The story “Eating Me Out of House and Home” by Sue and Allen Gallehugh reflects the 21st Century America society. Mrs. Bruja is the witch that had everything one could imagine but a good self-image. She kept herself lonely for long time and she has an eating disorder although she was obsessed with her weight. The witch blamed her depression on her parents because they did not give her a good childhood with much attention. When Mrs. B. meet Hansel and Gretel she wanted to eat them because she want to supply her eating problem and she thought it was fair to ruin someone else future because her parents messed up hers, she pictured herself as a victim. Gretel for other side showed a lot of mature and taught the witch saying “You can’t choose your
parents or your childhood, but you can choose to determine your present and your future” and gave recipients to the witch to prepare healthier food and positive life choices counseling. Poor self-esteem is a serious problem of today’s day society that can lead to grave consequences if there is not action taken, Gretel is an example of how one can deal with that situation and not only help oneself but others like Mrs. Bruja who had everything but her ugly self-image made her to fall in the weakness of try to ruin other’s lives.
Living Out by Lisa Loomer is a play that tells the story of the complicated relationship between a Salvadoran nanny and the lawyer she works for. Both women are smart, hard-working mothers who want better lives for their children. The play explores many similarities and differences between them. Through the main character Ana, we understand what it’s like to leave a child in another country and to come to come to the United States. We also get what the potential cost is like to sacrifice your own child in order to care for someone else's. Through the lawyer; Nancy, we understand the pressure on women today. How they try to do everything perfectly and sometimes having to put work before their family. The play also looks at the discrimination and misconceptions between Anglos (White American’s) and Latinos.
In the story “Sugar Days” by Taylor, Elma Rae’s and Lornie’s eating habits are a result of Dever’s accident. Two girls Elma Rae and Lornie have eating disorders from a past accident. First, the narrator was describing the two girls. “They made a strange pair, with Elma Rae so large, almost fat, and Lornie all bone. Elma Rae was fat because she ate so much, and Lornie didn’t eat at all. Second, Elma Rae just got a cupcake and offered Lornie a bite. “I’ll just watch you eat, she said. Elma Rae turned murmuring something under her breath about getting help.” Elma Rae would eat anything she could get her hands on and Lornie wouldn’t eat at all. Third, Elma Rae was remembering when Dever got crippled. “So he was crippled because she dared him, dared him right in front of the truck bearing down on them like a bad memory.” They both feel it is their fault that Dever was crippled. Elma Rae and Lornie have an eating disorder because they think they caused Dever’s accident.
However, these views don’t take social process into consideration. Therefore, they organized a self-help group for bulimics and anorexics known as BANISH in order to determine what societal aspects cause these disorders. The author’s group consisted mostly of college age females which is significant because this is group primarily affected by these disorders. Interestingly, the backgrounds of the women in the BANISH group are strikingly similar in that they are excellent students, good children who have very close parental relationships, from “functional” families - all having been brought up with an emphasis on thin physical appearance. The authors also allude to the fact that in today’s society, slimness is considered attractive and most worthy, while being overweight is viewed as both morally and physically wrong. Society labels heavy people as “lazy, obscene, and unhealthy”. (244) It is noted that when members of the group lost weight, they reported feeling more accepted and
“The Devil in the Shape of a Woman” was an excellent book that focuses on the unjusts that have been done to women in the name of witchcraft in Salem, and many other areas as well. It goes over statistical data surrounding gender, property inherence, and the perceptions of women in colonial New England. Unlike the other studies of colonial witchcraft, this book examines it as a whole, other then the usual Salem outbreaks in the late 17th century.
During the childhood of Jeannette Walls her and her siblings all had to be self reliant to get everyday necessities. Jeannette and her siblings have to do many things such as scavenging for food in any place they could think of. Jeannette would “slip back into the classroom [during recess] and find something in some other kids lunch bag that wouldn’t be missed”(68). Or if she was at a friends house she would ask to use the bathroom and if no one was in the kitchen she would “grab
Described within the vignette is a nineteen year old teenager named Brandy. Similar to girls her age, Brandy has difficulties dealing with her body image and self-esteem. For instance, she experiences hopelessness, isolation, sadness, and anxiety that all contribute to Brandy’s acknowledgement of her physical appearance. She completely overestimates her body size to the point of taking dieting pills then defaulting to purging. During the typical day, the meals are scarce but healthy compared to a bad day full of unhealthy snacking. Lastly, her family predicament is not a supportive one at that. Her mother was obese so she constantly dieted while Brandy’s father illustrated signs of sexual interest although he never physically touched her.
