Alexandria Hall Essays (1709 words) - Fiction, Literature

Alexandria Hall Phillip Joseph American Short Stories October 23, 2017 Comparing themes in Freemans's "The Revolt of Mother" and Gilman's "The Yellow Wallpaper" Although today women are generally seen as equal in the United States, this view has only relatively recently been widely adopted in this country. For much of history, women have been viewed as subordinates to their perceived stronger, faster, more rational male counterparts. Because of this widely accepted societal ideology, women were almost solely confined to the domestic aspects of life during the traditionalist era, which is roughly regarded as the period between the start of the1920s and the end of the late 1970s. "The Revolt of Mother," by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman and "The Yellow Wallpaper," by Charlotte Perkins Gilman are two short stories that provide a glimpse into the treatment of women during the traditionalist era and reveal the way that they were limited to their domestic duties. In both stories, nearly every one of the events that unfold parallel societal notions about feminism, exemplify female limitations in society and highlight the confinement of women withi n the domestic realm during this time in American history. Likewise, both stories parallel patriarchal injustices that were present in society during this period, despite the different ways the female characters react given their circumstances. In other words, there are strong similarities between the plots of the two stories and the way each event within the plots parallels some societal norm that oppressed women during this period; however, the two stories diverge from one another in the way that the female characters reacted to their oppressors, which, again, provides an authentic representation of women's lives during the traditionalist era. Among the parallelisms that can be observed in both "The Revolt of Mother," and "The Yellow Wall Paper," both f emale characters were kept in confined domestic spaces by their husbands , the oppressors . For example, Sarah Penn and her children were confined to a small, decrepit house and her husband, Adoniram Penn, had no plan of keeping the promise he made to his wife forty years ago that he would build a new home for his family. Instead, he keeps his wife contained in a small decaying house with a crooked staircase and a kitchen that is the size of a closet. Despite his attempts to keep his wife restricted in this unsuitable home, she resists him and undermines the patriarchal power within the home by moving her family and all their belongings into her husband's new farmhouse as soon as he leaves for the day. Quite similarly, in "The Yellow Wall Paper," the main character and narrator repeatedly voices her hatred for the dull, murky room and the moldy yellow wallpap er that she has been confined within; despite her resistance to be held in the room, her husband John makes her stay in the room because he believes it will help cure her sickness, which he believes is merely a passing burden. Rather than defying her husband and standing up for what she knows is best for her, the female narrator succumbs to his will without argument and obediently stays locked in that room. Altogether, the literal confinement of these women in a domestic space is a parallelism that mocks the way that society tends to confine women this way, not literally but ideologically. During this period, women were generally made to feel incapable of escaping the domestic realm, just as the female characters in these short stories felt incapable of escaping their dissatisfying environments. To further exemplify the way that these stories parallel the treatment of women during this time in society, the female character's husbands completely ignored their wives' thoughts, feelings, and demands. In "The Revolt of Mother," Adoniram had promised to build Sarah a new home for the last forty years, yet he seemingly unquestionably expected her to watch silently as he built yet another barn on their property to house even more cows. Despite his wife's clear disappointment about what her husband is having built, Adoniram continued to ignore her feelings and went about his day as usual. Likewise, the first-person female narrator in "The Yellow Wallpaper," experienced similar subjection to her husband John's lack of regard for her

tay john and icefield Essay Example

tay john and icefield Essay Example tay john and icefield Essay tay john and icefield Essay Name: Tutor: Course: Date: Tay John and Icefield (Synopsis) Tay John Many people are in no doubt familiar with popular Canadian literary works such as â€Å"Barometer Rising†, â€Å"Roughing It in the Bush†, â€Å"Duddy Kravitz† and â€Å"As for Me and My House†, but Tay John stands out as a classic. Tay John is a book by Howard O’hagon that was published in 1939. Howard does well to combine mythology, realism and legend from west India into the story, and chooses to use the Rocky Mountains terrain. A point to note is that Tay John is not the kind of book that one reads from one point to the other with interesting readings happening in between them. Rather, it is intended to endow the reader with bits and pieces of the plot. The book is a kind of puzzle or mystery that keeps the readers backtracking between chapters or keeps them guessing to the end. Howard examines the idea behind what defines a myth or a legend and how an ordinary man’s life can be perverted or altered as it develops from one person to the other. In this regard, Tay John is the main character in the book and his role comes out rather contradictory. The book revolves around him but then goes silent for a few chapters without mentioning him. As a character, one could say he is developed properly. How the readers perceive him depends on how they interpret his life as well as the mythical status he is bestowed. Additionally, Howard applies a number of vivid images for the reader to see: from how Tay John is born, his reaction to loosing card games, his fight with a bear, to his final fat. Ultimately, Tay John is book that keeps the reader perusing back and forth through chapters to connect mind perceptions. Icefield Icefields, similar to its counterpart, is written in an early setting in 1898 by Thomas Wharton. The book begins with Doctor Edward Bryne taking a slip on a glacier and sliding into a crevasse. He is rescued immediately but is left puzzled at a figure he saw, or fantasized as the figure in the ice resembles an angel. This part hence sets a unique premise for the novel. Interestingly, the author chooses not to give the angelic theme too much attention. For common readers, it was an expectation that this kind of experience set the stage for a spiritual quest by Bryne or religious ardor. Surprisingly, the author does contrary and Bryne does not develop any interest to this phenomenon. This case, hence summons further investigations by the reader, which eventually reveal that the angelic theme was used as an anchor of glorious and powerful mystery. When this is considered in that school of thought, it plays the role all too well. Bryne is given the character of a lonely soul that is distant and cold. He chooses to detach himself from activity and lives alone as the story winds up. Similar to the setting, Wharton applies a cool and crisp prose. He uses minimum fuss to tell the story and does quietly. He also writes certain portions of the story in present tense, which I thought was distracting. The emotional coolness associated with the protagonist produces a particular muted tone. If this was a film, then the camera would have been rolling in soft focus, never resting on a particular feature.

Women in the Military Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Women in the Military - Essay Example The reason for the exclusion of women in the military is as a result of their smaller physical body, and Fenner & DeYoung (2001 p 145) reports that women have 50 percent strength of the strength men have. According to Barno (2014), ‘in January 2014 fifty percent of women in the US marine failed to pass a physical standard test’, a test similar to the one offered to their male counterparts. The cry for greater women representation for women to serve in more diverse roles is louder than ever, in fact, the defense secretary reiterated the desire, by stating that, ‘combat positions will be more open to women’ †¦.Indeed, the civil talk of gender equality has breached the gate of the military service. The genuine need for a military service in which both men and women have equal opportunities has been thwarted by nature. Women are born naturally physically weaker than men. Debate on the roles of women in the military is as strong as ever, with the gender activist calling for standardization of the processes so that the women take positions in ground