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Maggie a girl of the streets setting
Maggie a girl of the streets why couldn't she take advantage of opportunities
Maggie a girl of the streets setting
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Some people are made tough; others are born with a certain resilience that makes them less susceptible to being brought down by their surroundings or their predispositions. Stephen Crane’s character Maggie in his work Maggie: A Girl of the Streets is one of those unique few who has a little something extra in her being, some fiber that is stronger. Others in Maggie’s situation would likely fold under the pressure and succumb to what some might see as an inevitable destiny. Maggie, however, withstands great amounts of pressure and survives it for much longer than a weaker personality would. She does fall prey to the stereotype that a person is born either exceptional or lowly, but Maggie shows great potency and will power throughout her trials. It is her strength that fights the evil that surrounds her. She is in a battle with herself: On one side, there is Maggie, the girl not of the streets but rather the girl who wants more for herself. On the other hand, there is Maggie, the stereotype, the girl who cannot escape who she is destined to become. Influenced by forces beyond Maggie’s control, she falls prey to the novella’s title and becomes of the streets. Maggie, as Crane describes her, “blossomed in a mud puddle” (Crane 18), but even though the beautiful flower is visible, it is covered in mud. Maggie would be a character easily forgotten if it were not for her resilience that is manifest in her resistance to what becomes her fate. Crane uses many vehicles to change Maggie: the surroundings in the Bowery, her role as a surrogate mother for baby Tommie, the juxtaposition of Maggie the child and Maggie the adult during her confrontation with brother Jimmie. Likewise, Maggie is exposed as a romantic interest to another character ... ... middle of paper ... ...est battle is within herself; the girl of the street’s most daunting task is between her ambition and her learned lifestyle. Though she does fail at the end, it is the journey she took that sets her apart from her opposites in Maggie: A Girl of the Streets. The novella ends with ambiguity surrounding Maggie’s true fate and the possibility of her death. Whether her heart no longer beats by Crane’s final period is superseded by the obvious death of Maggie’s ambition and aspirations, the Maggie she wanted to become. She ultimately fails and becomes of the streets, but the blame belongs to Maggie’s circumstances. The Bowery brings out the worst in everyone, but that is especially true for Maggie Johnson. While it is possible to overcome certain situations, the Bowery and the life Maggie is forced to live kill the flower that “blossomed in a mud puddle” (Crane 18).
In the novella Maggie: A Girl of the Streets and Other Short Fiction by Stephen Crane, Crane tells a story about Maggie, a girl who lives in the slums of New York City in the 1800s with her family and friends. In novella it is portrayed that Maggie desperately tries to escape the slums, however, because of Maggie’s environment and social forces, it ultimately led to her downfall and demise within society.
Maggie, although not the main focus of Recitatif, plays an extremely important role in the sense that she represents the idea that there is more to a person’s identity as well as oppression than just their race.
Have you ever seen the Disney movie Cinderella? Cinderella was always jealous of her step sisters always being up lifted, while she was always degraded by her step mother however, at the end everything changed for Cinderella just as it did for Maggie. There are a numerous of themes throughout the story “Everyday Use”. Race is showed when Dee leaves home and comes back embracing her African American cultural. Family also plays a major role in “Everyday Use”. In “Everyday Use” Maggie’s characterization presents her as ignorant; however, a closer look reveals Maggie ignorance is not a representative of her potential but, rather her mother’s bias.
... Maggie ultimately garners respect for herself and her husband- “You're a backward lad, but you know your trade and it's an honest one,”- with her will. The challenge to overcome her father’s oppression garnered her ‘good life’ alongside the respect her father and his family business (Hobson). The search for our definition of the good life is wrought with trials and tribulation, working to overcome deep seeded trends of oppression within society and family.
...e relationship with men, as nothing but tools she can sharpen and destroy, lives through lust and an uncanny ability to blend into any social class makes her unique. Her character is proven as an unreliable narrator as she exaggerates parts of the story and tries to explain that she is in fact not guilty of being a mistress, but a person caught in a crossfire between two others.
" Crane's story is about a girl named Maggie who grew up in a life that would cause any person with feelings to have the utmost sympathy for her. To explain briefly: Her brother was a roughneck in the community, her mother and father were alcoholics, a younger brother died at a young age, and they lived in a tenement building. Crane is described as a "realistic" author because of the way he describes the social environment and the stress of everyday life. In this story, we see a classic example of a poverty-stricken family to its fullest extent. Brother Jimmie gets into numerous fights because of the bad influences in the community.
