Half The Sky Analysis

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Sarah Miles Professor Sommo Social Stratification February 11, 2015 Half the Sky “Half the Sky” was written by a married couple Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. They have won numerous prizes over the years for their outstanding work and writing skills. The work the couple published in the novel “Half the Sky” is a series of essays and anecdotes that have been worked together to form one large piece of work. The first half of the novel consists of stories of young women, mostly in developing countries, and the dangers they face during their daily lives. The second half is ideas of particular ways solutions can occur. Many of the young womens' stories consist of rape, drugs, brothels, abandonment, diseases, starvation, imprisonment,…show more content…
Individuals are creating solutions which are working to help these young women have better lives. Brief information on certain solutions that are working will also be shared. Researching, or better yet visiting, underdeveloped countries gives individuals a first glance look to see the social problems that occur within. Many of these serious problems cause harm to a society and individuals. Since these acts are so horrific they grab the public's attention. From the hard work and ideas of others, many underdeveloped countries might be able to overcome the existing social problems. While I was reading such moving topics, there are several that really took me by surprise. Within many cultures within the Middle East and Africa, girls are married off to a man and his family at a very young age. In most cultures the bride's family will receive healthy and large cows in exchange for their daughter's youth and virginity. Sometimes this idea doesn't always go as smoothly as the young man's family would have hoped. In that case, many times the young man turns towards the idea of “Forced…show more content…
After Woinshet's traumatizing situation, Americans provided Woinshet and her father with emotional and financial support. Many Americans also helped her attend school in Addis Ababa. The leader of “Equality Now” is Jessica Neuwirth. When Neuwirth worked for Amnesty International, she had seen letters written to free political leaders. This infuriated her so in 1992 is when she created “Equality Now.” It could be a struggle at times, but she has helped along the way from Gloria Steinem and Meryl Streep. Neuwirth and her team and writers caught the attention of many people, which put Ethiopia in the spotlight, that they were able to have the laws changed. Today, a man is held liable for rape, even if the victim and man get married later on (Kristof, pg. 65-66,

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