“Life in the Iron Mills” by Rebecca Harding Davis is a story that provokes feminism as defined by Lerner within its characters. It is easiest to see this correspondence when you break Lerner’s definition down into its integral points. Namely, “the awareness of women that they belong to a subordinate group”, one that is deemed so by society, that women “must join with other women to remedy these wrongs”, and, finally, that women should “provide an alternate vision of societal organization” that better reflects gender equality (Lerner). Davis’s characters go through a period of awakening where they begin to reflect all of these hallmarks of feminist consciousness.…
Although The Feminine Mystique is often hailed as the harbinger text of third-wave feminism, Stephanie Coontz is quick in the opening lines of her A Strange Stirring to revoke the piece of its grandiose status, instead affectionately remembering it as a “brilliant artifact— and not a timeless classic.” Published in 2011, Coontz’s A Strange Stirring was written in the challenge of the previously held notion that the feminist movement of the 50s and 60s had come about due to a national “dissatisfaction in domestic life” resulting from the “personal inadequacy” woman had felt during the previous decades. Her challenge to ideas that founded the basis of Betty Friedan's Feminine Mystique feed her writing as she takes an equally controversial stance to Friedan’s book, raising the question of the validity of Feminine Mystique and its impact on the feminist movement when the piece itself neglected to narrate the struggle of women outside the wealthy and white bubble that could afford to read Friedan's book.…
In chapter seven Hooks talks about feminism in the realms of class. Hooks explains that the focus of feminism came to be about the wealthy white upper class women who wanted the same opportunities as men of their own class rather than the focus of women receiving the same benefits to sustain themselves. Working class and middle class women were able to work, but they did not make enough money to support themselves. I liked this chapter because Hooks gave a resolution for the problem. Hooks explains that in order to get to the basics of what being feminist is, feminist women of upper class should help those that are less fortunate by creating homes and programs to allow women of all classes to sustain themselves without the need of men.…
There are various accounts in the world in which the setting or time period plays an infinite roll, but in Harriet Jacobs, “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl”, and Rebecca Davis’s “Life in the Iron Mills”, the characters make all the difference. From the amazing role of Hugh Wolfe, to the vital words from Harriet Jacobs, we will explore how these stories have shaped our past, present, and future. Most people have experienced challenges in life that cause them to either act or suppress those times as if they did not happen. In Harriet Jacobs’ case, she chose to take her experiences and place them at the core of her existence, in order to press for change. On the other hand, Rebecca Davis was able to illustrate the distinct differences between upper class and lower class lifestyles.…
The protagonist in the novel, Sethe, is deprived of her femininity by being denied motherhood. Infants born into slavery are typically removed from their mothers to disallow any chance to form emotional attachment, making it easier to debase women as human beings by denying them the natural desire to mother their children. The idea of motherhood and a mother’s identity was not just seen in the physical separation between a mother and her child. In an attempt to save her children, Sethe sacrifices herself. In a very abusive and animalistic fashion, Sethe loses the essence of motherhood, her breastmilk. Throughout the novel, Sethe focuses on her breast milk, the life-force she is naturally supplied…
The characters in both texts similarly battle social norms and legal restrictions to continually express their love for others, no matter their race, and love for their family, no matter the situation. Compassion is shown from Celia and her husband in The Help, when they allow her to keep her job with them for life. This outreach of compassion from a White American demonstrates that although social norms are a restriction, those who genuinely have compassion and love for others can trump over hate. Celia’s act simultaneously evokes love and compassion from audience members, and effectively encourages the acceptance and unity of all peoples. Abileen’s love for Elizabeth’s daughter, Mae Mobely, is also an expression of unconditional love despite society’s limits, strongly portrayed through the repetition of her mantra: “You is kind, you is smart, you is important.”…
In the play Blood Brothers there are many characters. These characters portray different themes. The play was written around the 1960’s-1980’s. Russell wrote this play as he disagreed with the way the society was. He shows the disadvantages of working class women through Mrs Johnstone. In this essay I am going to focus on the character of Mrs Johnstone.…
