Womens portraits through marxist feminist theories in the novel master of the game by sidney sheldon

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF LINGUISTICS & CULTURES OF ENGLISH-SPEAKING COUNTRIES GRADUATION PAPER WOMEN'S PORTRAITS THROUGH MARXIST FEMINIST THEORIES IN THE NOVEL MASTER OF THE GAME BY SIDNEY SHELDON Supervisor: Dương Lê Đức Minh (M.A) Student: Nguyễn Thị Thu Hằng Course: QH2017.F1.E6 HÀ NỘI – 2021 ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA NGƠN NGỮ VÀ VĂN HĨA CÁC NƯỚC NĨI TIẾNG ANH KHĨA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP HÌNH TƯỢNG NGƯỜI PHỤ NỮ QUA CÁC HỌC THUYẾT NỮ QUYỀN MARXIST TRONG TIỂU THUYẾT NGƯỜI ĐÀN BÀ QUỶ QUYỆT CỦA SIDNEY SHELDON Giáo viên hướng dẫn: ThS Dương Lê Đức Minh Sinh viên: Nguyễn Thị Thu Hằng Khóa: QH2017.F1.E6 HÀ NỘI – 2021 I hereby state that I: Nguyễn Thị Thu Hằng, QH2017.F1.E6, being a candidate for the degree of Bachelor of Arts English language teacher education accept the requirements of the College relating to the retention and use of Bachelor’s Graduation Paper deposited in the library In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper Signature Date Signature of Approval: ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Initially, I wish to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, M.A Duong Le Duc Minh, for your invaluable support during my study I was really worried about whether I followed the wrong direction until you reassured me that “there is no right or wrong path, just choose your own way.” It is wholeheartedly appreciated that your great advice for my work proved monumental towards the success of this dissertation Without your persistent help, I would never have had the courage to finish my thesis I would like to thank the Faculty of Linguistics & Cultures of EnglishSpeaking Countries and all of my lecturers who grant me opportunities and great advice so that I could maintain my work Without your support, this study could not have reached its goal I wish to show my appreciation to my coworker, Mrs Trang, who inspires me with this paper Since I did not know where to start, Mrs Trang suggested several topics, which evoked in me various ideas to research I would like to thank my mentor from my exchange at Srinakharinwirot university, M.A Nguyen Thi Loan Phuc, for her valuable guidance and suggestions throughout my studies She provided stimulating discussions as well as useful solutions for some of my problems I also want to offer my special thanks to my friends who accompany me during four years of study, especially Tam and Minh Anh, who are of great motivations to me in this dissertation Minh Anh has helped me find my true passion and pursue it until the end Special regards to Tam, ignoring the length and complexity of the essay, she is willing to read it from the unfinished one to a complete thesis so that she could give me some recommendations Finally, I wish to acknowledge the support and great love of my family who nurtures my passion for literature They exposed me to progressive thoughts and allowed me to freely pursue my happiness They usually comfort me and encourage me with kind words when I am stuck They kept me going on, and this thesis would not have been possible without their input i ABSTRACT For centuries, feminism struggling for equality and against oppression has achieved accomplishes and reinforced women’s position However, with the domination of capitalism and the rise of production leading to increasing labor demand, women are exploited not only by men but also by capitalism, as indicated by Marxist feminism In this context, the novel Master of the game by Sheldon illuminates various perspectives of Marxist feminists; however, the work has not been analyzed by many scholars To fill in the research gap, this thesis applies textual analysis method to demonstrate Sheldon’s depiction of Marxist feminism Commencing with the women’s position, the novel asserts the inferior position of women in capitalism as sex-affective production, which is the main culprit of women’s sufferings To challenge the sexual division of labor, favorable conditions regarding family background, ideology, and men’s assistance are granted to women so that they could reach the superior position as dominant employers in the novel Those beneficial conditions are claimed by Marxist feminism to restore gender equality, but they are solely the privileges of white bourgeois women By ignoring women of color and women of the proletariat, the novel criticizes Marxist feminism for the lack of race and class as intertwined gender inequalities structures The novel also infers a men's conspiracy that men advocate women's emancipation by placing them in an equal position with men but let them suffer tragic ends to keep women under control Finally, the novel affirms the importance of women with the appropriate awareness of their role in society to fight for self-liberation from men and capitalism ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT i ABSTRACT ii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1 The irreplaceable position of Marxist feminism in the current context Addressing Marxist feminism in Master of the game by Sidney Sheldon CHAPTER II: THE WOMEN’S