Summary Of Rondeau's The Boat

It would be impossible to discuss “The Boat” without talking about the death of the father. Despite the convincing arguments that the father’s death can be seen as a suicide, I would argue that his death was inevitable because he is living a lie, something that his wife was all too aware of. In a way, his death may be the closest his wife has ever felt to him, as he is able to become part of the sea – a sea of which she was a part of, and that outsiders were not (18). His death is a way for him to become a part of the ocean that he never could on his own in life. His life up to this point has almost been an act, a performance of what his wife wanted him to be, however, he is unable to hide his true self completely, which we see through his love of reading.

Although it is fair to say that both men and women must “play” a certain role if they want to adhere to traditional gender values and roles, I would argue that the women in the stories want to take on this role. According to McIntyre, Thille, and Rondeau in their article “Farmwomen's Discourses on Family Food Provisioning: Gender, Healthism, and
The mothers/wives in the text are constantly being let down by the husbands and children who do not share the same traditional values. On the surface the men follow the archetype of a provider, but on further inspection it is clear that they are merely actors in this role. The lack of authentic desire to provide for their families through farming and fishing is felt by their wives. The women seem to need their husbands to want to preform their male role, but when this action feels forced tensions develop. Both women made conscious steps in choosing a husband with similar values and upbringings, yet their partners both desire a different life for