A Tree Grows In Brooklyn Analysis

Betty Smith’s classic tale A Tree Grows in Brooklyn utilizes an assortment of intriguing, relatable characters to tell the emotional tale of a young girl, born into the depths of poverty, and to detail the traumatic life events that occur that shape her into her future self. Set in impoverished Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 1912, this story centers around the Nolan family: hardworking, tough mother Katie, impractical and romantic father Johnny, momma’s boy Cornelius “Neeley”, and the protagonist, eleven-year old Mary Frances “Francie”, a sharp-witted, loyal daydreamer through whom the reader sees life occur throughout the book. Francie’s ability to daydream about a greater life for her and her family help her to escape

Does deviating from one’s gender norms inevitably doom one down a spiral of moral corruption? Tim O'Brien, author of “Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong” and Ernest Hemingway, author of “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”, certainly seem to hold this view, as evident by the fates of the major female characters in their respective works. The deviance of the major female characters in both works appears to corrupt not only themselves, but also pollute their partners, causing them to suffer injury or harm as a result. The degree of injury ranges from negligible, like Fossie’s demotion and broken heart, to fatal, like the bullet that rips through Macomber’s skull. It begs the question, are these stories meant to serve as cautionary tales for their female readers, or possibly for their husbands, so they may recognize gender deviance and stop it in its tracks before their wives transform into Margot Macomber or Mary Anne Bell? This essay will analyze what such characters say about pervading views of women, both in society and in literature.

We live in the year 2017, yet we still see a major gap in the treatment and outlooks towards men and women. This however is not a newly implemented construct but has been prevalent since the beginning of time, as demonstrated in the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God. In this novel we see many examples in which the protagonist of the novel, Janie, is shamed and outcasted due to her identity and actions. Janie in many ways experiences racism, sexism, and stereotyping in which corresponds and propezies the treatment of women in the 21st century.

Parenting styles differ from family to family, but most good parents have a common goal of teaching their children to be honest, kind, trustworthy, and to never give up. Most parent’s ideas for being a good parent is making sure that your child grows up in a loving environment in which she or he can learn about how to be a good person. Betty Smiths novel, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, she depicts a young girl known as Francie growing up in somewhat corrupt home life. The main contribution to her corrupt house is her father Johnny. In the tree grows in Brooklyn Johnny has the appearance of a golden apple on the outside, but a personality of a rotten apple on the inside.

“She would suffer all the rest of her life every time that she remembered that she had not smiled back,” (234). This sentence, written by Betty Smith, author of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, is in reference to when protagonist, Francie Nolan, had not allowed herself to smile back at a seemingly bad girl named Joanna because she thought she was not meant to be friendly with people like her. What struck me the most about the instance Francie says she will suffer all her life, is the almost immediate guilty feeling that Francie portrays after she saw Joanna being taunted later on. Francie seems to think that in that particular moment, not smiling back at Joanna was one of the worst things she could have

Popular culture is often a reflection of society; both literature and the media have the capacity to cement ideas in the minds of readers and viewers. In many cases, the notions and stories glorified by the media refrain from sharing a true depiction of society and are narrow-minded in their focus. Recently, the feminist movement has denounced popular culture for its ignorance, fighting for a more realistic portrait to be painted by those with the power to reach millions. Specifically, both Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s “The Danger of a Single Story” share how the classic gender stereotypes seen in popular culture are unable to capture the full spectrum of stories that define society, and are limiting in their portrayals of women. Moreover, both authors share personal stories, reference prominent world figures, and cite relevant statistics in their works. Therefore, in both Bad Feminist and “The Danger of a Single Story”, Roxane Gay and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie appeal to readers pathos, logos, and ethos in order to construct the argument that the single story of women in popular culture is stereotypical and restrictive.

A recurring motif throughout the novel is that women are resented for being in positions of power, opposed to more traditional, subjugated roles. Any female character in a powerful, influential, or otherwise controlling position are demonized as a “ball-cutter... – people who try to make you weak so they can get you to toe the line, to follow their rules, to live like they want you to.” (Kesey

Francie and Neeley, the main characters of A Tree Grows In Brooklyn, struggle against many opposing forces as children. One of their major problems is poverty. In their childhood, Francie and Neeley have to drink coffee to sustain themselves on days when there is no food. And, whenever they go shopping, Francie and Neeley wish to have nice cloth and shoes, but are never able to afford them. Although they never get the things they wanted, both Francie and Neeley never complain, they still work hard no matter what, and earn money whenever possible. In addition, because both Francie and Neeley are poor, they are humiliated a lot by the people in their society. Francie hates to be humiliated. But despite all of their problems, they continue to work hard for their family and for their future success.

