Joanne Nagel in her article, “Constructing Ethnicity: Creating and Recreating Ethnic Identity and Culture” defines the ethnic and cultural changes an individual goes through when introduced to a new culture. Gail Labovitz’s two works about Rabbinic culture entitled, “Marriage and Metaphor” and “The Scholarly Life -The Laboring Wife: Gender, Torah and the Family Economy in Rabbinic Culture” provide explanation and analysis of scared Jewish texts, such as the Torah, to help explain how a woman is viewed in Jewish culture. Alice Kessler Harris provides good insight and background of Yezierska in the introduction of “Bread Givers”. A primary source I used was Anzia Yezierska’s “America and I”, this article tells us how
In ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ this is represented by Egeus, Hermias father who has total control over Hermia, including who she is to marry. Egeus quotes an ancient Athenian law where by a daughter must marry the suitor chosen by her father, or else face death. This presents Egeus to the audience as a resonant voice as he reflects dominant ideologies and values the patriarchal society by demanding his daughter to marry the man of his choice whom she does not love or be killed. This same strong stance of rigid patriarchy is reflected in ‘Chocolat’ through the resonant character of Count Reynaud. He values old traditions of religion and power through a patriarchal society.
Brenda DoHarris’s Calabash Parkway, set in between the 70s and the 80s in Brooklyn, New York, in a novel about four Guyanese women named, Agatha, Evadne, Gwennie and Drupattie, who migrate to North America, to find love and to escape from tragedy. In the story Agatha, Evadne, Gwennie and Drupattie struggle for survival and discrimination. Feminism in Calabash Parkway, is represented in ‘Eunice’s business, independence, and the support of Evadne, Doreen, and Gwennie. Eunice’s business in this story is a very prominent feature of feminism. Agatha, one of the main characters, has been struggling ever since she migrate to Brooklyn, New York.
He thinks with the lodge money for his wife’s death, Zalmon has become a rich man and it would be a good chance to marry off Bessie. Bessie however is shocked on hearing this and says she hates the smell of fish. If Zalmon was the last man on earth, she wouldn’t marry him. When Bessie sees that Zalmon’s youngest son, Dave is burning with fever and really needs love and affection of a mother figure, she decides to marry despite never liking
My Last Duchess For many years the male species has embedded that they have or should have power over women. In the course of society and most of all traditions, we act accordingly to how others view us. In today’s society and society 100 years ago women are described to be caring and nurturing while on the other hand men are considered to be more powerful and are dominant over their entire family even their wives. People that seem to have this assumption believe that men and women live better lives when both assume their role, and that role is what the environment has ordained in them. Although over the years women has gain to their rights to vote and to freedom choice, humanity still considers men to be the providers and the women to be care givers.
Paul Comaskey World literature Professor Chisunka In the classic novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Hurston, Hurston has given unique distinctions on how three different men treat Janie and the effectiveness this will bring throughout Janie’s journey of life. Janie’s grandmother raised her as she grew into a woman. Nanny sparks Janie’s journey, to insure that she receives financial stability through marriage and she will not end up like her mother. Through the novel Janie wants independence but Nanny had different plans for Janie too marry right away. These three men Zora Hurston labels, play an enormous role in Janie’s life long pursuit for independence and to truly find herself.
If she was married, any wages she might earn were not hers, but must be handed by the employer to her husband, who was in every way her master. The law even gave him the power to chastise or punish her. The laws of divorce were helpless to the happiness of women. In every case, the man always gained the control of the children- even if he were the offender in the case. Men gained in every way possible to destroy a woman's confidence in her powers, to lessen her self-respect, and to make her lead a submissive life.
Struggle for the American Dream Anzia Yezierka’s, Bread Givers talks about the life of an immigrant girl who struggles to leave behind her Jewish American culture and obtain the American culture by interacting with Americans. Throughout the book, Sara Smolinsky is looked down upon because she’s an immigrant. Because of her Jewish heritage she is being forced to do what her father tells her. As Sara starts to become older she starts to change and do things her own way. Not following her sisters footsteps, Sara wants to make a difference for herself and decides she wants to associate with the American life.
For instance, the father was attempting to arrange the marriage of his daughter Mariane to Tartuffe. This was accepted in the 1600s as the norm, but today women have freedom to marry who they wish despite what their parents would rather have happen. It is similar to today’s culture in America because it shows that the man of the house, Orgon has all the authority over every decision made in the house. He did not even tell his wife, or anybody else for that matter, that he was going to make Tartuffe the sole heir to everything he owns. Although the man of the house today does not usually have quite that much power over the family, it is still known that the man will make most, if not all of the bigger decisions in the house.
She understood that her father only wanted the best for her, but she was discomforted by the idea that her dad was promoting her around and trying to recruit a husband for her. As if she couldn’t find a husband herself. These types of things showed Sayeed that women in her culture did not have much say in who they married or when they were ready to be married, because the father usually sets everything up for them. This was a big inequality between men and women because the women were not even allowed to choose who and when they wanted to marry. Also, women in her culture had to cover themselves up, in order to show modesty and self-protection, which she thought to be an unequal hierarchy.