Lady Audley's Secret

Word Count: 290

Lady Audley's Secret

     The scene that I found important in the film Lady Audley's Secret is when Lucy states that no aminal being actively hunted accepts its fate. This appears to be conducive to her feelings about her life and situation. She is constantly being chased, or hunted, by someone throughout the entire film. Throughout all of this she never truly gives in. Even at the end of the film when she is taken to a mental institution, she manages to get away and start a completely new life again as she had done once before. It seems as if her former person, beginning with Helen, gets captured by the hunter, but somehow she perseveres and continues on. She never accepts her fate, in fact, she rejects it in a multitude of situations. 

    Lady Audley wants to be in charge of her own life and destiny. During this time, the fate of a woman rested on her ability to marry well. Because of her past struggles with poverty, she wants to set herself up for a married life where she does not need to worry about money. While she makes many drastic decisions and mistakes throughout the novel, the audience still feels some sympathy for her because of her past. Even in her first marriage, she married with the hope of comfort. When she did not receive this promised comfort, she changed her own fate by becoming Lucy. After she does not receive comfort in her second marriage, she changes her fate again and becomes someone new. This story seems similar to Fantomina by Eliza Haywood, but instead of changing oneself in pursuit of a lover, Lucy changes herself in pursuit of comfort, and her marriages are just a way of getting there.

Comments

  1. Cora MatthewsonFebruary 18, 2021 at 8:44 AM

    I love your analysis and I also found this scene important. I believe that idea that she is constantly hunted by someone throughout the whole film. Her life and situation is clearly unique and has mental problems because of all of the things that she does. She could possibly be viewed as someone that is a monster but I believe through your analysis and the film sha is also being hunted and that says a lot about her personality and why she is the way that she is. She does try to begin a new life but she really never escapes from the past as she is still being hunted. She does illistrate how she wanted to be in charge of her destiny and that was something women didn't really have control over which is another great point that you bring up in your analysis.

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