Birdsong Quotations for Coursework How men view women A to introduce I- “muttered an introduction of which Stephen heard only the words ‘my wife’ B on I- “such a delicate creature” A on I- “my wife is a mysterious creature… no one knows- like the little stream in the song- whither she flows or where her end will be” I’s father- “disappointed her father by not being the son he had wanted” Jean- “he liked to evaluate their (I and sisters) comparative worth in his mind” A-“was at first proud to be married to such a young and attractive woman” S on I- ‘Stephens body convulsed with desire” As S touches L- “despite himself, Stephen felt the reflex of desire” Weir to S- ‘girls? What men call their sweethearts?” Weir to S- “I never think
The way Buddy talks about Esther I think affects her. When somebody you care about makes you feel like crap that it really takes a toll on you. You want to how much you appreciate and admire the person you care about, not have them dampen them with a lack of interest, making yourself feel better, and a misunderstanding of how to treat a woman. Esther idolizes Buddy but he never really felt the same way about her as he looked at her more as a sex partner. The novel talks about things regarding sexism by showing how Buddy's sense of manliness and superiority is built on what he thinks of himself, not who he actually is, hypocritical in a sense.
The manner in which people perceived and reacted towards Martha, played a detrimental role in the way she distinguished herself. A major factor which contribute to Maud Martha problems with her self-confidents, were her interactions with her family. Maud Martha has an older sister name Helen, who is much lighter then she is, although they are almost built the same; her family prefer Helen over her. “It did not please her either… to watch her father drink his coffee and contentedly think… Their father preferred Helen’s hair to Maud Martha’s, which impressed him… simply with it apparent untamableness, always he had worried about Helen… Yet who was it who sympathized with him in his decision to remain… the simple janitor! Who was it who sympathized with him in his almost desperate love for this old house”.
Hilliard is presented to us as a typically strong character, restrained not only by the upper-middle class community he grew up in but also by himself. His emotions are it seems, perpetually suppressed, as expected of a middle class gentleman of the time. We see in Part 1, his past embarrassment at the extravagant dresses and hats of his mother as she walked through the village when he was a child, now he appreciates this, admiring her beauty “his mother looked beautiful”. On leave we see Hilliard is irritated at the general public for, it seems the duration of part one, at their ignorance of ‘the truth’ of war. We see, a great deal of resentment towards the arrogance with which the public treat the conflict, displayed in “where old men aired their military opinions […] and agreed about politics”, This is exemplified by Hilliard’s own father and perhaps more pertinently the Old Major, who irritates Hilliard with his fervent talk about his time “in the cavalry”.
This suggests how women sometimes experience men to be senile and insensitive towards their emotions, when they need them to be protective and watchful yet they can be cowards. Nevertheless, Duffy captures the quiet resignation of the spirited and resourceful wife, who is prepared to greet her husband’s dramatic life change with optimism and compassion as she ‘tried to be kind’ which highlights when women experience various obstacles in a marriage where they still end up devoted to the ones
Dunstan Ramsay, the novel’s protagonist exhibits the issue of how a rough childhood can impede on relationships later on in life. Dunstan’s relationship with his mother leads him to develop three problems that arise in his dating life. The first problem is Dunstan’s trust issues; he can never fully trust a woman due to his betrayal of trust with his mother. The second problem is Dunstan’s negative depiction of sexual relations. Due to his mother’s stern moral beliefs, he does not have much interest in sexual relations and has negative views on it.
Further, she does little to hide these flirtations from her husband, though they’re likely to infuriate him and make him feel even smaller. As the only woman on the ranch, Curley’s wife is lonely and sad; something her marriage to Curley only makes worse. She reveals throughout the course of the story that she is unhappy in her marriage because her husband seems to care little for her, and is really more interested in talking about himself than anything else. She is constantly searching for her husband, “I’m looking for Curley.” Although, this may be just an excuse to mingle with the men and have some company. Curley’s wife barges in on Lennie, Crooks, and Candy in Chapter Four.
Though some may interpret this behaviour as common for a loving wife to exhibit, it is quite clear that this is exactly the kind of behavior that prevents the men in the play from achieving success. Linda and the other limited number of females in the play fill the men in the play with a false sense of confidence and this is the very act that causes the men to deteriorate from their main goals in life. The women in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman do not play a supportive role: Willy’s downfall, Biff’s downfall and Bernard’s success can all be linked back to the excessive support of the women in the play or the lack thereof. Willy Loman’s downfall is directly linked to the excessive support and inflation he receives from his wife and the mistress. Throughout the entirety of the play, we see Linda’s devotion to her husband and her inability to find any fault in Willy.
King Lear says to his daughters ‘if it be you that stirs these daughters’ hearts against their father’ which shows how he feels betrayed: a feeling he may have not felt if he had not been so foolish to dismiss Cordelia for her honesty. Cordelia, however, plays a smaller role in the first few Acts of the play as she is disowned by her father and is not visited. Gonerill and Regan are both cruel father and do not have the same loyalty we get the impression as Cordelia does. Cordelia says at the beginning of the play ‘what shall Cordelia speak, love and be silent’ which shows that she loves her father however doesn’t feel she should lie about how much she loves her father. This truthfulness however lands her in a bad place as she is disowned by her father for not professing her love.
Edna’s husband, Leonce, often noted “…her habitual neglect of the children” (Chopin 7). Chopin uses the words “habitual neglect” to intensify how Leonce felt toward Edna’s attitudes for their children. Leonce was not pleased with Edna’s lack of care and motherly abilities. Through his diction, it is evident that he senses a change in Edna. Furthermore, Leonce “thought it very discouraging that his wife, who was the sole object of his existence, evinced so little interest in things which concerned him, and valued so little his conversation” (Chopin 6).