“Souls so compressed that they would fit into a thimble”

Literary Essay

“Souls so compressed that they would fit into a thimble”:

The Embodiment of Traditional and New Womanhood in The Story of an African Farm

Olive Schreiner’s The Story of an African Farm examines multiple aspects of Victorian culture and society, and comments heavily upon the position of women in that age. Different kinds of womanhood are represented in the novel through various female characters, but most notably through the character of Lyndall. As a “new” woman, Lyndall defies the traditional Boer womanhood and those who partake in it. Through her actions and verbal manifestos, Lyndall asserts her critical and negative view of this traditional way of life. Due to this, Lyndall suffers punishment. But instead of simply paying for her transgressions, Lyndall becomes a Christ-like figure, and through dying, absolves the sins of all women who embody her kind of independence.

From the beginning, Lyndall’s critique of traditional Boer womanhood makes it obvious that she is resentful towards it. Schreiner often contrasts Lyndall with her cousin Em, a traditional Boer girl in all senses. Not only are the two opposites in appearance, their behavior and character could not be more different. Em reflects traditional Boer womanhood in that she resigns herself to a life of domesticity, and cannot, or will not expand her thoughts and desires beyond that. In childhood Lyndall declares that she yearns to leave the farm and live a life far away from everything she currently knows: “ ‘And you think I am going to stay here always?…I intend to go to school.’ ‘But I should not like to go to school!’ [said Em.] ‘And you do not need to…you will have this farm and everything that is upon it for your own. But I…will have nothing. I must learn’” (45 — 46). Even at the age of twelve, Lyndall understands that Boer womanhood, and despite being white, her lower economic status, hold nothing for her future. She finds no space for herself in a marriage or motherhood, stating that “There is nothing helps in this world…but to be very wise, and to know everything” (45). Lyndall asserts that she cannot achieve this through domestic living, and the act of desiring something beyond tradition is a critique of the Boer woman’s destiny in and of itself.

Moreover, Lyndall’s rebellion against her guardian Tant’ Sannie is another critique of Boer womanhood. Tant’ Sannie represents everything Boer women aspire to be: domineering and wholly concerned with domestic duties. Eventually these women become close-minded due to their limited lifestyle. In fact, Schreiner’s first description of her follows this exactly: “[She had] a hand on each hip, her face red and fiery, her head nodding fiercely. At her feet sat the yellow Hottentot maid…who stamped mealies into a wooden block” (51). The only other practice of life Tant’ Sannie participates in is religion, however, it is a religion of inauthenticity. She aims only to look the part of a Christian woman, by holding her “brass-clasped hymnbook”, but falls short as she “[peeps] through her crossed fingers” at other church-goers (69 — 70). Tant’ Sannie’s preoccupation with traditional womanhood makes her the perfect person for Lyndall to criticize and rebel against.

Despite a disparity in age, Lyndall’s level of maturity and self-awareness surpasses that of Tant’ Sannie. When the overwhelming Tant’ Sannie participates in insulting Lyndall’s Uncle Otto, Lyndall verbalizes her opinion, and a punishment ensues. However, Lyndall capably thwarts the Boer woman’s inherent violence, “[Lyndall] laid her small fingers on the Boer woman’s arm. With the exertion of half its strength [she] might have flung the girl back upon the stones…but the Boer woman looked into the clear eyes and at the quivering white lips, and with a half-surprised curse relaxed her hold” (91). In this sense, Lyndall’s forthcoming new womanhood has triumphed over the traditional Boer one. When Lyndall is locked away immediately after, she triumphs again through her threat to burn down the house. Although the Boer woman literally locks her in, Lyndall’s acceptance of a fulfilling new life can set her free.

As a young adult, Lyndall progressively becomes more educated and worldly, and therefore embodies the “new” woman further. This novel, intense embodiment first occurs when Lyndall declares her feminist manifesto to Waldo after her return from boarding school. During her absence, Lyndall acquired her education in an unorthodox manner: “‘I made them give me a room…without the companionship of one of those things that were having their brains diluted and squeezed out of them…I bought books and newspapers and at night I sat up [and read]…I have not learnt what I expected; but I have learnt something else’” (186). The mere fact that Lyndall earns her education subversively and without conforming to society’s expectations is an open critique of traditional womanhood.

Furthermore, Lyndall embodies the “new” woman through her free sexuality. Instead of bowing to the whims of peer pressure, Lyndall has carved a unique path to follow into her future, which would normally include marriage and bearing children. Tant’ Sannie explains that this is perhaps the most vital aspect of Boer womanhood: “If a woman’s old enough to marry, and doesn’t, she’s sinning against the Lord…you can’t love a man till you’ve had a baby by him” (293). Later on in the novel, Lyndall defies this social belief by running off to live, unmarried, with a man. Lyndall pursues this man mainly out of curiosity and lust, and Schreiner insinuates that the relationship is purely sexual, therefore giving Lyndall sexual experience that women her age traditionally did not have, and would not until wedded. Lyndall openly accepts her sexuality, “ ‘And you loved me — ?’ ‘Because you are strong. You are the first man I was ever afraid of. And…because I like to experience. I like to try. You don’t understand that’” (238), which removes her even further from Boer womanhood.

Nevertheless, representing this budding new movement does not come without a price to pay. Although Lyndall may be acting as she deems right, society will only ever see her as a fallen woman, and no fallen woman goes unpunished. It is through this punishment, however, that Lyndall again challenges the feminine stereotype. Instead of dying as a shameful wretch, Lyndall’s death exalts her to the level of a Christ-like figure.

In the scenes preluding her death, Lyndall is continuously painted in a Christian light, often described as “little”, “white”, and like an “angel.” When Gregory passes as a nurse to take care of her, he refers to Lyndall as his “little ewe-lamb” (273), only perpetuating the Christian imagery further. Later on as she lies in pain, Lyndall’s speech becomes more and more reflective of Biblical verses, and with the essence of Christian teachings she orates, “I see the vision of a poor weak soul striving after good. It was not cut short; and, in the end, it learnt, through tears and such pain, that holiness is an infinite compassion for others; that greatness is to take the common things of life and walk truly among them… [happiness] was not cut short; and it loved what it had learnt…” (280). However, this is much more than a Biblically oriented statement. Even on her death bed, Lyndall uses her voice to reject traditional Boer womanhood and accept what her life has amounted to. Instead of living in domesticity and taking pleasure in the petty, she defends her decision to live as she wanted, to “take the common things of life”, such as learning and experiencing the world, without regret. Early on in the novel, Lyndall promises as a child that “‘When the day comes, and I am strong, I will hate everything that has power, and help everything that is weak’” (93). Through her death, Lyndall achieves just that. Dying as a willing member of new womanhood displays her strength of character, and that living independently will not “cut happiness short”, but instead open a path for women to follow and embrace freedom. Alongside this, Lyndall acts as a Christ for the “weak”, or women who desire this path, absolving their guilt and sin for casting off a ritual institution and welcoming autonomy.

Through her education, curiosity, sexuality, and death, Lyndall of Olive Schreiner’s The Story of an African Farm represents a shift from traditional Boer womanhood to the radical “new” womanhood. Not only does Lyndall achieve this, she also evolves into a Christ for the new woman, affirming that the path towards independence is worthwhile. Lyndall’s actions serve as an example, not only for women of her era to take control of their lives, but for women of the current age to appreciate what members of the “new” womanhood achieved for their sake.

Works Cited

Schreiner, Olive. The Story of an African Farm. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1993. Print.