{"id":{"repo_id":"exeter","oai_identifier":"oai:figshare.com:article/32033319"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/exeter/oai:figshare.com:article/32033319","repository":{"repo_id":"exeter","name":"University of Exeter","base_url":"https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai"},"display":{"title":"Turning Back the Tide: Patriarchy and Post-War Femininity in Agatha Christie’s Taken at the Flood.","abstract":"Taken at the Flood’s lack of prominence in Agatha Christie’s canon is partly due to an ending that is problematic for contemporary readers. The female protagonist’s decision to stay with an abusive partner appears to condone domestic abuse. Yet, Taken at the Flood is also a valuable record of society in post-war Britain. Christie was a social diarist, and her works record the changing world in which she lived and wrote. Taken at the Flood is one of only a few of Christie’s works that are set at a precise point in time: in this case 1946. Patriarchal society had been destabilised by the war but the powerful elements of politics, media and judiciary within that post-war society viewed it as essential that women reverted to their pre-war roles of wife and mother. Yet this reinstated gendered power imbalance of that domesticity left some women vulnerable to abuse by their male partners, many of whom were themselves traumatised by the war. Taken at the Flood details the domestic abuse of a woman at the hands of her male partner, a military veteran, with what would now be termed coercive control. Furthermore, it highlights societal acceptance of domestic abuse, something reflected in reviews of Taken at the Flood at the time. This thesis, therefore, views the novel as a valuable, first-hand social record and this helps to address some of the more problematic issues contained within the narrative. The contemporary debates within Taken at the Flood – the post-war reinstatement of gender and class hierarchies – symbolise the conservative strands within post-war British society’s erroneous desire to return to pre-war values, however unequal they may be. In Taken at the Flood, Christie articulates concerns that there is danger in blinkered nostalgia, turning back the tide and reversing gender equality. In short, as opposed to condoning domestic abuse, Taken at the Flood utilises it to demonstrate the dangers of reverting to conservative and retrogressive pre-war attitudes.<p></p>","abstract_html":"Taken at the Flood’s lack of prominence in Agatha Christie’s canon is partly due to an ending that is problematic for contemporary readers. The female protagonist’s decision to stay with an abusive partner appears to condone domestic abuse. Yet, Taken at the Flood is also a valuable record of society in post-war Britain. Christie was a social diarist, and her works record the changing world in which she lived and wrote. Taken at the Flood is one of only a few of Christie’s works that are set at a precise point in time: in this case 1946. Patriarchal society had been destabilised by the war but the powerful elements of politics, media and judiciary within that post-war society viewed it as essential that women reverted to their pre-war roles of wife and mother. Yet this reinstated gendered power imbalance of that domesticity left some women vulnerable to abuse by their male partners, many of whom were themselves traumatised by the war. Taken at the Flood details the domestic abuse of a woman at the hands of her male partner, a military veteran, with what would now be termed coercive control. Furthermore, it highlights societal acceptance of domestic abuse, something reflected in reviews of Taken at the Flood at the time. This thesis, therefore, views the novel as a valuable, first-hand social record and this helps to address some of the more problematic issues contained within the narrative. The contemporary debates within Taken at the Flood – the post-war reinstatement of gender and class hierarchies – symbolise the conservative strands within post-war British society’s erroneous desire to return to pre-war values, however unequal they may be. In Taken at the Flood, Christie articulates concerns that there is danger in blinkered nostalgia, turning back the tide and reversing gender equality. In short, as opposed to condoning domestic abuse, Taken at the Flood utilises it to demonstrate the dangers of reverting to conservative and retrogressive pre-war attitudes.&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Jo Barlow (21045215)"],"institution":null,"degree_name":null,"degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-04-16T00:00:00Z","date_published":"2026-04-16T00:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:33:27Z","subjects":["Agatha Christie","Domestic abuse","post-war society","gender disparity","class disparity"],"languages":[],"rights":["All rights reserved","Open Access after 2027-10-16"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["10779/exe.32033319.v1"],"render_values":[{"text":"10779/exe.32033319.v1","href":null,"code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":null,"outbound_label":null,"outbound_source":null},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Jo Barlow (21045215)"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2026-04-16T00:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:relation","label":"Dc