ROLE IN SOCIETY AND PRODUCTION Inferior position: Sex-affective production Superior position: capitalist employer 20 CHAPTER III: A CRITIQUE OF MARXIST FEMINISM: TOWARDS AN EGALITARIAN SOCIETY 33 The privileges of white bourgeois women 33 The unhappy endings for women ahead of their time 38 CHAPTER IV: CONCLUSION 42 REFERENCES 45 iii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION The irreplaceable position of Marxist feminism in the current context When it comes to the gender equality movement, feminism is considered the principal focus of public debate Currently, there are numerous expressions of feminism Lewis (2019) states that “Feminism is a complex set of ideologies and theories that at its core seeks to achieve equal social, political, and economic rights for women and men” To put it differently, feminism includes beliefs, ideas, and movements that endorse the women's revolution against oppression and inequality This definition encompasses the dominance of men over women as a cause of women's sufferings In the book The Second Sex (1956), Beauvoir defines a woman not in herself but relative to a man Accordingly, while men are superior, women are subordinate, and they suffer from a wide range of inequality Besides the definitions explaining feminism relating to society, “there are many statements within the constellation of feminist ideals, groups, and movements related to workplace unfairness, discrimination, and oppression that result from the real disadvantages women experience” (Lewis, 2019) Concerning the origin of the word “feminism”, the term which covers the modern sense of women’s freedom or emancipation first appeared during the 1870s in France (Lewis, 2019) Along with progressive stages of human socio-economic formations, feminism has gone through many phases of development which are crucial to consider when constituting the definitions of feminism At particular stages, the nature and manifestation of feminism will be various due to the different culprits of oppression Any literary works, under the distinct theoretical frameworks of feminist studies such as Liberal feminism, Marxist feminism, or Radical Feminism, will shed light on various complex issues that expose different aspects of women’s movement not only in historical tension between women and men but also in capitalist structure However, analysis encompassing all feminism frameworks is futile, so the concern should be based on a specific period of human development Nowadays, it is a fact that although women are included in the production process, their positions remain so inferior that manifests in the limited jobs and subordinating places Never before have women played various roles as nowadays in the sense that they are supposed not to be dutiful and willing wives or beloved and helpful mothers, but also responsible and obedient employees Bhattacharjee and Tripathi (2012) claim that women are struggling with a wide range of stress from social status and role changing that deprives them of happiness The women’s exploitation and oppression become more obvious and serious that requires a proper feminism analysis framework to better the situation Based on the current context and meticulous research into feminism, the thesis will discuss only Marxist feminism Marxist feminism is defined by Sheivari (2014) as “a set of theoretical frameworks that have emerged out of the intersection of Marxism and Feminism” While “Marxism deals with a form of inequality that arises from the class dynamics of capitalism”, “Feminism deals with another form of inequality which is the inequality between the sexes” (Sheivari, 2014) Marxist feminism aims to liberate women from their oppression and exploitation within capitalism In analyzing feminism, there are three stages of Marxist’s attempt to deal with women's questions Initially, early Marxists argue that capital and private property are the causes of women's particular oppression and they “saw capitalism drawing all women into the wage labor force, and saw this process destroying the sexual division of labor” (Sargent, 1981, p 4) As expressing in Origins of the Family, Private Property, and the State (1884), Engels assumes that women’s emancipation could be gained through their participation in the labor force and become economically independent of men It is clear from the first Marxist approach that women’s liberation requires women to enter wage works and struggle against capitalism (Sargent, 1981) The second approach lies in the differential experiences of men and women under capitalism Such temporary Marxists have incorporated women into an analysis of everyday life in capitalism (Sargent, 1981) In this stage, scholars assert that women's increased oppression is caused by their exclusion from wage work (Sargent, 1981) Capitalism forces men to wage work and create value, but limits women to work at home to reproduce wage workers for the capitalist system without any income Women are deprived of the rights to be independent of men; as a result, they become subordinate to men (Sargent, 1981) The last approach has focused on housework and its relation to capital According to Sargent (1981), in this stage, housework is emphasized to such an extent