Atwood's Tricks With Mirrors as a Declaration of Female Independence
Relationships are complex things, with ever-changing dynamics. Some traditional roles are always played in the constant search for balance between giving and taking in relationships. Women have historically and stereotypically played the role of "giver" in male-female romantic unions. In recent years the gender laws of relationships have been changing and evolving, but even as recently as the 1970s and 1980s women have been restricted to the role of complacent giver in their relationships. Their freedom of thought and even private speech have been impossible to repress, however, and through broadening that communication, things have been forced into change. A perfect
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She is only a mirror, after all. The speaker tells us that her lover is blind - whether willingly or not is not identified - to the truth of their relationship when she says that, during their intimate moments, "your own eyes you find you / are up against closed closed," (lines 16-17). She speaks with a bitter tone, clearly showing that she is displeased with her situation and the constant expectations she must meet. At the same time, though, she writes with an open-handed honesty - she is simply a mirror telling her story, it seems. The introduction that Part I provides us with identifies the problem the speaker is facing - she is at once unhappy but has willingly placed herself in her role as mirror.
In the second part of Atwood's poem, the speaker describes the undeniable feelings that come from being a separate entity apart from her lover. Even as a mirror, there is more to her than there seems. As a woman hiding behind the metaphor of a mirror, the speaker seems to be telling her lover that the facets of her personality and physical appearance should not go unnoticed in the shadows of the way she serves to reflect. She tells her lover, "There is more than this dead blue / oblong eye turned outwards to you," (lines 18-19). In the same stanza, she describes the other parts of the mirror: the frame and its intricacies that do not reflect the
When a loved one dies, one usually displaces his/her love on an object that reminds him/her of the beloved in order to allay anxiety in the face of sexual impulses. In the text, the narrator is reminded of his lover by the large mirror when he states, “I felt
Women in relationships lose hold of their identity. Too often, women merge their lives with their partners, because they feel guilty. This leads women to give up significant parts of their life such as hobbies, values or beliefs and social life. This paper will closely examine the reasoning for changes in women within a relationship and how to avoid them.
When one looks at romantic love, one would conclude that it is a social dyad that brings about certain responsibilities between two people in a relationship such as honesty, protection, openness and expressions of love. (William, 2008: 76). Contrasting with
The author of “For That He Looked Not Upon Her” uses several literary techniques such as form, imagery, and diction that develop the complex attitude of the poem. The situation of this poem is a couple having problems that causes them to question their relationship. The further we read into the poem the more we learn of the fear and doubt between the two individuals. The authors use of melancholy diction contributes to the tone and the complex attitude of the poem. The complex attitude of the poem is lack of trust that the couple has in their relationship. The man loves his partner even though she has hurt him. He is confused and unsure of whether or not he should continue
Dating back to the early 1900’s and all the way through to the present, romantic relationships have been viewed differently. From strict unwritten dating regulations to not having regulations at all, recent generations have become more liberated in making their own decisions. The progressing times have made us become a more accepting society and have caused a decrease in the strong practice of religion and class. Even though differences such as religion and class in relationships were more than an issue they were not always a complete deterrence.
