Non-Binary Gender and the Subversion of Domestic Ideology in The Spanish Gypsy
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This essay investigates George Eliot’s representation of gypsy communities, where her heroines either imagine or experience liberation from the rigid gender dichotomy and its prescribed roles. In The Mill on the Floss, Maggie Tulliver’s metaphorical gypsiness serves to highlight her deviation from conventional femininity, prompting her to fantasize about becoming a queen of the gypsy community where she would not be bound by English conventions. In The Spanish Gypsy, which reflects Eliot’s ambivalent views on British colonial expansion, the heroine Fedalma discovers her true heritage as the daughter of a gypsy tribe leader. Torn between becoming a passive wife to Duke Silva and an active leader succeeding her father, Fedalma ultimately chooses to lead the Zincali, thereby deviating from the conventional trajectory of a domesticated “angel in the house.” The poem’s ambiguous ending suggests that Fedalma dies alone, having made a monumental sacrifice. Many scholars interpret this as indicative of the entrapment typically faced by Eliot’s heroines. However, I argue that her journey signifies not only her sacrifice but also her success in seeking independent subjectivity—particularly through her exploration of her tribe’s ethnic identity, a quest that Fedalma initiates, and which will be solidified by subsequent generations.
Abstract
This essay investigates George Eliot’s representation of gypsy communities, where her heroines either imagine or experience liberation from the rigid gender dichotomy and its prescribed roles. In The Mill on the Floss, Maggie Tulliver’s metaphorical gypsiness serves to highlight her deviation from conventional femininity, prompting her to fantasize about becoming a queen of the gypsy community where she would not be bound by English conventions. In The Spanish Gypsy, which reflects Eliot’s ambivalent views on British colonial expansion, the heroine Fedalma discovers her true heritage as the daughter of a gypsy tribe leader. Torn between becoming a passive wife to Duke Silva and an active leader succeeding her father, Fedalma ultimately chooses to lead the Zincali, thereby deviating from the conventional trajectory of a domesticated “angel in the house.” The poem’s ambiguous ending suggests that Fedalma dies alone, having made a monumental sacrifice. Many scholars interpret this as indicative of the entrapment typically faced by Eliot’s heroines. However, I argue that her journey signifies not only her sacrifice but also her success in seeking independent subjectivity—particularly through her exploration of her tribe’s ethnic identity, a quest that Fedalma initiates, and which will be solidified by subsequent generations.