Lady Audley’s Independence

When google imaging “pre-Raphaelite”, all of the paintings depicted are of women-women with long protruding hair and wandering, pain-filled eyes. The first word that came to my mind when grazing these paintings was distress. The only way to really describe “pre-Raphaelite” is ethereal; all of these women are in white dresses, or are naked. I would describe these paintings as sort of distressed, or scandalous. Most of these women are covering themselves up, whether it be with their hands, arms, or their hair. A lot of these women are combing or brushing their hair, are surrounded by flowers, surrounded by fairy like colors and textures, and they are usually alone.

I think that Lady Audley’s portrait is said to be in this style because of the secrecy that goes on in the style of the paintings. These women look guilty, or distressed, or manipulative. In some of the paintings, the women look very vain and meek. Since these women are alone, it makes me think of the beginning of the book when Lady Audley says that she does not love anyone. It makes me think that she is alone and likes to be alone. There is an independence in “pre-Raphaelite” paintings that defy the sort of dependence that women are supposed to have at this time.