In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s it was incredibly difficult for a woman to express her thoughts simply because she was not a man. The two novels, The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, and The House of Mirth, by Edith Wharton, use their writing to explore what it would be like for a woman to explore herself. The Awakening is a story about a woman, Edna, who is determined to find her true self no matter what it takes. In the story, Edna leaves her husband and begins living on her own, in her own house in order to find her independence. This search for independence is interesting because I believe that it is something that I can relate to, even in this day and age.
Lizbeth in her distress at overhearing her parents conversation directs her anger and fear at Miss. Lottie’s marigolds . The marigolds a symbolize beauty that only Ms. Lottie, a scary old lady , possesses. “For some perverse reason, we children hated those marigolds. They interfered with the perfect ugliness of the place. ”(5).
Steinbeck portrays Rose of Sharon as a mother Mary-like figure for the Joad family, and their society, through developing her character as a nurturing symbol of hope and new beginnings. Rose of Sharon’s baby was a long awaited symbol of hope for the Joad family. The promise of new life had kept them inspired even through the darkest of times, but when they child was a stillborn, the Joad family seemed to lose all hope. Rose of Sharon spends the majority of the book under the shadow of her mother, but after losing her child, Rose of Sharon steps up to make her own decision: “Rose of Sharon loosened one side of the blanket and bared her breast. ‘You got to,’ she said.
Drifters by Bruce Dawe “Why have hope?”, is the question raised in the poem “Drifters” by Bruce Dawe. Bruce Dawe’s poem explores how change can damage a family 's relationship and cause them to drift apart. This poem has underlying and straight forward themes depicted about change. Straight forward depiction is the physical movement of the family from place to place and not everyone is in favour of this change. The very first line of the poem, “One day soon he’ll tell her it’s time to start packing”, supports the inevitable change that no one else has a say in except the man.
In The Eyes are Watching God, the author Zora Neale Hurston expresses the struggles of women and black societies of the time period. When Hurston published the book, communities were segregated and black communities were full of stereotypes from the outside world. Janie, who represents the main protagonist and hero, explores these communities on her journey in the novel. Janie shows the ideals of feminism, love, and heroism in her rough life in The Eyes. Janie, as the hero of the novel, shows the heroic qualities of determination, empathy, and bravery.
Eliza Haywood writes the cautionary tale Fantomina in order to instruct women against pursuing their sexual desires. The protagonist, an unnamed “Lady of distinguished Birth” (41), secretly pursued her desires for Beauplaisir under the guise of four different personas, ultimately leading to the ruin of her reputation and being sent to live in a monastery. I will refer to the main character when she is not disguised as the protagonist to avoid confusion. I will be discussing female sexuality, where I will be focussing on certain aspects including sexual identity, sexual behaviour, and how social and religious aspects affect this sexuality. I will argue that Haywood uses the cautionary tale in order to represent female sexuality as distinguishable
Janaliz Serrano Miss Given Honors 11 English 5 February 2018 Response #3 In this novel Orleanna states that “to live is to change, to acquire the words of a story, and that is the only celebrations we mortals really know” (385).
The Fairchild family has a hard time letting new people into their circle, but will Troy Flavin be able to change that? Many of Ms. Welty’s stories feature strong women, however feminist scholars shunned them due to negative comments she made in the 1970s about the feminist movement. The excursion is the same when you go looking for your sorrow as when you go looking for your joy. In Delta Wedding, by Eudora Welty, Laura McRaven was a motherless girl, going to her cousin Dabneys wedding at the Fairchild families house without her father. She is brought to a home that consisted of many family members, with an especially large amount of cousins.
In the 1920s and 30s, men did not treat women with much respect, and men did not allow women to do anything, other than be a housewife. Men took charge of women, and if women did earn any money their husband would take it away from them. Women did not have any rights, and nothing was done to change that for a long time. As women did not have a say, they continued to do as they were told and lacked a voice.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Wicked: The Life and Time of the Wicked Witch of the West possesses feminist ideals represented through the characterization of female characters. Iconic characters such as Dorothy, Wicked Witch of the West (Elphaba), Wicked Witch of the East (Nessarose), and Good Witch of the South (Glinda) portray feminist characters that have developed and showed their strong personality, influencing women in today’s society. This leads to the question – To what extent is The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Wicked empowering women through the presentation of women? The Wonderful Wizard of Oz paved the way for the increase in number of feminist novels.