that they challenge women’s role in the labor market Marxist feminists recognize that women’s oppression originates not only from capitalists but also from men because of the fact that women doing the housework might produce surplus and bring benefits for capitalists and men directly For this reason, men will resist the liberation of women, and women must struggle with both men and capitalists to be emancipated (Sargent, 1981) By illuminating the effects and defects of Marxist feminism in analyzing and solving women’s oppression, this dissertation will examine the 1982 bestselling novel Master of the game by Sidney Sheldon through a theoretical lens of Marxist feminism studies Addressing Marxist feminism in Master of the game by Sidney Sheldon In 1982, the world’s master storyteller with over 300 million books in print, Sidney Sheldon published his sixth novel in a series about women called Master of the game The story debuted at number one on the New York Times bestseller list and stayed there for 11 weeks It not only received the recognition of the public but also is credited as the best thriller novel and the first Sidney Sheldon title to be picked up by Goodreads Sidney Sheldon chooses the setting history of the book from the end of the 19th century to the 20th century embracing a huge number of events in the world Those significant occasions include two world wars that redistributed the wealth and power among countries, as well as influential feminist waves against oppression and injustice in Western society The novel is a utopian story about the power and glorious victory of women in a critical era of feminism in crisis Before developing any in-depth claim on the novel, this study will briefly include an overview of the novel through the plots and main characters that are relevant to the theoretical analysis of the novel The story begins with the flashback of 90-year-old Kate Blackwell, an immensely powerful woman who is a matriarch of the Blackwell family and head of multinational conglomerates Kate was born in an affluent family whose parents are successful entrepreneurs After the death of her father and her older brother, she is raised by her mother and always dreams of possessing ultimate power Kate grows up with different perspectives and actions from other ordinary girls and she ends up being a master who dominates both men and capitalism Kate represents a strongwilled female coming from a privileged class and race, who struggles and thrives in a capitalist society The first woman appearing vividly in Kate’s memory is Margaret, Kate’s mother Margaret used to be a submissive daughter of a deceitful merchant who deceives every poor diamond digger for treasure including Margaret’s future husband, Jamie Because of the man’s evil, Margaret becomes the most pitiful victim in the story under the oppressions of both men and capitalism After various struggles, Margaret develops into an independent woman and protects her child in reveals one of the most brutal realities about black women’s oppression and their lowest position in capitalism at the end of the 19 century and 20 century th th According to Aguilar (2015), black women are situated at the absolute bottom of productive social relations Not only are they ruthlessly exploited by their employers, but they also receive cruel physical punishment from both slave men and white owners Joseph (1981) also asserts that under any circumstances, black women are supposed to rely on their black men for help, assistance, and interest That is to emphasize the male supremacy within the patriarchal system of capitalism in which “all men benefit from the subordination of women” (Arruzza, 2013, as cited in Aguilar, 2015) In addition to an inferior position in production, black females are also sexual slaves, who are mostly treated as sexual objects and “placed in an extremely powerless and precarious position” (Joseph, 1981, p 102) While those women suffer from private assault by black men, they are also in danger of public sexual assault by white men who have never been executed for raping the Black in a period that the “most vicious, atrocious, defiling and dehumanizing rapist behavior” is legal (Joseph, 1981, p 99) In the novel, Banda’s sister is only 11 years old when she is raped by Mr Van der Merwe, and “she died giving birth to his baby” The no-name little girl is soon forgotten by everyone except her brother who is in a burning desire for vengeance This poor girl does not have an identity, let alone an opportunity to protest Sheldon has briefly told a plain truth which is common at that time, then dissolves the problem without any struggle or resistance from black women It is obvious that the author has ignored racial equality in feminism in Master of the game In terms of the proletarian, they also appear in a fleeting moment like black women A significant character of this class in the novel is a model who is paid by Kate to manipulate her son 34 Your mother arranged for me to model there." He felt sick to his stomach He forced himself to go on "So, I could meet you?" "Yes, I—" "And she paid you to become my mistress, to pretend to love me?" "Yes It was just after the war—it was terrible I had no money … "Your