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The effects of the role society has on women
The effects of the role society has on women
Essay on women society expectations
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Women have come a long way from being allowed to speak only when spoken too, and virtually having no rights. Now women are the CEO’s of company’s and have all the same rights and their male counterparts. Sadly though in “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers” and “Barbie Doll” there are two females who lack the freedom and power that many other women have today. Looking at the poems from a general standpoint, Aunt Jennifer and the “girlchild” (1), as she is called, share similarities. Both females are unhappy and living under someone else’s rule. At closer inspection the poems have different unique qualities such as the varying tones, and many symbols that bring them more life. The general consensus of each poem is that women do not have as much control of their lives as one may wish to believe.
Aunt Jennifer and the girl both lack control of their own lives. Aunt Jennifer lives under the restraints of her husband, and the main character in “Barbie Doll” lives under the restraints of society’s expectations. The reader can first see this as Aunt Jennifer is doing her needle work: “The massive weight of Uncle’s wedding band / Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer’s hand” (7-8). From this the reader can gather that Aunt Jennifer is being held back by her husband in one way or another. The reader knows that the “girlchild” (1) in “Barbie Doll” is powerless because society completely disproves of her appearance, making her feel inferior. The tigers Aunt Jennifer is creating are described as “proud and unafraid” (12), which is the exact opposite of Aunt Jennifer. This woman is clearly unhappy and living vicariously through her creations. She perhaps does not feel she has the sanction to change anything in her life so as to make it more enjoyab...
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...nhappy woman whose life is not fulfilled; this alone gives each of the poems a dark tone.
In “Barbie Doll” the reader can see that societies unrealistic expectations for girls and women contribute to their subordination, as many of them cannot live up to these standards. Just as in “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers” her husband caused the subordination of Aunt Jennifer because he was holding her back. These poems were not made to pity women; they were made to empower them. From “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers” and “Barbie Doll” women should take home the message that life does not have to be that way. What one does with their life is up to them, not their husband or classmates. The more we as a society talk about the unfair treatment of women, the more it becomes a problem. That does not mean it needs to be brushed under the rug, it means that no gender should be victimized.
When the narrator first compares her Barbies, she thinks that she needs perfect and new Barbies to fit in with everybody else. The narrator does understand that her family does not have money, but she simply works around it. Although, she wants more Barbies it was unlikely for them to get them. The narrator says, “Because we don’t have money for a stupid-looking boy doll when we’d both rather ask for a new Barbie outfit next christmas. (14-15)” The narrator has to make do with what she has. She can not have a boy Barbie because it is not in her parents budget. This affects her and it makes her lose confidence in herself because she does not have what everybody else has. After the narrator receives her partially messed up Barbies, she says, “And if the prettiest doll, Barbie’s MOD’ern cousin Francie with real eyelashes, eyelash brush included, has a left that that’s melted a little-so? If you dress her in her new ‘Prom Pinks’ outfit, satin splendor with matching coat, gold belt, clutch, and hair bow included, so long as you don’t lift her dress, right?-who’s to know. (16)” Even though the Barbie has a melted left foot, the narrator moves past this. She will just cover it up with a dress. The narrator wanted new and perfect Barbie’s in the beginning, but she realized that these Barbie’s are not everything and she can make them her own. She is not defined by her Barbies. Sandra Cisneros used symbolism and characterization to describe how the narrator had a hard time coming into her own identity and finding
In both poem “ Barbie Doll” by Merge Piercy and “ homage to my hips” by Lucille Clifton, they both expressed the different way on how our society wants us, women to look and act in order to be except into the society. Our society condemned any women who are to act differently from our norms. In this society and in every culture aspect they are always stereotype, women always been taking advantage of no matter what century we are on. In “Barbie Doll” the author tend to provide more effective critique of society expectation about our body image than “homage to my hips”.
Teenage rebellion is typically portrayed in stories, films, and other genres as a testosterone-based phenomenon. There is an overplayed need for one to acknowledge a boy’s rebellion against his father, his life direction, the “system,” in an effort to become a man, or rather an adult. However, rarely is the female addressed in such a scenario. What happens when little girls grow up? Do they rebel? Do they, in a sudden overpowering rush of estrogen, deny what has been taught to them from birth and shed their former youthful façades? Do they turn on their mothers? In Sharon Olds’ poem, “The Possessive,” the reader is finally introduced to the female version of the popular coming-of-age theme as a simple haircut becomes a symbol for the growing breach between mother and daughter through the use of striking images and specific word choice.
Throughout a collection of Gwen Harwood’s poems is the exploration of women during the 1950’s-90’s and their roles in society as it evolved in its acceptance of allowing a woman equal say in her identity. (struggling to end this essay)
Marge Piercy wrote the Barbie Doll poem in 1973, during the woman’s movement. The title of the poem Barbie Doll, symbolizes how females are supposed to appear into the society. In the poem Barbie Doll, the main character was a girl. She was described as a usual child when she was born. Meaning that she had normal features that any person could ever have. Piercy used “wee lipstick the color of cherry candy” as a smile to describe the child before she has hit puberty. After the character hit puberty, the classmates in her class began to tease her saying “you have a big nose and fat legs.” (Piercy pg. 1) Having a big nose and a fat leg is the opposite of what females are supposed to be presented as in the gender stereotype. In the society that the girl lives in, follows the gender stereotypes that presented females as a petite figure with a slender body. These expectations made the character go insane. She wanted to fit into the society so she “cut off her nose and legs and offered them up.” (Piercy pg. 1) Even though the girl was “healthy, tested intelligent…” (Piercy pg. 1) no one saw that in her, but her appearances. In the end of the poem the girl end up dying, a...
