Gender Roles of Boys and Girls Essay - 847 Words

Sondra Staubitz English 102 Paper #1 March 3, 2011 â€Å"Boys and Girls† â€Å"Boys and Girls† is a coming of age story about a girl who is enjoying her life as a tomboy. The young girl, who does not want to assume traditional female gender roles and is very resistant about becoming a woman. The story â€Å"Boys and Girls† by Alice Munro explores issues of feminism, and gender roles through key elements such as characterization, symbolism, and theme. The author presents her characters through direct description and also shows them in action. In â€Å"Boys and Girls† the central character is a young girl who narrates the story about her life on a farm and about her search for gender identity.†¦show more content†¦The girl and her brother climbed up the fence and watched Flora running free in the barnyard. Despite the fact that Flora was just an old mare, â€Å"it was exciting to see her running, whinnying, going up on her hind legs, prancing and threatening like a horse in a Weste rn movie† (Munro 577). Generally, a horse that runs free like â€Å"an unbroken ranch horse,† symbolizes a freedom of spirit and freedom of existence. The horse that was locked in a dark stable for several long winter months, could not resist the power of space and fresh air, and understandably went wild, when she was taken out on a bright spring day. Perhaps, a sense of the coming end made Flora take advantage of a sudden freedom and enjoys the last moments of her life. No wonder that the independence-spirited girl, who was confined in the same old farm for eleven years, got excited about watching broken free Flora. The theme of â€Å"Boys and Girls† addresses the challenges of acquiring self-awareness as a girl and the transition from the childhood tomboy into the woman her mother wants her to be. The girl feels uneasy about becoming a woman, because she enjoys helping her father and respects his work. The girl does not want to take part in the female gend er chores in the house; she wants to work outside with her father. The story is centered on gender roles of women and the girl must face and accept that her role is notShow MoreRelatedGender Roles For Boys And Girls Essay1101 Words   |  5 PagesSo, what if a boy in the classroom decides that they want to play house with a baby doll or maybe dress up as a princess? Or maybe a girl decides she would rather get dirty and play monster than play dolls. Those children would be going against the typical general roles for boys and girls. Some adults are not ok with children going against their typical role, for example if a boy plays with a doll some adults feel that they are losing their masculinity. However it is okay if a girl decides to playRead MoreGender Roles in Alice Munros Boys and Girls1081 Words   |  5 PagesIn Alice Munro’s short story â€Å"Boys and Girls,† our narrator is a young farm girl on the verge of puberty who is learning what it means to be a â€Å"girl.† The story shows the differing gender roles of boys and girls – specifically that women are the weaker, more emotional sex – by showing how the adults of the story expect the children to grow into their respective roles as a girl and a boy, and how the children grow up and ultimately begin to fulfill these roles, making the transition from being â€Å"children†Read MoreGender Roles In Boys And Girls By Alice Munro815 Words   |  4 PagesIn a time and society pervaded with gender roles and labels, bo ys and girls tells a story of a young girl’s initial confrontation with domesticity. To set the stage, the protagonist is a 10-year old unnamed girl. Meanwhile, her brother was named synonymous to â€Å"Lord†, a titled gentleman. Apparently, Alice Munro will not take this treatment of women as second class citizens sitting down. My father did not talk to me unless it was about the job we were doing†¦ Nevertheless I worked willingly underRead MoreGender Roles In Boys And Girls By Alice Munro1192 Words   |  5 PagesHistorically, gender roles determined one’s course of life. Learning from generations past and how a person is raised, teaches one what is expected of them in the future. In Alice Munro’s short story â€Å"Boys and Girls†, the expectations of each gender determines the narrator’s role in society and who she becomes. This story is set in the mid twentieth century, a time where men and women were seen as having different purposes in life (Jade Mazarin). Throughout the story, it is portrayed that men wereRead MoreGender Roles : Alice Munro s Boys And Girls 1051 Words   |  5 PagesGender Roles In Alice Munro’s â€Å"Boys and Girls†, the story is focused on a working class family who lives on a farm. A man’s role on the farm or in general is to work for the family and do the heavy work that a woman wouldn’t be able to do. The daughter in the story is very much inspired by the father and wishes to pursue in the activities that are being performed around the farm. The mother needs help around the house and that was the role many females took over for many centuries and generationsRead MoreGender Roles Are Perceived By Society Between Girls And Boys1305 Words   |  6 Pagesthe research is to analyze and compare two studies of how gender roles are perceived by society between girls verse boys in science, technology fields in comparison to sports. The researchers collected data from both studies to help give a better understanding in the roles of femininity verse masculinity, and to determine what career choices girls and boys were likely to be int erested in. The first research is a qualitative study of why girls were interested in the fields of science, math, and engineeringRead MoreEssay Gender Roles in Alice Munro’s Boys and Girls1484 Words   |  6 PagesWhether it is the past or the present, there have always been gender roles in society. In most homes, it is the woman’s responsibility to take care of the house. This includes cleaning, meal preparations, raising and taking care of the children as well as the husband. Compared to the men who take care of the more physical activities, such as yard work. It was known throughout many years that it was a woman’s responsibility to stay in the house while the man would go out and look for work to provideRead More Gender Role Reevaluation in Boys and Girls by Alice Munro Essay775 Words   |  4 PagesGender Role Reevaluation in Boys and Girls      Ã‚   Recent history boldly notes the protests and political unrest surrounding the Vietnam Conflict during the 1960s and 70s. However, equally important in this era are the women who pushed for gender role reevaluation and publicly rebelled against the established social norm of a womans place. Although Alice Munro may not have been burning her bra on the courthouse steps, threads of a feminist influence can be found in Boys and Girls.Read MoreGender Roles in Alice Munro’s Boys and Girls and Bobbie Ann Mason’s Shiloh1068 Words   |  5 Pageshousewife was absurd, and a woman being the sole provider for the family bizarre. In Alice Munro’s short story â€Å"Boys and Girls† and Bobbie Ann Mason’s â€Å"Shiloh†, conflict arises when expectations based on gender are not fulfilled by the characters. According to â€Å"Boys and Girls†, there are certain things women should not be doing as defined by their genders. The narrator, a young girl, feels more inclined to spend her time outside alongside her father, â€Å"I worked willingly under his eyes, and withRead MoreDo Schools and Mass Media Contribute to Stereotyped Gender Roles in Chinese Society?1586 Words   |  6 PagesGender role is defined as the social position and behavioral norm that is considered appropriate for an individual of a specific gender in the society (Liu, 2003). Every society has its unique culture and gender role is one of the products of a society’s history and culture. It is not set up by a single person within a short period, but by countless people in the society for thousands years. Parents started to shape their children’s gender by dressing and naming them according to their gender soon