Hardy and women: A study in ambivalence.

This thesis attempts to take a fresh look at the long-running critical debate regarding Hardy's attitude to women as revealed in his prose fiction. Writing in a predominantly male literary tradition, and sharing a Christian ethic which held women responsible for the shattering of Edenic bliss, Hardy's fiction sometimes betrays certain misogynic traits as the author/narrator seems trapped in the gender-stereotyping so characteristic of his age. Reductive generalizations regarding woman's nature, often crudely bio-determined, pepper Hardy's novels even as late as Jude. Conversely, Hardy's sincere sympathy for woman as victim of patriarchal repression and exploitation emerges powerfully not only in Tess but also in those unjustly neglected short stories of the 1890s which reveal certain radically feminist tendencies, e.g. on eugenics. This study draws on unpublished letters and manuscripts in the Dorset County Museum and also on Hardy's marginalia, his published letters, literary 'Notebooks', and autobiography, as these offer interesting sidelights on authorial intentions and attitudes. The insights from these extra-textual sources are used to complement the textual analysis of one 'minor' and one 'major' prose work from the 1870s, 1880s, and 1890s. The study then examines Hardy's attitudes to his two wives vis-a-vis their literary ambitions: his strange unconcern regarding his first wife's creative efforts, in sharp contrast to his active promotion of the careers of his (would-be) second wife and a couple of other aristocratic literary 'pupils'. Following this is a detailed exploration of Hardy's relations with some of his contemporary female writers. The picture that finally emerges is of an artist who is often unable to transcend the blinkered male attitudes of his age, yet who courageously espouses certain revolutionary ideas on women's rights. This ambivalence is typical of a man who claimed to be content with tentativeness and disavowed any consistent 'philosophy' -- feminist or otherwise

La cité des femmes (1980) de Federico Fellini

<p><b>Three-dimensional quaternary structure of HA (A) and NA (B) proteins of 2015 A(H1N1)pdm09 strains from this study identifying mutations compared to A/California/04/2009 strain.</b> The three mutations at the antigenic epitopes within the receptor-binding pocket of HA protein were indicated. Probable binding position of oseltamivir in the NA protein of 2015 A(H1N1)pdm09 strain is shown in purple colour. The mutations are indicated in red and the amino acids responsible for oseltamivir binding are shown in black.</p

Phylogenetic tree of concatenated whole genomes of 2015 A(H1N1)pdm09 isolates of Kolkata, India and representative global isolates from different clades.

<p>The strains characterized in this study are designated with purple circle. The global influenza A A(H1N1)pdm09 virus clades are indicated in different colors.</p

Virulence gene profiles by PCR of <i>S</i>. Typhi and <i>S</i>. Paratyphi A Kolkata isolates, 2009–2013.

<p>ND, not done.</p

Dendrogram showing the cluster analysis of 76 <i>S.</i> Typhi isolates from Kolkata, India, 2009–2013, by <i>Xba</i>I-PFGE.

<p>Band comparison was performed by using the Dice coefficient with 1.5% optimization (Opt) and 1.5% position tolerance (Tol). Pan-susceptible, susceptible to all 17 drugs tested; A, ampicillin; Ac, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid; C, chloramphenicol; Q, co-trimoxazole; T, tetracycline; S, streptomycin; Na, nalidixic acid; Ci, ciprofloxacin; Of, ofloxacin; Le, levofloxacin.</p

MIC distributions of fluoroquinolones and azithromycin in all <i>S</i>. Typhi and <i>S.</i> Paratyphi A Kolkata Isolates during 2009–2013.

<p>Interrupted lines denote MIC breakpoints of the antimicrobials for susceptible (left line) and resistant (Right Line) isolates. Isolates having MICs between two Interrupted lines showed reduced susceptibility. For azithromycin, single interrupted line indicates MIC breakpoint (>16 µg/ml) of resistance.</p

Percentage distribution of antimicrobial resistance in <i>S.</i> Typhi and <i>S.</i> Paratyphi A Kolkata isolates during 2009–2013.

<p>Interpretation was based on the MIC values of the antimicrobials. A, ampicillin; C, chloramphenicol; Q, co-trimoxazole; T, tetracycline; S, streptomycin; Na, nalidixic acid; Ci, ciprofloxacin; Of, ofloxacin; Le, levofloxacin; Az, azithromycin, Ac, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid.</p

Phenotypic and molecular characteristics of drug resistant <i>S</i>. Typhi (n = 18) isolates from Kolkata during 2009–2013.

<p>Abbreviations used: MDR, multidrug resistant; ND, not done; A, ampicillin; C, chloramphenicol; Q, co-trimoxazole; T, tetracycline; S, streptomycin; Na, nalidixic acid; Ci, ciprofloxacin; Of, ofloxacin; Le, levofloxacin; Ac, amoxicillin/clavulanic acid.</p>a<p>all isolates were negative for <i>bla</i>_OXA, <i>bla</i>_SHV and <i>sul</i>3 genes by PCR.</p>b<p>possessed <i>dfr</i>A7 gene cassette as determined by sequencing of 750 bp PCR amplicon.</p>c<p>plasmid type: IncN; <i>tet</i>A was positive, but <i>tet</i>B was negative by PCR; transfer of <i>tet</i>A, <i>sul</i>1, <i>dfr</i>A15 and <i>aad</i>A1 genes by conjugation.</p>d<p>gene cassette could not be determined by sequencing of 1.6 kb PCR amplicon.</p

Dendrogram showing the cluster analysis of 24 <i>S.</i> Paratyphi A isolates from Kolkata, India, 2009–2013, by <i>Xba</i>I-PFGE.

<p>Band comparison was performed by using the Dice coefficient with 1.5% optimization (Opt) and 1.5% position tolerance (Tol). Pan-susceptible, susceptible to all 17 drugs tested; Na, nalidixic acid; Ci, ciprofloxacin; Of, ofloxacin; Az, azithromycin.</p

MIC₅₀ and MIC₉₀ of <i>S</i>. Typhi (n = 77) and <i>S</i>. Paratyphi A (n = 25) isolates from Kolkata, 2009 to 2013.

a<p>ST, <i>S.</i> Typhi.</p>b<p>SPA, <i>S.</i> Paratyphi A.</p>c<p>CLSI, 2013 guideline followed for all antimicrobials except azithromycin.</p