An analytical essay on “The Man Who Hugged Women” by Mischa Hiller
Unsuccessful marriages have become common in the modern society, where a lot of couples split up. Regularly, the reason is a lack of affection from the partner. The short story “The Man Who Hugged Women” written by Mischa Hiller (2012) debates the theme unsuccessful marriages and what the consequences are. Freya is unhappy about her marriage; she feels neglected by her husband, but is she really that?
The main character is Freya. She is married to an Asian psychiatrist named Mukesh, they have a daughter named Rita who went to a mediocre university, hence, she had been forced by her parents. Additionally, Freya works as the teacher’s assistant at the local primary school, she says, it is something to fill her time. The narrator is a third person limited narrator, since we only have access to the protagonist Freya’s thoughts, and we are told the story from her perspective:
“Pearl still had a waist, and dressed to make the most of it. And why shouldn’t she? Pearl sat opposite her at the artificially weathered table and Freya was treated to a glimpse of frayed underwear.” (p.1, l. 4-5, The Man Who Hugged Women)
In personality Freya is very logical and
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On one hand, Pearl who was both brave and adventurous becomes afraid of the situation and with a short comment that is: “this is crazy”, she rushes out of the door leaving Freya alone in the waiting room. On the other hand, Freya takes advantage of the situation. At first, she wanted to get Pearl a refund, but when she sees the old man in woollen jumpers, it reminds her of her father. It says in text that Freya had a picture of him where he weore “magnificent woollen jumpers”. Freya is overwhelmed with joy that she forgets about the awkward misunderstanding and “[steps] into the glow” to get a hug from a man. Freya has changed in personality, from now on she will focus on what makes her happy and take
In her essay, Hope Edelman specializes the focus on creating emotion, and using first hand experiences from her marriage to capture the attention of the intended audience, making them question the way their own marriage is being executed. This idea of sympathy being the path to go about capturing an audience in some form of communication, is still predominant in society. The writer is attempting to convey to that if possible, try to find similarities between Edelman’s marriage and their own. If successful, the marriage can make the changes Edelman feels are essential to being healthy. Hope Edelman’s perspective on the way marriage is meant to be, challenges traditional values of society; however, after reading this piece the audience may begin to prefer her idea of marriage.
When, all of them were telling gossip and lies about Janie, her best friend came to defend her with a brazen of assurance. When the town’s people saw Janie, the women weren’t capering with joy to see she has returned home. The town’s women seemed to chastise Janie for how she looked and dressed but the men felt otherwise.
At Moody’s invitation, she spent hours at their house, coming over just after breakfast, staying til dinner” (pp. 35). The significance of this text shows how right when Pearl stepped through the Richardson doors, she saw what she didn’t have, perfection, and it entranced her. She
However, in reality not every marriage is a functional one. Society plays a huge role on the repression that enforce in marriage. Individuals are more accepting of marriage now and understand that every person does not necessarily want to marry but unhappy and feel trapped. Perhaps the in the "The Story of an Hour" and "The Yellow Wallpaper" the husbands might of love their wives and the feeling might of being mutual, but since it all took place in a different time period where society harshly criticizes women for not being married or for leaving the marriage they were in. Both women in the stories directly have a problem with the institution of marriage and feel like society is the one in charge of trapping women into marriage.
Freelance writer in New York City, Polly Shulman, in her article, “Great Expectations,” commences the article by integrating a short description of the word “marriage,” which the definition of marriage has modified over time. She develops her credibility by citing specific psychologists, implying that Shulman was committed to her particular topic (Ethos). This is also followed by the repetition of the word soul mate, which the clarity increases overtime. In addition, Shulman employs the logical appeal by incorporating a percentage of divorce rate and historical evidence of divorce-law reforms, which leads her to form a generalization or conclusion of the particular topic.
It is evident that marriage is full of ups and downs, but the way couples manage these fluctuations in their relationship determines the strength of their connection. Both partners in a committed relationship must feel the same way and work equally as hard to push through potential obstacles. Being devoted to the relationship can ensure that the marriage will be able to survive the hardships and maintain a healthy, successful marriage. The emotional hardships and positives that a married couple endures on a daily basis are presented throughout the entirety of the poem, “Marriage”, by Gregory Corso. Corso’s poem explores the pressures and factors that influence marriage and sheds light on Updike’s short story about a couple facing divorce.
