THE ROLE OF EDUCATION IN SHAPING FEMALE IDENTITY

Аннотация

In this article by drawing partial parallels to Becky Sharp, we can see how Catherine Hayes is also an intelligent woman in her own unschooled, “streetwise” manner, navigating a world that offers few legal or respectable avenues for female self-determination. Unlike Becky, Catherine never had the limited but real educational training that might elevate her rhetorical skills or allow her to pass among the polite classes. Instead, her cunning emerges from raw survival instincts. Keywords: draw, partial, parallel, Becky Sharp, Catherine Hay, intelligent, woman, unschooled, manner, navigating, world, few legal, respectable, avenues, female self-determination, never, real, educational, might, rhetorical, skills, allow, emerges, survival instincts. РОЛЬ ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ В ФОРМИРОВАНИИ ЖЕНСКОЙ ИДЕНТИЧНОСТИ Аннотация. В этой статье, проводя частичные параллели с Бекки Шарп, мы можем увидеть, что Кэтрин Хейз также является умной женщиной в своей собственной необразованной, «уличной» манере, ориентирующейся в мире, который предлагает мало законных или респектабельных путей для женского самоопределения. В отличие от Бекки, Кэтрин никогда не имела ограниченного, но реального образовательного образования, которое могло бы повысить ее риторические навыки или позволить ей пройти среди вежливых классов. Вместо этого ее хитрость возникает из сырых инстинктов выживания. Ключевые слова: рисовать, частичный, параллель, Бекки Шарп, Кэтрин Хей, умная, женщина, необразованная, манера, ориентирующаяся, мир, мало законных, респектабельных, путей, женское самоопределение, никогда, реальный, образовательный, может, риторический, навыки, позволять, возникает, инстинкты выживания. William Makepeace Thackeray (1811–1863) was celebrated for his detailed and satirical portrayals of British society in the mid-nineteenth century. His best-known novels, including Vanity Fair (1847–1848) and Pendennis (1848–1850), examine the manners, morals, and ambitions of various social classes, often centering on the precarious position of women. Catherine 9 45 International scientific journal ISSN: 2181-3906 «MODERN SCIENCE АND RESEARCH» 2025 VOLUME 4 / ISSUE 2 / UIF:8.2 / MODERNSCIENCE.UZ (1839–1840), an earlier work published in serialized form in Fraser’s Magazine, occupies a unique place in Thackeray’s canon. While it has sometimes been dismissed by critics as a parody of the so-called “Newgate novels,” more recent scholarship has underscored its importance in understanding Thackeray’s evolving attitude toward female characters and social issues.[1; 195- 210] In Vanity Fair, Thackeray presents two major female protagonists, Becky Sharp and Amelia Sedley, each with contrasting approaches to life, ambition, and virtue. Becky Sharp, famously witty and opportunistic, epitomizes the resourceful woman who uses her intellect, charm, and cunning to climb socially, often ignoring moral constraints. Amelia Sedley, by contrast, exemplifies a more conventional Victorian ideal of feminine softness, nurturing, and moral sentiment, though she lacks the agency or penetrating insight that Becky wields so effectively. This tension—between the cunning, educated or semi-educated female on one hand, and the docile, tradition-bound female on the other—runs throughout Thackeray’s oeuvre. If we look back at Catherine, which takes place in the early eighteenth century, we notice that Catherine Hayes’s portrayal as a criminal, a seductress, and, at times, a pitiable figure highlights Thackeray’s interest in understanding the deeper motivations and limitations of women in a society with rigid structures. Catherine has often been read as a far darker and more direct exploration of the consequences of limited opportunities for women—especially women of lower social standing. Thackeray’s irony and moral commentary in Catherine foreshadow the complexities he would later develop more subtly in Vanity Fair. By drawing partial parallels to Becky Sharp, we can see how Catherine Hayes is also an intelligent woman in her own unschooled, “streetwise” manner, navigating a world that offers few legal or respectable avenues for female self-determination. Unlike Becky, Catherine never had the limited but real educational training that might elevate her rhetorical skills or allow her to pass among the polite classes. Instead, her cunning emerges from raw survival instincts. This divergence underscores the thematic significance of education in shaping the trajectories and moral frameworks of Thackeray’s women. Becky’s partial success and partial downfall are intimately tied to her mastery of language and social etiquette, while Catherine’s fate is more brutal and abrupt, shaped by an even starker lack of moral and intellectual guidance. [2; 124] 9 46 International scientific journal ISSN: 2181-3906 «MODERN SCIENCE АND RESEARCH» 2025 VOLUME 4 / ISSUE 2 / UIF:8.2 / MODERNSCIENCE.UZ The following hierarchical chart illustrates the eighteenth-and early nineteenth-century notions of “separate spheres,”