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The effects of culture on gender identity
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Of Woman Born – The End of Motherhood
In Of Woman Born, Adrienne Rich effectively weaves her own story into a convincing account of what it means to become a mother within the bonds of patriarchal culture. Her conclusion that the institution of motherhood, which she distinguishes from motherhood, must be destroyed in order to release the creation and sustenance of life into the same realm of decision, struggle, surprise, imagination, and conscious intelligence, as any other difficult, but freely chosen work is substantiated by her courageous confession that contradicts culturally normative notions of motherhood.
Allowing readers to glimpse her own story as she painfully evaluates her role as mother side by side with historical accounts of other women's experiences provides an avenue for understanding that leads to compassion. By the final chapter, instead of falling into the expected trap of revulsion toward Joanne Michulski's heinous crime, Rich's empathy provides the reader with the insight to realize both the complexity of Michulski's situation and to feel comp...
Are all mothers fit for motherhood? The concept of motherhood is scrutinized in the stories “The Rocking Horse Winner” and “Tears Idle Tears”. In “The Rocking Horse Winner” by D.H Lawrence the mother, Hester, unpremeditatedly provokes her son into providing for her through gambling. In the story “Tears Idle Tears” by Elizabeth Bowen, Mrs. Dickinson disregards her son’s emotions and puts more emphasis in her appearance than her son’s wellbeing. Hester and Mrs. Dickinson both were inadequate mothers. Both the mothers were materialistic, pretended to love their offspring, and their dominance hindered their children’s progress in life.
Diane Urban, for instance, was one of the many people who were trapped inside this horror. She “was comforting a woman propped against a wall, her legs virtually amputated” (96). Flynn and Dwyer appeal to the reader’s ethical conscience and emotions by providing a story of a victim who went through many tragedies. Causing readers to feel empathy for the victims. In addition, you began to put yourself in their shoes and wonder what you would do.
Women throughout time have been compelled to cope with the remonstrances of motherhood along with society’s anticipations
Ranson, G. (2005). No longer ‘one of the boys’: Negotiations with motherhoods, as prospect or
“Well, Alice, my father said, if it had to happen to one of you, I’m glad it was you and not your sister” (57). Even though Alice was the victim of the horrid crime, she had to stabilize her own emotions, so that she could help her sister cope with this tragedy. Throughout Alice’s childhood, Jane struggled with alcoholism and panic attacks. “I wished my mother were normal, like other moms, smiling and caring, seemingly, only for her family” (37).
Looking back on the death of Larissa’s son, Zebedee Breeze, Lorraine examines Larissa’s response to the passing of her child. Lorraine says, “I never saw her cry that day or any other. She never mentioned her sons.” (Senior 311). This statement from Lorraine shows how even though Larissa was devastated by the news of her son’s passing, she had to keep going. Women in Larissa’s position did not have the luxury of stopping everything to grieve. While someone in Lorraine’s position could take time to grieve and recover from the loss of a loved one, Larissa was expected to keep working despite the grief she felt. One of the saddest things about Zebedee’s passing, was that Larissa had to leave him and was not able to stay with her family because she had to take care of other families. Not only did Larissa have the strength to move on and keep working after her son’s passing, Larissa and other women like her also had no choice but to leave their families in order to find a way to support them. As a child, Lorraine did not understand the strength Larissa must have had to leave her family to take care of someone else’s
One of Hamlet’s flaws is that he over thinks things a lot and it is first shown the most at the prayer scene with Claudius. Once Hamlet sees how Claudius reacts to the play he knows that Claudius killed his father and that the ghost was right, he has a chance to kill him and doesn’t take it . His only proof was the ghost and even though others saw the ghost no one else heard it talk except Hamlet. Hamlet was also considering a lot of other things at this time, like how if he killed Claudius now Claudius would be free of sin and would go to heaven. He was also thinking if his father didn’t get to die free of sin it wouldn’t be fair for Claudius to die free of sin either, which shows how vengeful Hamlet’s character is. At the same time, Hamlet has morals and understands the consequences so that’s why it’s harder for him to perform the act . After a l...
Motherhood is an integral theme in the work of Toni Morrison. She uses the experiences and perspectives of black women to develop a view of black motherhood, that is, in terms of both maternal identity and role, very different from how motherhood is practised in the dominant culture. Whilst the African view of motherhood claims that all mothers are a symbol of creativity on Earth, American slavery forced many black women to repress their natural instinct to nurture their offspring. In Morrison's view, motherhood is an act of resistance essential to black women's fight against racism and sexism. O'Reilly suggests that Morrsion's maternal theory is a politics of the heart, i.e that the power of motherhood is what makes possible the improved world that is sought for oneself and for our offspring. This empowerment is explored in `Beloved' where the enslaved families have not been allowed to lead normal lives.
