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Sexism in literature
Christina rossetti critical essays
Christina rossetti critical essays
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Clara's Day 1. Summary The story follows a 15 year old school girl from London named Clara and takes place around the 70's. One day, during the school assembly, Clara decides to undress in front of her classmates, teachers and the Headmaster, but does not achieve the desired reaction as all she gets are pats on her back from her school mates and a calm and collected talk with the Headmaster. Clara returns home, a while after school is finished and finds her mother sitting at the table. The only acknowledgement she gets is a casual greeting. Her mother's boyfriend Stan, a man Clara has some aversion to, is not home. A couple of days later, her mother gets a letter from the Headmaster describing the incident at school. Both she and Stan finds the episode amusing, and merely laughs at the event before leaving Clara alone at the table, crying. 2. Characterization of Clara To the people around her, Clara looks and behaves much like the average 15 year old girl. She is well behaved, maybe a little prude, and makes an effort to spend time with her friends after school. She is not...
For awhile she feels deathly lonely "cheated and robbed of the life that more fortunate girls seemed to have (Chapter 16)." However, Sara manages to get into college and despite all the discouragement and hard work she graduates and gets a job as a teacher. She gets her own apartment, which she vowed to keep clean and empty, a dramatic change from her small and filthy childhood home she shared with her whole family on Hester Street. And even despite her mother's death, her father's rapid remarriage, and then his diamond earring wearing new wife's attempt to blackmail her into losing her teaching job, Sara still manages to find happiness. She gets married to the principal at her school, even when she thinks that her step mother drove him away. Yet, in the midst of all her good fortune, "[her] joy hurt like guilt (Chapter 21)." So much in fact that even through all her hatred for him, she still developed a longing to see her
Born on December 25, 1921, Clara grew up in a family of four children, all at least 11 years older than her (Pryor, 3). Clara’s childhood was more of one that had several babysitters than siblings, each taking part of her education. Clara excelled at the academic part of life, but was very timid among strangers. School was not a particularly happy point in her life, being unable to fit in with her rambunctious classmates after having such a quiet childhood. The idea of being a burden to the family was in Clara’s head and felt that the way to win the affection of her family was to do extremely well in her classes to find the love that she felt was needed to be earned. She was extremely proud of the positive attention that her achievement of an academic scholarship (Pryor, 12). This praise for her accomplishment in the field of academics enriched her “taste for masculine accomplishments”. Her mother however, began to take notice of this and began to teach her to “be more feminine” by cooking dinners and building fires (Pryor, 15). The 1830’s was a time when the women of the United States really began to take a stand for the rights that they deserved (Duiker, 552). Growing up in the mist of this most likely helped Barton become the woman she turned out to be.
Sara feels horrible that she didn’t come to see her mother and spend more time with her. She knows that she should’ve come to see her mother instead of investing so much time in school. Then, her mother died a couple of days later. She decides to stay and visit her father, Reb Smolinsky, often but doesn’t visit him after he gets married again only thirty days after her mother died. A couple months later, she sees Reb again, but he’s working.
The short story Eleven by Sandra Cisneros, focuses around the main character Rachel as an insecure developing girl who lacks the experience to handle everyday encounters. Rachel, an eleven year old girl truly encapsulates the thoughts that are present within an adolescent. The lack of confidence in herself, excessive fear of being judged, and ideas of growing up are ideals that are relevant within each and every one of us. The reader is able to relate to Rachel because her feelings and experiences that are described by the author are similar to what most people have been through and are currently experiencing. The characterization of Rachel is expressed through the author’s usage of point of view, imagery, and repetition.
Although under a fake identity, Francie begins attending school and finds that she truly enjoys it. However, on her way home from school one day, at age fourteen, Francie experiences a horrific moment, one that can never be forgotten. She was molested and nearly raped by a neighborhood sex fiend. As if not traumatizing enough, Francie also watched her mother shoot the man in her defense. Not long after this, an even greater event takes place in Francie's life. She is informed of her father's death, that she is told had been caused of pneumonia.
As a little girl, she first found her life’s calling when she took care of her brother David after an accident. He had been helping to build a barn when he flipped and fell to the ground. Doctors had come to help, but he did not get any better. Eleven year-old Clara became David's nurse, administering his medicine and even applying and removing leeches when the doctors suggested it might help. Clara stayed home from school for two years to take care of her brothe...
Rose Mary is a selfish woman and decides not to go to school some mornings because she does not feel up to it. Jeannette takes the initiative in making sure that her mother is prepared for school each morning because she knows how much her family needs money. Even though Rose Mary starts to go to school every day, she does not do her job properly and thus the family suffers financially again. When Maureen’s birthday approaches, Jeannette takes it upon herself to find a gift for her because she does not think their parents will be able to provide her with one. Jeannette says, “at times I felt like I was failing Maureen, like I wasn’t keeping my promise that I’d protect her - the promise I’d made to her when I held her on the way home from the hospital after she’d been born. I couldn’t get her what she needed most- hot
Susie’s mother opened the door to let Molly, Susie’s babysitter, inside. Ten-month old Susie seemed happy to see Molly. Susie then observed her mother put her jacket on and Susie’s face turned from smiling to sad as she realized that her mother was going out. Molly had sat for Susie many times in the past month, and Susie had never reacted like this before. When Susie’s mother returned home, the sitter told her that Susie had cried until she knew that her mother had left and then they had a nice time playing with toys until she heard her mother’s key in the door. Then Susie began crying once again.
...self exaggerated stories. One thing she tells herself is that her mother was kidnapped by a lunatic. On another occasion a classmate asks where her mother is and she says that her mother is on a business trip in London. Their similarities help each other to grow and mature and eventually come to terms with their situations.
Melinda starts school off in a bad way. She continuously gets in trouble with numerous teachers. She never does any homework. She mostly takes naps. Worst of all, in her mind, she has no friends. This does not change until she meets Heather, the new girl. Heather is...
A reverend comes to mommas house once a month to discuss the ceriman but everybody hates him cause he eats the best part of the Sunday dinner. Later in the book Maya is raped and sexually harassed by Mr. Freeman. After Maya got sick the pants that she got raped in were found, and Mr. Freeman went to jail but got out that night. After the trial Maya and Bailey were sent back to stamps to live again with their grand mother. Maya goes to someone to help make her talk, because after she got raped she did not talk.
The cry for help was not heard. Emily came up with so many excuses to spend some quality time with her mother and they were not acknowledged. “Can’t you go some other time, Mommy, like tomorrow?”(Pg.225) Emily’s mother was young herself and had a rough raising did not know the signs of asking for help.
Victoria’s early childhood was a very sheltered and reserved one, her best friends growing up was her nanny’s a...
Riley’s isolation from her new peer group. Her relationships are shown to change as she moves from Middle Childhood to Early Adolescence, as she begins to show interest in a romantic relationship with a male peer in her class. Her relationship with her peers and her family is shown to be disrupted when she cannot accomplish the developmental tasks in this stage. In addition to her relational development, her individual development is also changing. Riley begins to doubt her abilities to master social, emotional, and cognitive skills, and begins to regress in
... mother all along. Unluckily, both are unable to savour the moment. Overall, the mother and son relationship change throughout the play.