Relation","values":["https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/Turning_Back_the_Tide_Patriarchy_and_Post-War_Femininity_in_Agatha_Christie_s_Taken_at_the_Flood_/32033319"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Text","Thesis"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Agatha Christie","Domestic abuse","post-war society","gender disparity","class disparity"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["All rights reserved","Open Access after 2027-10-16"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["10779/exe.32033319.v1"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Taken at the Flood’s lack of prominence in Agatha Christie’s canon is partly due to an ending that is problematic for contemporary readers. The female protagonist’s decision to stay with an abusive partner appears to condone domestic abuse. Yet, Taken at the Flood is also a valuable record of society in post-war Britain. Christie was a social diarist, and her works record the changing world in which she lived and wrote. Taken at the Flood is one of only a few of Christie’s works that are set at a precise point in time: in this case 1946. Patriarchal society had been destabilised by the war but the powerful elements of politics, media and judiciary within that post-war society viewed it as essential that women reverted to their pre-war roles of wife and mother. Yet this reinstated gendered power imbalance of that domesticity left some women vulnerable to abuse by their male partners, many of whom were themselves traumatised by the war. Taken at the Flood details the domestic abuse of a woman at the hands of her male partner, a military veteran, with what would now be termed coercive control. Furthermore, it highlights societal acceptance of domestic abuse, something reflected in reviews of Taken at the Flood at the time. This thesis, therefore, views the novel as a valuable, first-hand social record and this helps to address some of the more problematic issues contained within the narrative. The contemporary debates within Taken at the Flood – the post-war reinstatement of gender and class hierarchies – symbolise the conservative strands within post-war British society’s erroneous desire to return to pre-war values, however unequal they may be. In Taken at the Flood, Christie articulates concerns that there is danger in blinkered nostalgia, turning back the tide and reversing gender equality. In short, as opposed to condoning domestic abuse, Taken at the Flood utilises it to demonstrate the dangers of reverting to conservative and retrogressive pre-war attitudes.<p></p>"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Turning Back the Tide: Patriarchy and Post-War Femininity in Agatha Christie’s Taken at the Flood."]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Jo Barlow (21045215)"],"dc:date":["2026-04-16T00:00:00Z"],"dc:description":["Taken at the Flood’s lack of prominence in Agatha Christie’s canon is partly due to an ending that is problematic for contemporary readers. The female protagonist’s decision to stay with an abusive partner appears to condone domestic abuse. Yet, Taken at the Flood is also a valuable record of society in post-war Britain. Christie was a social diarist, and her works record the changing world in which she lived and wrote. Taken at the Flood is one of only a few of Christie’s works that are set at a precise point in time: in this case 1946. Patriarchal society had been destabilised by the war but the powerful elements of politics, media and judiciary within that post-war society viewed it as essential that women reverted to their pre-war roles of wife and mother. Yet this reinstated gendered power imbalance of that domesticity left some women vulnerable to abuse by their male partners, many of whom were themselves traumatised by the war. Taken at the Flood details the domestic abuse of a woman at the hands of her male partner, a military veteran, with what would now be termed coercive control. Furthermore, it highlights societal acceptance of domestic abuse, something reflected in reviews of Taken at the Flood at the time. This thesis, therefore, views the novel as a valuable, first-hand social record and this helps to address some of the more problematic issues contained within the narrative. The contemporary debates within Taken at the Flood – the post-war reinstatement of gender and class hierarchies – symbolise the conservative strands within post-war British society’s erroneous desire to return to pre-war values, however unequal they may be. In Taken at the Flood, Christie articulates concerns that there is danger in blinkered nostalgia, turning back the tide and reversing gender equality. In short, as opposed to condoning domestic abuse, Taken at the Flood utilises it to demonstrate the dangers of reverting to conservative and retrogressive pre-war attitudes.<p></p>"],"dc:identifier":["10779/exe.32033319.v1"],"dc:relation":["https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/Turning_Back_the_Tide_Patriarchy_and_Post-War_Femininity_in_Agatha_Christie_s_Taken_at_the_Flood_/32033319"],"dc:rights":["All rights reserved","Open Access after 2027-10-16"],"dc:subject":["Agatha Christie","Domestic abuse","post-war society","gender disparity","class disparity"],"dc:title":["Turning Back the Tide: Patriarchy and Post-War Femininity in Agatha Christie’s Taken at the Flood."],"dc:type":["Text","Thesis"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T19:33:27Z"}