies, fables, essays and other writings have since given rise to countless analyses. Rarely, however, has that polyphony of commentary addressed the faint presence of the female characters in his plays or their often unenviable fate. Indeed, only recently has literary criticism initiated debate on the feminine condition in Lessing's dramaturgy and theatrical aesthetics. Pursing that same line of inquiry, we will attempt to uncover the logic of exclusion of the feminine Other that lies behind the reactions of the male characters in the play under consideration. We will premise our exploration on the feminist concepts of woman as image and on male fantasies of women. / Our inquiry is two-pronged: How should Emilia's death be interpreted? Where does her guilt lie? First, we will explore the "economics of separation," i.e., the universe of mental representations harboured by patriarchal man of the Enlightenment. Through analyzing the concepts of death and gender, first from the vantage of the eighteenth century and then within the context of the theatre and literature of that period, we will define those concepts and better assess their powers (death) and limitations (gender). Second, we will probe the image of woman and her sexuality by observing the characters as they interrelate. We will underline the phenomena of projection and identification as well as the structures of abjection in the play. Lastly, our study will bring to light the fiction of the masculine identity and the manner in which women are imagined as "individuals," in sum, how stereotypes are engendered.

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Gustavo Adolfo Becquer presents a romantic vision of poetry summed up in the sentence "poetry is you" because according to this vision "poetry is feeling and feeling is woman." This means that the concept of poetry is formed by the essential parts of Becquer's world. Woman, presented as the centre of Becquer's poetic universe, is an asexual idea and an attractive and passionate muse at the same time. Poetry, which is feeling as well as woman, can be seen in the same way, and therefore can be not only pure and ideal, but also living and passionate. / The poet is placed in-between the irrational world of feelings and the rational world of writing, and these two worlds, despite their contradictory appearances, are no less than two halves of one whole. For that reason the poet is able to produce written poetry. / Written poetry cannot exist without reason, because it requires the use of the common language. The poet, being sensitive and rational at the same time, can transmit vivid and ineffable poetry through his writing. Nevertheless, words are nothing more then a medium to convey impressions located beyond linguistic signs, and these impressions can be (re)born in the reader's mind and imagination. This thesis demonstrates that Becquer's writing is conceived to provoke in the individual a (re)birth of creative impressions.

Education represents one of Isabelle de Charriere's favourite topics. In her novels, the author has expressed her concerns on the matter, but her comments refer particularly to women's education. The present study will therefore be dedicated to the gathering of these observations, in order to show the author's position regarding the education of women. Afterwards, it should be possible to see whether Madame de Charriere's ideas may be compared to those of her time. In the case of women, moral education is preponderant, but knowledge is also important. In addition to her pedagogical advice, the writer provides some thoughts on the status of women in general.

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No description available.