Two Or Three Things I Know For Sure By Dorothy Allison

564 Words2 Pages

Two or Three Things I know for Sure was written by Dorothy Allison. Dorothy Allison is an American writer who expresses the themes of sexual abuse, class struggles, feminism, lesbianism, and child abuse. Dorothy Allison was born in Greenville, South Carolina and was born into a poor, working family the “proletariat” (p.1). Her mother was a single mother, who later married Dorothy Allison’s stepfather when she was very young. Dorothy’s abuse began at that time. Dorothy Allison varies the tone honest, serious, and sometimes indignant to communicate the importance of surviving. Dorothy uses many personal accounts of events, and the symbolism represents both her toughness and her finally finding peace. Dorothy Allison began many passages with “Let me tell you a story” (p.1). She and her sisters were raised by poor white people. Her description of her childhood home “smelled like wet grass, beer bottles, and cheap makeup” (p.6). As a child, Dorothy Allison lived in the country where she experienced horrendous child and sexual abuse by her stepfather. She describes her stepfather as short and mean. Dorothy Allison is indignant about her stepfather abusing her and causing her to feel unwanted. …show more content…

Dorothy is honest about her life because she does not want to end up in denial like the women she loves most. She describes her mother as very beautiful and hard working. Despite her mother’s faults, Dorothy loves her mother very much. She also loves and admires many other women in her family for their “resilience and determination and the cost of hard compromises” (p.5). Dorothy Allison felt she was not allowed to be a female or be beautiful. She convinced herself she was unbreakable and felt like she was a brick wall. Dorothy Allison quotes are honest because I can feel her expression of beauty and loving ourselves. She sends a message from her quotes and telling the seriousness and truthful meaning of her past

Open Document