... the liberation of women everywhere. One can easily recognize, however, that times were not always so generous as now, and different women found their own ways of dealing with their individual situations. Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s character created a twisted image of the world in her mind, and eventually became mentally insane. While most cases were not so extreme, this character was imperative in creating a realization of such a serious situation.
But it didn’t last, this happiness of Helga Crane’s. Little by little the signs of spring appeared, but strangely the enchantment of the season, so enthusiastically, so lavishly greeted by the gay dwellers of Harlem, filled her only with restlessness. Somewhere, within her, in a deep recess, crouched discontent. She began to lose confidence in the fullness of her life, the glow began to fade from her conception of it. As the days multiplied, her need of someth...
After evaluating the short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, I came to the conclusion that the narrator made the right choice of giving her daughter, Maggie, the family quilts. Dee (Wangero), her older sister was qualified for the quilts as well, but in my opinion Maggie is more deserving. Throughout the story, the differences between the narrator’s two daughters are shown in different ways. The older daughter, Dee (Wangero), is educated and outgoing, whereas Maggie is shy and a homebody. I agree with the narrator’s decision because of Maggie’s good intentions for the quilts and her innocent behavior. In my opinion Dee (Wangero) is partially superficial and always gets what she wants.
In this story, Maggie is a lot like her mother. They both are uneducated, loving, caring, and allow Dee to run over them. Maggie has been through more things than her mother has though, because of the incident that happened. Maggie has scars like Emily, except Maggie’s scars are from a house fire (319). The house fire has impacted Maggie’s life tremendously, since she is very self-conscious and shy. Walker stated that Maggie is “ashamed of the burn scars down her arms and legs (318). The mother is protective of Maggie and will be there for her whenever she needs her too. Even though her mother knows all her struggles, she still supports her and pushes her to be better. I think that is one reason she pushes her to marry John Thomas, because she wants her to become her own person and to be strong (319). The mother of “Everyday Use” is opposite from the mother in “I Stand Here Ironing”, because she is there for her children no matter what their financial status
Stephen Cranes novella, ‘Maggie: A Girl of the Streets’ recounts the experience of children growing up in a violent and morally decadent society. It raises fundamental question as to the extent of man’s helplessness in certain circumstances. Moreover, it juxtaposes issues of personal choice and responsibility on one side against immense social circumstances on the other side. To the reader and critic, the thought to ponder is whether human beings can rise above a morally corrupt edifice and ride to the high pedestal of decency. In Cranes’ novella, the environment condemns characters to irredeemable and inevitable vanity. Vanity exacerbates the situation as characters are engrossed in vainglorious pursuits.
Before all this, Maggie had been working in a factory, “where they made collars and cuffs” (Crane 967). This life is hard. Factories of the time had horrible working conditions, and left little chance for a woman to advance. Considering the slums that Maggie grew up in, though, this was one of the best options she could have. When Pete comes into her life, though, she dreams that something better has fallen for her....
Maggie lives with a poor and dysfunctional family and a hopeless future with only the small possibility of change. The environment and setting she grows up in do not support anything more than a dull, dreary and pathetic future for her. An old woman asks Maggie's brother Jimmy: "Eh, Gawd, child, what is it this time? Is yer fader beatin yer mudder, or yer mudder beatin yer fader? (Maggie, 10)" while he runs to Maggie's apartment one night. The lack of love and support of her family hinders Maggie's ability to live a happy and fulfilling life. Without knowing that someone loves her no matter what she does or how she acts Maggie may feel desperate enough to change her situation by any means she can, and without any useful guidance. Even without any positive influences Maggie grows up different from the low-life's living with and around her. Crane explains Maggie's uniqueness in the passage "None of the dirt of Rum Alley seemed to be in her veins. The philosophers up-stairs, down-stairs and on the same floor, puzzled over it" (Maggie 16). Maggie's uniqueness gives her the chance to improve her life, but only a slim chance. Even though Maggie differs from the people around her they remain sleazy, making it harder for her to change her life because she must go outside of her community for help.
On the other hand, Maggie was burned from the fire of the house and was not too much like Dee. Maggie and Dee was very different and the narrator knew that. Dee was so oppressed by her heritage that when she left for college and came back she had change her name in all. The narrator and the other daughter was amazed by what Dee did that they really could not bear it. Dee mainly wanted to make her mother and sister feel bad because, she had become more than them.
Despite the similarities in the time periods of the pieces, the use of language in them is very different. In Stephen Crane's “Maggie,” the audience is given the story of a poor family whose children grow up and experience difficulties due to their social position. As already noted, the dialog is treated in the story in a much different manner than the paragraphs which are written in a more eloquent manner. An example of this is: