A women is expected to be submissive and not question the man. “The first time we quarreled, he said to me accusingly, ‘You don’t cry.’ I realized that his wife cried, that he could handle tears but not my cold defiance” (Adichie 4). Even as a mistress, which is not seen as moral and is not deemed how a woman should act, women are expected to be subservient to men. When she raises her voice and calls him a bastard, she is openly defying her expectations. She insults him when she calls him a bastard but even more she is insulting this power that he has over her.
The colonel, in “The Dinner Party” mentions that “[a] woman’s unfailing reaction in any crisis… is to scream,” but that is proven wrong by Mrs. Wynnes and it leads to the lesson of remaining calm and thinking fast to survive danger (Gardner). In “You Can’t Just Walk On By” the boy learns his lesson about respecting all living creatures. Once he knew he was safe from the snake he began to think about how he had almost died and saying, “Not ever again would I take life for granted” (Deal 152). Everyone in each story realizes how vulnerable they are to these small, but deadly
A colonial official makes the point that women have a tendency to scream as a form to reacting to a crisis. Not everyone at the table agrees. Meanwhile the hostess tells the boy who is standing behind her to go and get a bowl of milk and put it near the doors leading out of the room to outside. Only one person at the table notices and he does not panic; he just sits calmly and tells everyone else to do the same. He knew that in India people would use milk as bait for a cobra and he also knew that he couldn't locate the cobra in the room.
He allows his mind to escape, while his body performs the tasks necessary for his survival. The narrator’s mind perceives the task of cleaning out the cattle cars like any other job. Comparing the systematic slaughter of thousands to a well-run business allows him an escape from reality. The S.S. soldiers represent the typical boss figures. The well-dressed men are precise, composed, and authoritative.
In doing this, it shows that Mrs.Wynnes is a true hero in reality with the snake showing perfect control by allowing the snake to crawl on her leg. This supports the theme that gender does not determine self control when a woman, Mrs.Wynnes shows perfect control in a dire situation. Mrs.Wynnes replies to the American’s question with a faint smile “Because it was crawling across my foot.” “(Gardner 2).” Mrs.Wynnes replying to the question that the American asked her shows a point in which a woman had self control in a crisis, allowing the theme to be proven that women can have just as much self control as a man this also means that self control is not determined by gender as stated in the theme. In this story “The Dinner Party” the guests instantly believe that the American naturalist was the hero instead of Mrs.Wynnes because of Mrs.Wynnes’ quiet, composed and elegant persona as well as being the wife of a colonel instead of having an actual role in the military until she finally reveals that she is the true hero who remained calm as the snake crawled over her foot throughout most of the dinner
During my research, I witnessed several occasions in which young boys were ordered not to cry because this is feminine behavior. Assertiveness in men is still appreciated, and they are supposed to be virile, protective, rational and emotionally indifferent. They are expected to be constantly interested in sex and hit on women even when married. Men are expected to take the first step to get to know a woman and to pay the bill. They are constantly pushed to prove their masculinity and the worst deviation from hegemonic masculinity is homosexuality.
People should not be defined by others' stereotypical views. The Dinner Party by Mona Gardner ties together different events and conflicts in the story to develop the theme that everyone has a different amount of self-control no matter what their gender is. Mrs. Wynnes the Hostess develops the theme by her actions and not letting the Colonel define who she is and defying any such stereotype. Gender stereotypes are introduced early in the story, that is when a girl brings up that "Women have outgrown the jumping-on-a-chair-at the-sight-of-a-mouse-era" (Gardner 8), but the Colonel disagrees and talks about women's propensity to be melodramatic in most crisis. For instance, the Colonel says " 'A woman's unfailing reaction in any crisis is to scream,
The men in the novel always feel superior to the women and so, they obtain the more powerful roles while the women are assumed to abide by and admire them. They are perceived as strong and brave. The women are weak and inept. For example, Peter was always taken as the leader, the one who is trusted to lead the others. Edmund embodied the ultimate male trait – aggressiveness – which he uses to menace his siblings.
Although there is almost no chance for her to ever see either of them again, she still tries to preseve the relationship. She is used by Commander for sex and companionship and had an affair with Nick (higher preganancy chance). Most of her actions are being forced “Which of us is it worse for, her or me?”(151) meant the sex between the narrator and commander is unbearable to the point of watching your husband having sex with another women right infront of you. Her only defiance done totally by herself is “I will use the butter later that night.” (113), everything else including escaping the Gilead, having an affair with Commander, having an affair with Nick and leaving the Commanders house are all stimulated by others. Offred represent those who does not stand against oppresion, being pushed around and used for sex.
Many are forced into sexual slavery, or raped and hurt because of their anatomy. As a general rule in the book the female characters are only valued for their beauty and looks, which is shown when Candide feels as if he has to settle with Cunegonde, the woman he had been chasing throughout his entire journey, after she becomes older and more haggard. The women are all underdeveloped as characters themselves with their stories mainly revolving around the mishaps that happen to them or, the men they have to serve because of their subservient status. One female character stood out the most as a woman who endured so much because of her gender and that was