mother wanted me to keep an eye on you." He thought of Dominique's tenderness and her lovemaking— bought and paid for, courtesy of his mother—and he was sick with shame All along, he had been his mother's puppet, controlled, manipulated His mother had never given a damn about him He was not her son He was her crown prince, her heir apparent All that mattered to her was the company (pp 149, 150) The model is just considered a tool of Kate, who represents the bourgeoisie Sheldon has characterized the young lady as a person who is willing to exchange morality and her body for money Anyhow, her behavior could be explained and sympathized with as it originates from a desire to live a better life during the time when a majority of women are oppressed and placed in inferior positions To conclude, neither the proletarian women nor black women have chances to protest and struggle in capitalist society On the other hand, the author seems to approve the claim that “all are women, but some are more women than others” when he devotes remarkable privileges and favors to white bourgeois women Concerning the women’s revolution in capitalism, Marx (1867) demonstrates the necessity to contend as workers who struggle against capitalism It is a well-known fact that in capitalism, women suffer from both men and capitalists, who often “have conflicting interests over the use of women’s labor power” (Hartmann, 1981, p 19) To put it another way, while men want to retain their wives’ services at home, capitalists encourage women to work out, so that they could exploit female workers in poor working conditions and low wages Although women’s oppressions arise from two sides, Marxism shows one struggle only, which is against capitalism As Heidi Hartmann (1981) notes in the introduction of The Unhappy Marriage of Marxism and Feminism, “Marxism and feminism are one, and that one is Marxism Recent attempts to integrate Marxism 35 and feminism are unsatisfactory to us as feminists because they subsume the feminist struggle into the "larger" struggle against capital.” (p 2) Accordingly, Marxism is not only sex-blind, but it is sexist as well, which mostly concerns the emancipation of some men from other men In addition, women cannot expect men to liberate them from any oppression; on the contrary, it is their combat to achieve liberation In Master of the game, Sheldon has dealt with the problem by granting white bourgeois women numerous exclusive privileges One of the ideal women is Kate, who comes from the upper class with a broad economic background Kate possesses essential resources, production materials, and means of labor to operate her conglomerate and enhance the substantial impact on the world economy The governor eulogized her " One of the most remarkable women in the history of this nation … 'Never have so many owed so much to one person.' I have had the privilege of knowing Kate Blackwell " (p 2) […] It's the next best thing to Jesus Christ We're the resurrection, Tony We save lives by the hundreds of thousands (p 130) […] Kruger-Brent's empire had expanded to include paper mills, an airline, banks and a chain of hospitals Tony learned that a name is a key that opens all doors There are clubs and organizations and social cliques where the coin of the realm is not money or influence, but the proper name (p 146) Kate is honored in many countries around the world Her power extends to many fields, benefiting the majority of the people Thus, she becomes the first respectable and influential woman not only in the history of the United State but also in the Western countries Besides favorable conditions, Kate’s characteristics, which are decisive, prudent, and ambitious, are also keys to dominate men In the beginning, Kate was treated with a tolerant condescension, but the attitude quickly changed to wary respect Kate took delight in the 36 maneuvering and machinations of the game David watched her outwit men with much greater experience She had the instincts of a winner She knew what she wanted and how to get it Power […] She was at the center of a whirlwind, giving orders, making incredible deals, taking him to exotic places, introducing him to interesting people She was an awesome figure, and Tony was inordinately proud of her He thought she was the most fascinating woman in the world (pp 118, 129) These men’s praise and admiration for Kate seems to contradict the sarcasm, criticism, or insults for women who dare to struggle mentioned by Beauvoir (1949) such as Bitch, lesbian, castrator Initially, the men treat her with tolerant condescension because of an old-fashioned thought that Kate is just a woman, so she cannot run the company, she cannot lead men, or bring achievements to her company But Kate has proven the opposite because she is not only great, who beats more experienced men than herself, but also has the instinct of a winner It seems that Kate was born to be a ruler, who makes men change their attitudes to accept and respect her; in addition, some of them are even willing to dedicate themselves to her and her company absolutely In contributing to this character’s image, the author intentionally shapes Kate’s identity by masculinity in an attempt to assist her to wage the next