Zora Neele Hurston once said, “Love is lak de sea. It’s uh movin’ thing, but still and all, it takes its shape from the shore it meets, and it’s different with every shore.” This quotation poses the question, does a failed love experience change a person and their journey to self realization? Society’s expectation of marriage. __________.
Characters from the novel come from different family backgrounds, but they all struggle with issues related to their families. This theme is still relatable today, as many people around the world are struggling with issues in their family such as divorce, abuse and being neglected. The book shows how important it is to have a supportive family, but also how it’s possible to find support and love from
In marriage, a man should possess certain qualities in order to be a good husband. In a man’s marriage, he must provide both financial, and personal support. In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, characters Logan Killicks, Joe Starks, and Tea Cake all have some of these qualities in their marriages. Therefore, Janie’s first husband Logan does not provide support for her and has very poor qualities in their marriage. He requires Janie to do unnecessary work on his farm and is not a supportive husband.
We live in a society that has increasingly demoralizes love, depicting it as cruel, superficial and full of complications. Nowadays it is easy for people to claim that they are in love, even when their actions say otherwise, and it is just as easy to claim that they are not when they indeed are. Real love is difficult to find and keeping it alive is even harder, especially when one must overcome their own anxieties and uncertainties to embrace its presence. This is the main theme depicted in Russell Banks’ short story “Sarah Cole: A Type of Love Story,” as well as in Richard Bausch’s “The Fireman’s Wife.” These narratives, although similar in some ways, are completely different types of love stories.
Marriage is often much more complex than what people envision, as many factors play roles in ensuring it will last. In Zora Neale Hurston’s novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Hurston portrays the story of a young African-American girl named Janie whose Grandma marries her off to Logan Killicks, a man she does not love. Yearning for real love, Janie runs away and marries a promising rich man named Joe Starks, only to discover that there is once again a lack of affection. After enduring almost twenty years of a hollow relationship, Janie’s second husband passes away, and by chance she meets the love of her life; a young man known as Tea Cake. However, this happiness is short-lived as she is ridiculed for being with a younger man, whom not too
Humans are inherently social beings that crave love, the sense of belonging and intimacy from others. The desire to feel love would help us create an understanding of who we are as we seek comfort through our personal experiences. Although we might fall short of these expectations they could also be the source of pain and angst. In a compilation of short stories ‘Like a house on fire’, Cate Kennedy explores different relationship dynamics through how they cope with life-changing events. Most relationships in Kennedy’s short story are portrayed as complex characters, and tend to be distant from other family members.
02/12/2018 Psychologist have studied it for years. Human relationships are arguably the most complicated relationships on planet Earth. Going a bit farther, Peg Streep, a psychologist that studies primarily marital relationships, says that husband and wife relationships, sometimes, can only be understood if one is in the relationship themselves (Streep). However, Tobias Wolff, the author of “Say Yes,” published in 1985, uses symbolism to give his readers a plethora of room for interpretation of the husband and wife’s relationship in this short story, in hopes that many readers are able to relate to the couple’s issues.
Marriage is an important institution in a society and although there have been changes in the trend of marriage pattern, it is still very clear that marriage still matters. Marriage exists and its main aim is to bring two people together to form a union, where a man and a woman leave their families and join together to become one where they often start their own family. Sociologists are mostly interested in the relationship between marriage and family as they form the key structures in a society. The key interest on the correlation between marriage and family is because marriages are historically regarded as the institutions that create a family while families are on the other hand the very basic unit upon which our societies are founded on.
According to this theory, nature of love is changing fundamentally and it can create either opportunities for democracy or chaos in life (Beck & Beck- Gernsheim, 1995). Love, family and personal freedom are three key elements in this theory. This theory states that the guidelines, rules and traditions which used to rule personal relationships have changed. “Individuals are now confronted with an endless series of choices as part of constructing, adjusting, improving or dissolving the unions they form with others” (Giddens, 2006). For instance, marriage nowadays depends on the willingness of the couples rather than for economic purposes or the urge to form family.