Concept of Beauty in the novel Angel of the Knight by

Diana Hall

Introduction
Feminine beauty exists in modern novels especially in the novel Angel
of the Knight by Diana Hall. In this novel, Isolde, the protagonist suffers
a lot because of her beauty.
She used to be had long soft hairs and a good facial symmetry. Her
brother-in-law Titus killed her husband William in order to marry her
and to gain all her wealth. But she did not do so and thus she loses her
life at the end during her childbirth.
During her labor time she needs a physician but the evil Titus refuses to
call the doctor, he demands her to sign a contract of giving her wealth
to him. She refuses to do so and loses her battle of life, and this is all
because of her young eight years old daughter Gwendolyn.
Generally, feminine beauty is a socially constructed notion that physical
attractiveness is one of the prominent undercover of every woman to
gain and maintain it. Feminine beauty involves the female body shape
and style.
Background
Angel of the Knight is a modern novel, published in the late 19th
century (1998). The modern era is considered mostly suitable
for novel development.
Nowadays novels are used to be the prominent media of fiction
writing. There are sparks of realism in modern novels. As V.
Colby says, “encouraged by the response of the avid novel
reading public in early nineteenth century England, contain
domestic realism” (V Colby 2015).
Novels of 20th century contain love for romance against the
traditional idea of lifelines and materialism of today novels.
“Sex, love and romance in mass media, unrealistic portrayals
and their influence” (ML Galician 2004).
At the time of Georgian period, a new trend started that English
fiction rotates around the idealization of sex and human
feelings and love. This was highly satirized by Victorians and
given emphasis on married love and illegitimate coquetry.
“Victorian women were licensed to objectify women as were
Victorian men” (S Marcus 2009).

Research Objectives
 To highlight the feminine beauty in the text of “Angel
of the Knight.”
 To investigate the sufferings of the female
protagonist in the text of “Angel of the Knight.”
Research Questions
 How the feminine beauty has been depicted in the novel?
 How the female protagonist suffers in the novel?

Significance of the Study

Investigation of the feminine beauty in the novel “Angel of the
Knight” is the fundamental desire of our study.
To come to know about the various opinions about feminine
beauty that is socially constructed or the outcome of the
individual perception.
To know about the main assets of a women that is the feminine
beauty which she wants to achieve and maintain.
Literature Review
Women are constantly bombarded by information in mass
media which transmits and reinforces values, norms, and ideals
of fashion and beauty via images of models, movie stars, and
female celebrities in a variety of media formats (Polivy &
Herman, 2004).
Mass media often portray attractive people as more desirable,
credible, and inspirational (Solomon, Ashmore, & Longo, 1992).
This reflects the mainstream culture’s obsession with thinness
and beauty (Chung & Bissell, 2009).
Previous research has documented the significant influence of
mass media on appearance norms, which suggests that
increasing exposure to mediated beauty enhances
internalization and fantasizing by women and girls about
obtaining the characteristic body shape and facial
attractiveness promoted by the media (Polivy & Herman, 2004).
The Effect of Media Images on Individual Perception and
Identification
Scholars have examined the role of physical attractiveness in
personal perception and have found that attractive individuals
are evaluated more favorably (Miller, 1970), being seen as
more desirable (Dion, Bersheid, & Walster, 1972) and more
successful in social interaction (Reis, Nazlek, & Wheeler, 1980).
Although the present study is not an effects study, it is
important to have a justification for the study of content.
Research on the effects of exposure to appearance- oriented
content has consistently shown that it is damaging. Girls and
young women in particular are extremely influenced by
mediated images showing exceptionally thin female models
and may take destructive paths filled with low self-esteem,
body image dissatisfaction, anorexia, bulimia, and depression in
order to attain their ideal image (Harrison & Cantor, 1997;
Lavine, Sweeney, & Wagner, 1999).
Global Media and the Universal Ideal of Beauty
It has been argued that the growing trade and improved
communication technology in the globalization process have
led to an increasing level of global integration between cultures
(Giddens, 1990). As a social construct, the ideal of beauty and
attractiveness is not immune from the pervasive trend of
globalization. Before the global age, each culture had a unique
standard of attractiveness derived from traditional views about
beauty as well as the physical features of the people. For
example, the traditional Korean image of beauty was average
or even overweight in size because it represented abundance
(Han, 2003).
Identifying “Ideal” Beauty and Related Constructs
The factors related to perceptions of beauty are quite complex.
Saltzberg and Chrisler (1997) believe that beauty “cannot be
quantified or objectively measured; it is the result of the
judgment of others” (p. 135). However, the media may function
in a similar way in other cultures and societies by transmitting
norms about ideal beauty and appearance via mediated
content.
Traditionally, studies analyzing the identification of beauty rely
on research that specifically examines faces in photographs.
Yet, facial beauty is not the only factor in attractiveness, which
also includes grooming, dress, cosmetic use, hairstyle (Cash,
Rissi, & Chapman, 1985), nonverbal behavior, conversation
skills, and humor (Miller, Berg, & Archer, 1983; Purvis, Dabbs, &
Hopper, 1984).

Methodology
The methodology used over here is qualitative one. We must
carry out the textual analysis of the novel in order to explore
the female beauty.
For this purpose, we will collect arguments through thorough
reading of the text and analysis of it.
Conclusion
We searched out the female beauty in the novel and found that
it is only the legacy that a female owns. Female sometimes
suffers a lot because of her feminine grace and brings more
difficulties and obstacle in her life.
Like in the novel the protagonist Isolde suffers because of her
beauty, and she accepts the death, because she thinks that her
death assures the life of her daughter, Gwendolyn. And finally,
she dies due to the evil deeds of her brother-in law, Titus.
References