stage of domination Throughout the story, readers could recognize that Kate is a “master of all the games” she enters, even if it is the game of manipulating men or dominating capitalists The system of female characters in the story has reflected the author’s considerable concern about feminism and Marxism Regardless of the classism and racism, Sheldon seems to illustrate an equal world in which women would be in the equivalent position to men and be emancipated from all oppressions 37 The unhappy endings for women ahead of their time Although the white bourgeois women are granted exclusive prerogatives so that they could achieve various rights ahead of their time such as being capitalist owners or sexual freedom, there is an ironic ending that disheartens most readers The women who master themselves and have control over men and capitalists deserve happy endings; however, their lives end with sad endings The two white bourgeois women described in previous sections, Kate and Eve, who are constructed as imaginary women to oppose capitalism and patriarchy, encounter miserable outcomes in the end As to Kate, in her old age, It seemed to Kate that the wheel of time was spinning faster, hurrying the days along, blending winter into spring and summer into autumn, until all the seasons and years blurred into one She was in her late eighties now Eighty what? Sometimes she forgot her exact age … Kate had no intention of letting outsiders take over what Jamie McGregor and Margaret and she and David had suffered and toiled so long and so hard for (p 269) […] The large ballroom was crowded with familiar ghosts come to help celebrate her birthday Kate opened her eyes The family had come into the room She looked at them, one by one, her eyes a pitiless camera, missing nothing My family, Kate thought My immortality A murderer, a grotesque and a psychotic The Blackwell skeletons Was this what all the years of hope and pain and suffering had finally come to? (pp 1-3) Even though Kate is surrounded by a rich social relationship network, she is still a lonely elderly widow She cannot stop working because of her lifelong ambition, which is having someone in Blackwell’s family take charge of the company that her parents, her husband, and she have contributed so long and so hard to, has not been completed Kate is in a dilemma between the calls of familiar ghosts and her passionate conviction about Kruger-Brent; however, the driving force still keeps her alive and she continues exerting herself Regarding Eve, 38 What had been done to her was punishment enough On the day Eve had seen her face in the mirror, she had tried to commit suicide […] "Please let me die," Eve begged her husband "Please, Keith! I don't want to live like this." "You belong to me now," Keith told her, "and I'll always love you." […] The only person who saw her was Keith He was, finally, the only one she had left He was her only link with the world, and she became terrified that he would leave her, that she would be left alone with nothing but her ugliness—her unbearable ugliness […] As time went on, Keith became more demanding, more peremptory, until Eve was finally and completely a slave to him, catering to his every whim Her ugliness bound her to him more strongly than iron chains (pp 269, 270) Eve is punished by her husband, who is a talented plastic surgeon, by destroying her beautiful face and keeping her belonging to him forever With her unbearable ugliness, Eve is too embarrassed and humiliated to meet other people Because her husband is her only link with the world, Eve increasingly depends on him, and finally, becomes his slave completely There is a slight possibility that with such outcomes determined for two characters, the author implicitly discusses the supposed natural roles of women in society which are child-rearing, child-bearing, and other domestic duties (Young, 1981) Even though the capitalist society offers women chances to live unconventionally, women's main goal and self-definition are to be a wife and mother, and admirable qualities for women include being attractive to men and being sufficient to address the needs of a family (Holmstrom, 1984) It might be clear from the novel that these women break their natural roles and challenge the norm, so they would be punished not only by men but also by natural forces The punishment could be regarded as a warning to women who dare to neglect their duties and to be more superior than men as demonstrated by Sargent in Women and Revolution (1981) Accordingly, after men recognize that they could 39 no longer indulge in more glaring forms of sexism because women have increased their appropriate recognition and systemic responses to inequalities, men develop an intricate series of more subtle and gender-based practices (Sargent, 1981) One of the most worldwide conspiracies is to manipulate certain women as tools to adjust to other women, and to let them be the background of men If this trick were to be applied in the book, it would be a warning to all women ahead of the time about the unhappy consequences they might face in case of violating traditional rules and being against men Thus, men could discourage women’s movement, and strengthen their superior