Medical care is critical in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Francie Nolan’s mother, Katie, and her Aunt Sissy experience two different pregnancies with the medical care provided for them. They both lack proper healthy guidelines during the time of pregnancy. Sissy encounters hardships whereas Katie takes them for granted. Betty Smith assimilates twentieth century medical care in A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and its portrayal of pregnancy, delivery and infant mortality impact the characters’ lives.

Everything you read has a theme. Themes are everywhere and used in everything. Some people call them messages or the secret meaning/ purpose of writing something. In a Tree grows in Brooklyn you can find many themes in the book like never give up on education and money isn’t everything, however I like to think differently and creatively. To start off, I think the theme of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is that even when it's hard, you always know the direction you want and need to go to get back on track.

I don’t want to! If he goes away, I’ll be all alone again, and I need … someone to love … I need a man” (Tremblay, 47). Later on, her family teases her for not being married and her crush of the salesman. These quotations convey the constricting value of pressuring women to marry.

Cormac McCarthy’s novel, Suttree, demonstrates the prejudice deeply ingrained within society, as well as the way it largely affects its readers. The misogynistic attitude is certainly not a new one. Women have been oppressed and viewed as less than men, in personal accounts and in narratives, for a long time. In the minds of the men in this novel, women are seen as merely an addition to men or an afterthought, and certainly not able to hold the value of a whole person on their own. The only real relationships with women the reader observes are Cornelius Suttree’s romance with Wanda, and then with Joyce. The lens through which Suttree views women is skewed, hostile and distrustful. He consistently views women as either irrational, emotional, or as purely sexual objects. There are many examples of the twisted language used to describe women, from Suttree’s wife, to his mother, to waitresses in restaurants, to these women with which he is intimate.

Societal ‘norms’ surrounding gender have continuously remained prominent internationally. Although these standards and expectations continue to shift, women still face oppression today. The novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, demonstrates the expectations of women and their relationships to men in 1920’s New York City through one of the main characters, Daisy Buchanan. A vast majority of Daisy’s actions are to entice and cater to the superior men of the novel. Through this, I was able to reflect upon the evolution of society’s stereotypes surrounding women from the 1920’s. Initially, from reading the novel, I learned about the period of the roaring twenties and how the aspect of class affects the

My research paper is entitled, Analyzing Heart of Darkness through a Feminist Lens. Through this paper, I will investigate and examine Heart of Darkness by means of Feminist Criticism and literary theory. I aspire to thoroughly analyze the entire narrative, in order to pull out and pinpoint various aspects and examples linked to feminist theory. I want to investigate and spotlight specific occurrences, in the novel, where characteristics of Feminist Criticism can be found or applied. I specifically want to look at the tree women characters introduced in the text; “The Intended” “The Mistress” and Marlow’s aunt. I also want to prove that Heart of Darkness is a text that openly conflicts with the basis of feminism.

Hurled insults grow worse, and sexism is embedded in the American nation, as well as in the English language. The dictionary gorges itself on demeaning words only directed towards females. Belittling expressions of sexuality have been tailored to women, binding them in a corset, while their male counterparts are celebrated for their own sexual conquests. Females are taught to suppress sexuality and are shamed for showing sexual independence, while males are praised for the same actions which are demonized for the woman. Only males are permitted to get further in life according to this language. Culturally we chose words which are inherently sexist, and yet people do not see it as an issue. A male who engages in generous amounts of sexual activity is classified as a ‘player’ or someone who has ‘game.’ This gives a female a new label, a toy or a play-thing just for a man’s whims. When a female engages in generous amounts of sexual activity she is looked down upon and instead of gaining positive nicknames she is branded as ‘sleazy’ or easy. The ease in which women can be defined with a negative attribute for the same actions that a man performs proves the double standard in the renaming of sexes. The sister tries to stand tall, and she straps on her armour. She wears weapons on her feet giving her the illusion of a woman of power and strength. However when she looks up the th realization rings clear. The heels have gifted her an aura of power, but by their design she is trapped in a slow pace, left behind by her