The poem starts with the line, “This girlchild was born as usual,” which suggests that as soon as a girl is born, society already expects her to learn the role she will soon play in when she hits puberty (1). Thus, showing why we are given dolls as little girls to illustrate how we should act and appear according to society. After we learn all the roles we will soon take part in, “the magic of puberty,” hits and girls immediately begin applying the ideals to their own lives (5). As if this attempt to conform is not enough we have other people telling us we are not to perfect. “You have a great big nose and fat legs,” says a classmate to the girl (6). This type of pressure can slowly but surely destroy even the little confidence women do have in themselves.
The girls feel that people need to mask their imperfections and true selves to uphold the image of how they are supposed to be. These dolls were found in a less than desirable place, such as “Lying on the street next to some tool bits ,and platform shoes with the heels all squashed, and a florescent green wicker wastebasket, and aluminum foil, and hubcaps, and a pink shag rug, and windshield wiper blades, and dusty mason jars, and a coffee can full of rusty nails”. They find another Barbie with heals in the depths of junk. They cover up the physical flaws of the burnt barbies with pretty outfits such as the “Prom Pinks” dress. One of the girls state “as long as you don't lift her dress, right? - who’s to know.” This attempt to cover up where the dolls came from and their imperfections seem to parallel their feelings about themselves and where they come from. The girls have an image of how their dolls would be if they were new. This could be the role society plays on the image of how women are supposed to be and look
As women, there has always been an issue with equality between themselves and men. Even though there has been a significant amount of progress in the United States throughout the years, there are women that still suffer with equal rights around the world. In A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates, and “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway, there are many aspects throughout them that relate to each other in numerous ways. The main theme between them is the way woman are treated and how they appear to be less equal of the men in their lives. Even though men are presumed to be the more dominate gender, women should be just as equal socially, financially, and academically, and not feel pressured by men. For the women and girl in A Doll’s House, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, and “Hills Like White Elephants”, they suffer with the idea of feeling compelled to do what the men say and follow his direction of how their life should be.
In the poem, “It’s a Woman’s World,” Eavan Boland offers a bitterly ironic interpretation of women’s role in society. Despite the passing of thousands of years, she believes that women remain the inferior sex. She supports this idea through simple, short words that convey a sort of self-mocking irony and outrage at the role
The Poem “Barbie Doll (1969)” by Marge Piercy describes the life of a young girl who fell victim to society’s idea of beauty. Marge Piercy was a known social activist and uses this poem to bring attention to serious issues facing young females in society.
The poem “Daystar” by Rita Dove is about a woman who is a busy mother that is tired of the burdensome duties of motherhood because it makes her feel confined to her situation in life. Alternatively, the poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy is a satirical poem that is about a girl who is intelligent and physically capable, but the characteristic that society places value on is her physical appearance. The poems “Daystar” and “Barbie Doll” are both representative of the gender roles and expectations of women in the twentieth century, the time that these poems were published, to be mothers and housewives.
In the beginning of “Barbie Doll”, pleasurable and unpleasurable imagery is given so that the reader can see the extremes girls go through to be considered perfect.
These four journal writings were chosen because they share a common theme in women’s studies. Each writer expresses the oppression that women face, whether it is in childhood, as a homemaker or as a woman of color. The selected journals were written about “What It Would Be Like If Women Win,” “Feel Me. See Me. Hear Me. Reach Me,” “Deadlier Than the Male” and “The Problem That Has No Name.” Each journal reflects the differences of how men and women have and still are treated within society. In being a woman of color like Gay, an African American, or from a Native American tribe, people place limitations through prejudice. They are even more discriminated against, as they are not viewed as equals to Caucasian women. In general, girls are taught to aspire to be a housewife, through their toys and play. Once a woman becomes a housewife she is viewed as submissive to her husband and denies her vocation. Society is structured to keep women oppressed and these four journals are the evidence throughout women’s history.
After reading “The Doll House” and “Trifles”, the idea of females being inferior to men is portrayed. Both plays, are in a much older time period. But from a feminist view, females are still sometimes given the doubtful role in today’s society. Both plays, are very different, but much alike in the ways the females are treated, never taken seriously, nor are they appreciated.
Stereotypes are extremely apparent in our society. When watching this slam poem, a theme that almost instantly emerged was common female stereotypes. I am passionate about breaking common stereotypes of women- we are not just fragile, soft, hairless princesses that don’t like what you’re offering unless its pink and glittery. We are strong and capable of doing anything males do. “You can only laugh cutely or cry beautifully” was a lyric that resonated with me because it is such a real expectation of being a woman. In the world, we live in today women are expected to exude beauty and grace with everything we do, and if not what a mess our lives must be. “We are taught from the moment we leave our pink nurseries we are collapsible paper dolls”. Females are expected to behave passively and be submissive to men. We are supposed to cook and clean and look after the children while our strong, successful husbands are out earning money. Apparently, we aren’t good at maths or science and are