“I lay awake at night, rubbing my feet with my hands, trying to warm them.” Jeanette (176) In this scene, Jeanette is trying to keep warm inside of their poorly insulated shack in Welch, West Virginia. She was forced to face a freezing winter with only a stove inside of their living room to keep warm. Another time she says: “We did eat less. Once we lost our credit with the commissary, we quickly ran out of food.” (67) This is the height of the hunger in the Walls family. Rex lost his job and had no money coming in. Jeannette tried not to complain but when she couldn’t keep it inside anymore and let one small word of complaint her mother replied with “It’s not my fault you’re hungry” P.(69). This is a good example for how neglectful Rosemary is. It is in fact her fault that they are hungry because it is her responsibility to take care of her children. This is a perfect segway to the next issue,
“It is estimated that 8 million Americans have an eating disorder - seven million women, and one million men.” (“South Carolina Department of Mental Health”). Skinny by Ibi Kaslik is about two sisters, Holly and Giselle, whose lives and relationship are impacted by the others’ state of condition. Giselle is a medical student who wanted to see what would happen if she stopped eating, and because of this she developed anorexia. Holly is an eighth grader who was born deaf in her left ear. The story jumps back and forth, changing every chapter, from Giselle’s point of view to Holly’s. This helps show the reader how one sister affects the others life. Skinny by Ibi Kaslik shows how family problems can have a great effect on the lives of the people within the family.
The advent of the 2000s brought with it a new generation of youth unlike anything Western culture has seen before. In the beginning, no one noticed any change from the 90s to the early 2000s, and the societal purview seemed untouched. Kids could still be fat and cute simultaneously and no one questioned how such a thing was possible. Yet, in reality, the western culture had plans to cast about a plague that would make Old Testament devotees blush—or, at least according to essayist Susan Bordo, author of “The Globalization of Eating Disorders.” In her essay, Bordo approaches her audience with a grim scenario: humankind can only stop the spread of eating disorders until we become aware of its
In the fictional worlds of Charlotte and Emily Brontë, one of the few ways that women who otherwise have very little say in their lives are able to express dissatisfaction is through self-starvation and illness. It is noteworthy that in their own lives the Bronte sisters exhibited many eccentric habits in regards to eating, and both Charlotte and (especially) Emily engaged in self-starvation similar to the strategies used by the characters in their novels.
This story “The Fat Girl” by author Andre Dubus, is a heart wrenching story about the all too familiar subjects of obesity, eating disorders, self-consciousness, and the negative impact in which society and even family and friends can have on people suffering from these issues. It seems the young girl at the center of the story, Louise, was doomed to live a tortured existence from nine years old and forward. Her own mother fortified this fate by stating “In five years you’ll be in high school and if you’re fat the boys won’t like you; they won’t ask you out.”(pg. 158.) This is one of several times when her mother, while she thought she was trying to help, was actually slowly submerging Louise into a horrifying existence.
Beth by all accounts was raised in a normal home and is a typical teenager. She became to experience an obsession with gaining weight and becoming fat. Although, Beth weight is normal for her height and age she is dieting and losing weight. She has a poor self-image and as a result has become dangerously thin. Beth refuses to admit she has a problem and as a result is suffering side effects including the loss of her menstrual cycle. Beth’s parents are concerned for their daughter’s health but have no idea how to help her. It is clear that Beth suffers from anorexia. Beth has an abnormal fear of gaining weight. This fear has led her to an unhealthy view of what she should weigh. The media and culture surrounding Beth are used as her justification for her fear of weight. Beth’s ability to ignore both the set point and setting point theory could be linked to the positive-incentive she had developed. Beth sees losing weight as a positive or desired outcome. These views as lead her from seeing any positive-incentive from eating. The fact that Beth has been obsessed with her weight for a while and that she is dangerously slim, would suggest that she has been limiting her food intake for a while. The fact that Beth has limited her intake of food for so long means that eating would only make her feel nauseated. This feeling only justifies her view of not e...
“The House That Built Me” by Miranda Lambert is a song that tells the story of a woman going back to visit her childhood home after experiencing life as an adult. The speaker discusses how she identifies her home with the memories and experiences that have molded her into the person she becomes, but she feels that something is missing from her life. She believes that going back to “the house” will help her recover her true sense of self. When my childhood home was sold, I experienced a deep sense of loss. Like the speaker in the song, I felt that I was missing pieces of myself for many years afterwards. Just as the speaker learns that it is not the tangible house that keeps her memories alive, but herself, I eventually learned that while letting go of the “house” I grew up in was difficult, I would carry the memories and experiences of growing up there within my heart.
"Overview: 'The Fat Girl'." Short Stories for Students. Ed. Michael L. LaBlanc and Ira Mark Milne. Vol. 10. Detroit: Gale Group, 2000. Literature Resource Center. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
Many women in modern society make life altering decisions on a daily basis. Women today have prestigious and powerful careers unlike in earlier eras. It is more common for women to be full time employees than homemakers. In 1879, when Henrik Ibsen wrote A Doll's House, there was great controversy over the out come of the play. Nora’s walking out on her husband and children was appalling to many audiences centuries ago. Divorce was unspoken, and a very uncommon occurrence. As years go by, society’s opinions on family situations change. No longer do women have a “housewife” reputation to live by and there are all types of family situations. After many years of emotional neglect, and overwhelming control, Nora finds herself leaving her family. Today, it could be said that Nora’s decision is very rational and well overdue.