Furthermore, in 2007 a research was administered by Kathleen Gerson, writer of the American Prospect, based on the question of unsuccessful relationships as a result of poor nurturing through their childhood. She states that “young workers today grew up in rapidly changing times: They watched women march into the workplace and adults develop a wide range of alternatives to traditional marriage.” In other words, Gerson is explaining that due to the change in families, many children can administer a misconception of what relationships are composed of, concluding why their relationships are different than previous generations. This generation grew up in a completely different aspect when women’s rights were already given and male dominance was slowly vanishing. However, since this was a social time change for many, gender roles in the relationships differentiated between families, some decided to remain in traditional-like relationships, while others went to have their own directed relationships but because divorce was no longer unacceptable, many ended in divorce. Having parents as idols and creating their own perspective on relationships, children learned a lot from simple observations. For example as children grow up living with parents in an unhealthy relationship, as they reach a stage to date, they will initiate that all relationships are similar and will believe that-that is the correct way to behave in their own relationship since it’s what they were accustomed to. This
Despite revealing the inequality in society for women, Margaret tries to put an end to the inequality between men and women by describing marriages where both partners are mutually respected. For example, she feels that the ideal marriage is “one of mutual esteem, mutual dependence. Their talk is of business, their affection shows itself by practical kindness” (739). Fuller believes that “mutual esteem” and “mutual dependence” lead to a relationship of equality between a man and woman. She also believes that the couple must not only have mutuality but “affection” in order to maintain equality. In addition, she feels marriages of mutuality and mutuality and affection “meet mind to mind, and a mutual trust is excited, which can buckler them against a million” (742). The author uses this passage to show that
The two novels that I chose to discuss in this paper is the novel “Ethan Frome” by Wharton and “So long, See You Tomorrow by Maxwell. The author, Edith Wharton allows the symbols in the book to convey her reoccurring theme in this novel. Throughout history, relationships have evolved and gone through dramatic changes based on the social norms at the time. This is because all three of those characteristics were expected of relationships in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, but by now all of them seem to be purely optional. In the past, marriage and romantic relationships were handled with a certain amount of formality. Society today seems to operate in a totally different way. Men and women spend time together without being
The stark divide between love and marriage shown right the way through cannot be comprehended fully by the twenty-first century reader: in today’s society marriage and love are mutually exclusive - you very rarely get one
Watch the classical film Grease and one can understand how relationships function in Western Society. The film tells a story of a boy (Danny) and a girl (Sandy) who falls in love. Through a series of misunderstandings they break up, but still somehow care for each other. Through ballads such as Summer Night’s that are still popular today, the film shows how differently males and females view relationships. Films like Grease are like a mirror, reflecting societal values and how it socializes its members. It makes it clear that in relationships, males are socialized to view relationships as mostly a physical, sexual endeavor, while females view it as a perpetual bond –a deeper connection between the two individuals within a relationship.
Throughout relationships, what separates them from healthy and unhealthy is a wide spectrum of uncertainty. Furthermore, not every relationship will be stagnant throughout each person’s lifetime. In this paper, I will be discussing the lengths of my relationship with a good friend of mine, Devon. Furthermore, I can pinpoint some areas in the Power and Control Wheel that may have been of use when we were younger. Also, I see an importance of the Equality wheel and how it relates to our relationship today.
Sociological perspectives explains love relationships as not perfect but a working progress. A commitment which relies on continuous maintenance and reassurance. Love relationship practices and investments are configured in experiences that will be shared in the past, present and in the future.
The structure and tone of the poem enhance the conflict and hopelessness the speaker is feeling towards the woman he loves and desires. For the first twelve lines of the poem there is an “abab” rhyming pattern. This ties into the despairing and desirable tone and how the rhyming scheme can be an example of the speaker constantly going back and forth between emotions for this women. For example, “And that mine eyes take no delight to range About the gleams which on your face do grow.” (Gascoigne 3-4) are two phrases that contradict the speakers feelings. Stating that his eyes take no delight in range can refer to the speaker finding no use or happiness in looking at the woman. Although, he then mentions the gleams upon her face growing, giving the audience the idea that even though the speakers love for the woman causes him deep despair, he still desires her enough to describe her features in attentive detail; in this example the gleams on her face. This shows the back and forth pattern and the speakers struggle when it comes
Vulnerability plays an important role in any relationship. People need to feel needed. They need to feel they fill a special place in their partner’s lives that no one else can. They want to be missed when they are gone and celebrated when they return. Women forget the men have these feelings and the men forget women have these exact same feelings. One
In the article “Talk in the Intimate Relationship: His and Hers” by Deborah Tannen, you will begin to see and discover the differences in conversation between men and women. Discussed throughout this paper are the importance of metamessages, an overview of Tannen’s article, whether Tannen is fair in her article toward both men and women and whether I agree with Tannen’s article as well as experiences of my peer’s and myself.