She coined the term “womanist” to express her perspective. In her own words this term means, “A black feminist or feminist color.. usually referring to outrageous, audacious, courageous or wilful behaviour. Wanting to know more andin greater depth than is considered “good” for one…A woman who loves other women sexually and/or non-sexually. Apperciates and prefers women’s culture, women’s emotional flexibility and woman’s strenght…committed to survival and wholeness of entire people.” These characteristics are more than evident in Alice Walker’s stronger female characters, Shug Avery and Sofia. The dominant impression of Shug is that she has enormous vigour.
She is also declaring her womanhood and taking pride in the fact that she can enjoy the life she has been given and she is showing this through painting her nails with such a versatile color. Red is an empowering color that can be used to showcase pride, passion, anger, and many other emotions that we as people feel; by choosing this color, we can see that the speaker could be an extremely passionate or prideful person and these assumptions are enforced by her words. The speaker in “If I should
The common theme of these films is the discussion of gender. However, it is clear that a pertinent discussion of gender is reliant on these peripheral issues. Although gender is the most evident unifying theme of these three films, it is a term with many shades of meaning. Among other meanings, this term encompasses the link between femininity and power and gender equality. One of the central themes of this course was an appreciation for the struggle that women faced in gaining equality in athletics and other forums.
Powerful and Submissive Women in Literature Female behavior may vary depending on the role they play within their families, jobs or lives. Since the inception of several feminist movements, women behavior has changed and evolved over the years and we see today many women of power exuding confidence and independence. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, and Dashiell Hammet The Maltese Falcon, ideal women are perceived to be passive, obedient and dependent on men. Elizabeth, The Intended and Effie are, respectively, examples of idealized women in the literature written by the above authors. The portrayal of women in the three stories mark the submissive role expected from women in literature and society as a whole.
With these lines Olds takes the female body, a subject that has been overly abused by past poets who glorified a woman’s anatomy as a possession and a prize, and contorts the sometimes iconic symbol into a reality: a reality which feels pain, but also gives life. It is this element, which I find my greatest personal connection to the poem, the fact that women are capable of putting their bodies through agony for the life of another. It is inspiring yet terrifying. In addition to my personal connections to “The Language of the Brag,” I believe there exists many elements that prove significant to the lives of all women, as Olds demonstrates the progression of women into developing their own definition, apart from what has been prescribed. The part that left me a bit stunted from this poem was when she mentions names such as “Alan Ginsberg” and “Walt Whitman,”(1280).
Many writers have taken up the cause of feminism in their work. One of the most well-known writers to deal with feminist themes is Margaret Atwood. Her work is clearly influenced by the movement and many literary critics, as well as Atwood herself, have identified her as a feminist writer. However, one of Atwood's most successful books, The Handmaid's Tale, stands in stark contrast to the ideas of feminism. In fact, the female characters in the novel are portrayed in such a way that they directly conflict with the idea of women's empowerment.
Part of life involves overcoming obstacles. The Myth of the Latin Woman:I Just Met a Girl by Judith Ortiz Cofer and On being a Cripple by Nancy Mairs are both focused on overcoming obstacles, and while both essays express tenacity and love for books; they are also very different in the type of obstacle they face and the culture that surrounds them. Having an obstacle in life it’s hard. Both characters show a great way to handle situations in which their hardship can bring them down. On “The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl”, the author describes how the character reacts when being offended by someone because of her condition.
Not a separatist, except periodically for health... loves the spirit.... loves struggle. Loves herself. Regardless. (LaGrone 10) This plays a large role in Walker’s novels. She explores the notion of a womanist and rising against male oppression (Alice Walker 66).
In comparing the novel Pride and Prejudice (p&p) with film Sense and Sensibility (s&s), one is able to discern the obvious commonalities while search for the differences. There are commonalities and differences between the two novel’s characters, themes and occasionally the situations the protagonist finds herself in. Regarding the characters, both major and minor, of the two novels, there are obvious similarities. The protagonist of p&p is Elizabeth Bennet, a head-strong, clever young woman who is intelligent and witty; while the protagonist of s&s is Elinor Dashwood, a young woman who places her family’s wishes above her own and always wishes for the well-being of others. Their characters are similar in that they are both in love with wealthy young gentlemen of fortune and high circumstances, but their own fortune is of a lower class.
Then her mother died too. Writing helped her to overcome the pain of the losses, focused her extraordinary energy and even became a source of income. Her famous novels were “The awakening”, “At Fault”, “The story of an hour”, “The storm”. She was also famous for short stories writing the most famous of them were “A night of Acadie”, “The unexpected”, “The kiss”, “Beauty of the baby”, “Madam Celestin’s divorce”. The basis of all her stories is realistic image of the society and people, especially women with their own needs, she never doubt in the strength of women and thought that they can overcome any temptation.