Carol is a ‘working class’ single mother, she works hard to ‘keep us (Carol and her son, Victor) afloat’ after her ex husband ‘shot through’ a few years ago. He left debts that Carol had to pay off, leaving her working everyday ‘in someone else’s grotty shower’ not only to support herself and Victor but also to pay off the debts and send Victor to school. The mistress of the house is condescending. This is ironic because she has book written by ‘the likes of Germaine Greer’ and other feminists. It would be assumed that she is a feminist from looking at her bookshelf, however the way she treats Carol with ‘patronizing notes on floral paper’ it becomes unthinkable. The mistress accuses Carol of stealing ‘five-hundred-dollar earrings’ which Victor and Carol know is not true, because she ‘would only open a draw to put a clean knife or fork away’. Carol is suffering in this household because she must uphold her reputation and not kick up a fuss, so she shows that she is better than the mistress by leaving her final paycheck and the key to the house on a the bench. Carol is trapped by Victor, because she has such high hopes for him and his career in Law that she works everyday ‘on her knees’ to earn money so he can learn what she didn’t have the chance to. It is known that Carol…
Tim Miller’s play Rooted discusses a controversial topic about marriage equality and when a social change is finally achieved. His solo performance displays a serious, yet comical tone about the struggles his husband and him were faced with in order to get to where they are today. Miller gives his audience great detail on riots he participated in and his thoughts on the government. He also shares his family history and the important role it has on his life today. Miller’s solo performance of Rooted makes a comfortable atmosphere to talk openly about controversial topics.…
Betty Friedan relies on the perspective of middle class white women and bell hooks fill in this gap by pointing out more than one class of women exist. Middle class white housewives are not the universal image for American women nor do they have the same problem. During this time those females main goals in life was to only be a housewife and the institutions made sure this was possible. However, hook's point out that some women were worried about changing the system. Friedan’s examples involve bored housewife with spare time and nothing to do with it.…
Similar to the way media portrays women in today society, Ibsen play “A Doll’s House” is controversial for its time in literature, because Ibsen understood the challenges women faced during that time, and exploits it in his writing, likewise to the United Nations who are actively raising awareness to the degradation of women in today’s society. Susan Glaspell’s play “trifles” grasps the notion that women in the early nineteen hundreds were considered to be innocent caretakers, while on the other hand turns the back to women when it comes to equality in marital relationships. Understanding women’s rights during the period the plays were written in, is a critical piece to understanding why the authors choose to write them in the fashion they…
Her description of the poor neighborhood as “disgusting and sordid” (343), is due to a taught stigmatization of lower class people. Her descend into the neighborhood is orchestrated by her mother, and also marks the final stage of…
This film portrays these women shopping for fashionable hats, smoking and lounging in their undergarments, and marching to a soundtrack of hip-hop rhythms. They are more than new women, they are 21st-century women in their casual manner, informal speech, and attitudes toward men. With this approach, the film modernizes political foremothers in an attempt to winning new audiences in a postfeminist age. In an age when most young women do not like the idea of the feminist label, the film invites them to connect with feminists who are single, young, determined, courageous, independent, fashionable, and physically…
The audience preoccupies itself in determining race, when in reality it proves only to mask the importance of this underlying sisterhood that cannot exist without its fellow feminine bloodlines. A powerful example of racial ambiguity, the character Maggie, which the two main characters saw as their mothers and never do agree on her racial identity, represents this idea of race as unfixed as the memory of her begins to fade in both of their minds. As well, Maggie served as the embodiment of the powerlessness of the girls, and so when the “gar girls” were abusing her, neither Twyla nor Roberta tried to help her, rather they viewed the weakness within themselves being attacked though her abuse. Maggie’s defenselessness outlined the struggles of being a woman, especially having a severe handicap, and being abused by other women was a strange form of “natural selection,” if you will, that sought to attack woman…
The school of criticism that is grasped throughout this short story is the feminist theory. The feminist Theory is the focus on the role…