position over women In the novel, the warning to women is also supported by emphasizing the scarcity of those ideal women As explained in the previous sections about the two unattainable female characters, to be powerful women, they both possess various favorable factors, especially the assistance of men, which is difficult to become reality in a society that men gain a huge range of benefits from exploiting and oppressing women Readers could realize this detail effortlessly as apart from Kate and Eve, other women only appear in inferior positions, who are subject to much oppression and exploitation in that society Besides, most of the important careers such as a doctor, entrepreneur, advisor, and other professionals are occupied by men, while housewife is the only job for ordinary women in Master of the game In another perspective, Sidney Sheldon is among men, who directly gain benefits from women’s labor, so even though they approve of gender equality, “there is no reason to think they would know how” (Hartmann, 1981, p 32) According to Hartmann, the only struggle for men is against capitalism, whereas women have to fight against both gender oppression and labor exploitation (1981) The role of men in capitalism typically excludes them from acknowledging human needs for nurturing, sharing, developing, and fulfilling those needs in a non-hierarchical, nonpatriarchal community In the story, the writer emancipates women by devaluating feminine personalities and characterizing them as owners with valued masculine traits which 40 are manifested and reinforced in those characters early in their life Moreover, there is unquestionable evidence proved by Hartmann that women’s oppression in the modern era is complicated and pervasive despite the fact that the development of capitalism makes women independent from, and equal to men (Young, 1981) One of the women’s sufferings described by Sheldon in Master of the game is burning ambition to dominate both capital and men that lead to endless haunting and tragic ends of those characters Sheldon’s opinion through the endings seems to indicate that women would not be totally emancipated from any oppression, neither capitalism if they participate in the production as claimed by Engel (1884), nor men after the revolution (Hartmann, 1981) It is concluded that women’s issues must be confronted by women with correct and sufficient understandings Furthermore, women should not continue endorsing the misleading and concrete privileges of men 41 CHAPTER IV: CONCLUSION Within the theoretical framework of Marxist feminism, this thesis sheds the light on women’s position in capitalism as well as Sheldon’s efforts to contribute to an egalitarian society through the novel Master of the game Besides, there is an argument about the shortage of Marxist feminism and the incomplete happiness of women The second chapter expresses both agreement and challenge to Marxist feminism towards women’s position in society Based on the analysis of Marx and Engels (1848), Sidney Sheldon has vividly portrayed the inferior position of women Although women in capitalism are supposed to complete household chores and earn income as well, their pivotal role is sex-affective production which is rearing and bearing children A typical character representing the sufferings of women in the story is Margaret Margaret is oppressed and exploited by both men and capitalism As for men, she is not only a tool for her father to earn money and to show his pride but also an accessory for her husband to avenge Regarding capitalism, Margaret is cornered with no shelter, but she couldn’t find any jobs and ends up assisting prostitutes in doing housework to raise her child alone Because of his hatred, Margaret’s husband abandons her with their child, leading to a tragedy that makes Margaret an impure woman who has sex and gets pregnant with a man before marriage The culprits of women’s oppression are assumed to originate from the differences in biology and long-standing traditions in society As people take it for granted that women's physical strengths might be weaker than men, especially because women have the ability to give birth, they are considered “object” or “the sex” who belong to men with the role of bearing and rearing children, fulfilling housework and satisfying their husbands (Beauvoir, 1949) While the author affirms Marxist feminism about women’s status in that period, he also challenges those analyses by depicting winning women who are in more superior positions to men Sheldon’s willfulness in constituting utopia, favorable factors for women to reverse 42 their current position reflects Young’s research in 1981 about a holistic approach to women’s position in both the real world and imagination The novel completes panoramic views of the woman's position by adopting the central character, Kate, and her niece, Eve Those women were born and raised in privileged family backgrounds, in which the bourgeoisie own great properties and corporations The author pays more attention to Kate, who possesses numerous characteristics of a successful entrepreneur, inheriting from her father and her grandfather Besides, as her father and older brother died when she was born, Kate was