Giver Of Stars Essay

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Women have been fighting for equality for centuries, and still are to this day. In the novel The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes, women are treated as second-class citizens and faced societal pressure to submit to their role as homemakers, overall proving that women were not as respected as men in the 1900s yet fought for equality despite the danger. Throughout the novel, we see Alice forced into the role of quiet daughter, submissive wife, and potential homemaker. This was normal for the 1930s, as the only societal expectation of women was to be polite housewives. Alice does not want any of this for herself, but in the 1930s when the book is set, women were treated as second to men. While the 19th amendment had been ratified years prior, women were still not equal. Due to the …show more content…

However, she soon finds out how controlling Bennett and his father, Mr. Van Cleve, truly are. Alice gets no say in their living situation, privacy, or the food they eat. She is put on display as a trophy wife. Women were pressured into marriages at a young age, feeling as though they could not be fulfilled if they didn’t marry and start a family as soon as possible. This is due to society's belief that women are only valuable and can make men happy when they are young. According to census.gov, in 1930 the average woman married at the age of twenty-one, while men married at twenty-four (Figure MS-2. Median age at first marriage: 1890 to present). While men were encouraged to be breadwinners and providers, to start careers and be successful, women were encouraged to have babies and stay home. We see this with Alice when she gets to Kentucky. At church, when the women were asked to be librarians for the Packhorse library, all of the men protested. Alice’s father-in-law only agreed to let Alice do it until she had babies, “she could do it just until the babies came along” (Moyes,

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