King Hamlet was beyond annoyed that Hamlet had done what every child does when their parent asks them to do something, and did the exact opposite. Not only had Hamlet spoken to his mother about her poor choices, but he also had yet to kill Claudius. In Hamlet’s defense he had a good reason for why he hadn’t killed his uncle yet (definitely a good conversation to have over the holidays) and had half of Shakespeare’s characters taken the time to make sure things are done right then there probably wouldn’t be so much tragedy. Hamlet had waited to kill Claudius because he wasn’t certain about the ghost being his father and so he did not want to commit a sin that was not necessary. However, he still failed because he entertained King Hamlet’s ghost and that is a sin in and of its own. In order for Hamlet to decide whether or not he can trust the ghost of his father he decides to put on a play for his mother and uncle that was based around his father’s murder. As the play took place, Hamlet kept a close watch on Claudius and all of his emotions and that is how Hamlet knew that the ghost was not an evil spirit, but was definitely his beloved father. Once Hamlet comes to terms with the fact that he’s letting down his father even after he’s passed Hamlet is able to come up with a plan to kill Claudius so that he can suffer the same way that he has made
Hamlet’s self destruction is due to his reluctance to accept the role that he has been cast in. His reluctance leads to his delay which is the reason for his self destruction. His delay causes him to over think situations. He delays by spending his time pondering about situations and making plans that do not solve the heart of the problem; until the very end.
"[M]otherhood was invented by someone who had to have a word for it because the ones that had the children didn 't care whether there was a word for it or not," Addie Bundren reflects from beyond the grave in As I Lay Dying (171). Though she can hardly be considered the paragon of motherhood, Addie 's words have a degree of truth to them which can be interpreted in more than one way. Perhaps mothers don 't need a word for motherhood because their experience is one that transcends language. Or perhaps it is only men and childless women who care about defining motherhood, because those who are mothers have realized "that living [is] terrible and that this [is] the answer to it," and thus have no desire to concern themselves with the definition of a meaningless term (As I Lay Dying 171). The latter appears to be the case for Addie, whose favoritism and passive aggressiveness lead to the horrible neglect of almost every one of her five children, but specifically of her only daughter, Dewey Dell. In contrast, Ellen Sutpen 's understanding of the terribleness of living and her own dysfunctional relationships lead her to seek happiness in an illusory world of wealth and status, to the neglect of her only daughter Judith. Both
Hamlet feels very angry and feels his mother has abandoned and betrayed King Hamlet and himself. His ideas about her being a good pure Queen are proved false as she turns her back on her husband and marries his brother. This bothers Hamlet before he discovers his father was murdered. “Thou turn’st mine eyes into my very soul, And there I see such black and grained spots, As will not leave their tinct” (79-81) Gertrude admits that incest with her husband’s brother has blackened her soul and will forever haunt her existence. Her son’s words have struck her and she realizes what a horrible sin she has committed. However, it seems she says this to appease Hamlet as though her future actions do not show that she is remorseful.
Over 400 years ago, William Shakespeare began writing Hamlet, a play that is still seen as relevant and important today. Hamlet tells the story of a Danish prince, who returns home after the death of his father to find out that his mother has married his uncle, Claudius. One night, Hamlet sees the ghost of his father who requests that he exact revenge on Claudius for the role that he played in his death. Although it seems as if Hamlet takes action to defend his father, this is not necessarily true. In fact, Hamlet did not love his father; his revenge was purely in defense of his mother. This can be seen through the fact that he only takes action when Gertrude is in imminent danger, that Hamlet feigns insanity in order to get her attention,
Why does Hamlet delay taking action against Claudius? This is a question that everyone want to know. We all know that Hamlet want to kill his Uncle Claudius as soon as possible. But why does he wait so long to sweep to his revenge? I believe that there are more than one reason why Hamlet delays before he takes action.
In the famous tragedy Hamlet, William Shakespeare writes a mournful, bloody tale about the downfall of the Danish Monarchy. After the murder of the former King Hamlet by his brother, Claudius, Hamlet is overwhelmed with the desire to seek to revenge for his father's death by killing his uncle. What he does not anticipate is to be part of the cause of the downfall of everyone he holds dear. Hamlet plays a hand in the unintentional deaths of Laertes, Ophelia, and Polonius due to his character flaws. Hamlet's hesitancy to kill, his excessive consideration of religious morals, and his inability to foresee other characters' reactions lead a domino effect of tragic events to occurs and Hamlet's own self destruction.