brought up by her mother with modern education and a variety of opportunities to select As a result, Kate has different perspectives compared with other ladies One more noticeably favored situation contributing to Kate’s success is that she has full supports from her husband and male staff It can be easily seen that such women are provided with ample favorable conditions, as well as protected from old traditions By granting women those privileges, Sidney Sheldon expects that women could be in the same position as men or even occupy a more superior position than men in society Chapter three deals with the shortcomings of Marxist feminists through the analysis of character groups in the novel, and indicates other perspectives towards success and equality of women According to Colley (2015), and Bannerji (1995), there is a scarcity of works on race and class as integrated structures of gender inequality In other words, that the women of color are disregarded manifests in the rare appearance in the story, even if they are mentioned, there would be no solutions for their problems Take Banda’s sister as a clear example, this little girl even has no basic identity which is her name She is raped and exploited by a white man that leads to her death, ending the story about a black woman without a chance for her to struggle In regards to the proletarian, they are mostly considered tools for the bourgeoisie as the model Dominique in the novel By portraying those women as willing to sell morality and body in exchange for money, the author seems to express his insolent attitude towards the lower-class women Besides the study of the 43 inadequacy of race and class, this part also demonstrates other viewpoints about the endings of winning women or the women who break traditions and norms to dominate both men and capitalism In the novel, Sidney Sheldon describes those women as powerful and affluent people who manipulate others’ lives and dominate society However, instead of enjoying a fulfilling life, such women have to suffer from harsh endings As for Kate, although she reaches the peak of her career, she has no relatives to share lives and inherit the huge conglomerate Her son becomes crazy and means to kill her, her niece betrays and deceives her for the wealth Kate has not found a suitable heir, so she could not rest and follow the calls of her loved ones, but devotes her last breath to the conglomerate Eve is even more tragic because she is imprisoned in fear by her husband The outcomes raise doubts for the readers whether this is a trick of men to warn women about the tragedies they would get if they dared to fight against men as analyzed by Sargent (1981) In a positive aspect, the endings may be a reflection of the author's failure to build an egalitarian society, in which women deserve happiness This point affirms Engels's claim (1884) that women only engaging in production could not be liberated from capitalism and Hartmann's assertion (1981) that women cannot rely on men to be emancipated In that sense, within the theoretical framework of Marxist feminism, Master of the game has exposed the causes and manifestations of women’s inferior position in capitalism By establishing the image of the dominant women in the most intense period of capitalism, Sidney Sheldon has aroused concerns about gender equality and the struggles for justice in production and society At the same time, the issue of race and class as intertwined inequalities is also mentioned and illuminated 44 REFERENCES Aguilar, D D (2015) Intersectionality In S Mojab, Marxism and Feminism (pp 203-220) London: Zed Books Ltd Al-Hibri, A (1981) Capitalism is an advanced stage of patriarchy: But Marxism is not feminism In L Sargent, Women and revolution (pp 165-193) Quebec: Black Rose Books Ltd Bannerji, H (1995) Thinking Through Toronto: Women's Press Beauvoir, S d (1949) The Second Sex Paris Beauvoir, S d (1956) The Second Sex London: Jonathan Cape Bhattacharjee, S., & Tripathi, P (2012) A study on psychological stress of working women Research Gate, 434-436 Brown, C (1981) Mothers, fathers and children: From private to public patriarchy In L Sargent, Wome and Revolution (pp 239-267) Quebec: Black Rose Books Ltd Colley, H (2015) Labour-power In S Mojab, 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In L Sargent, Women and revolution - A discussion of the unhappy marriage (pp 195-217) Quebec: Black Rose Books Ltd Young, I (1981) Beyond the unhappy marriage: a critique of the dual systems theory In L Sargent, Women and revolution - A discussion of the unhappy marriage (pp 43-69) Quebec: Black Rose Books Ltd 48 ... 1981) By illuminating the effects and defects of Marxist feminism in analyzing and solving women’s oppression, this dissertation will examine the 1982 bestselling novel Master of the game by Sidney. .. the game by Sidney Sheldon through a theoretical lens of Marxist feminism studies Addressing Marxist feminism in Master of the game by Sidney Sheldon In 1982, the world’s master storyteller with... irreplaceable position of Marxist feminism in the current context Addressing Marxist feminism in Master of the game by Sidney Sheldon CHAPTER II: THE WOMEN’S ROLE IN SOCIETY AND PRODUCTION Inferior position: