Boys and Girls by Alice Munro

The first selected reading relies on second-person narration to show how girls are affected over time by societal expectations that internalize feelings of inferiority. By describing the action of the girl in second-person, the reader experiences the decline of confidence and individuality in a girl’s personality. The contrast of past and present self, told through anecdotes, emphasizes the progression of shame and degradation of self that a girl faces in society, particularly in school. The author shows that society’s treatment of girls affects their self-worth. After being called too “vicious” for having a competitive spirit, the story relays the experience of muting one’s personality to fit the desired role of girls (Findlen 3). Another incident by the

The novel clearly reiterates the notion that more people conform than rebel when confronted with authoritarian control. The animals in the novel are divided into two categories. Those who have knowledge and therefore power, and those who lack knowledge and therefore are submissive. The main difference is that the submissive animals such as the horses and sheep represent the people that chose to stay uneducated, as it is a much less difficult pathway. They chose this because knowing consequences creates threatening actions against the livelihood of the animals. Despite the animals suffering from violence, poor conditions, and being overworked, they continue to conform as it becomes an easier lifestyle for them. The repetition of the lines “Napoleon is always right” and “I will work harder” showcases how the farm animals follow the routine of others and resign to conformity as their means of life, for it is an easier, simpler outlook to life for them. The idea of being an outlier and having a voice is forsaken by the animals, as the narrative evolves they witness more and more unruly acts of behaviour from the pigs, who are controlling the farm. The emotive language used within the line “Silent and terrified, the animals crept back into the barn” effectively demonstrate how a wave of melancholic and frightened emotions flood through the farm animals, creating a sense of compliance within. The use of threatening tone within the lines “At this there was a terrible baying sound outside, and nine enormous dogs wearing

In Alice Munro’s short story “Boys and Girls,” our narrator is a young farm girl on the verge of puberty who is learning what it means to be a “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 “children” to being “young adults.”

When we are adolescents we see the world through our parents' eyes.  We struggle to define ourselves within their world, or to even break away from their world.  Often, the birth of our "self" is defined in a moment of truth or a moment of heightened self-awareness that is the culmination of a group of events or the result of a life crisis or struggle.  In literature we refer to this birth of "self" as an epiphany.  Alice Munro writes in "Boys and Girls" about her own battle to define herself.  She is torn between the "inside" world of her mother and the "outside" world of her father.  In the beginning her father's world prevails, but by the finale, her mother's world invades her

The animals go from a society in which they believe to be unacceptable to a life which becomes even worse than it began. The worst part, however, is that the oppression stems from an animal himself. Napoleon, the totalitarian leader, changes the founding ideas in which their ideal society was formed in order to increase his control, but continuously tells the animals that things are significantly better than before. Eventually, “the lower animals on Animal Farm did more work and received less food than any animals in the country.” The animals allow this to happen because they placed their trust in leadership and were wrongly educated on the circumstances. They are fed lies until they no longer remember their history, which allows the oppression to come full circle.

1. I think this story is an allegory because all of the animals are the workers on the farm. instead of people being in the story they have animals that have to speak to each other and work. Here is an example “There were many more creatures on the farm now, though the increase was not so great as had been expected in earlier years. Many animals had been born to whom the Rebellion was only a dim tradition, passed on by word of mouth, and others had been bought who had never heard mention of such a thing before their arrival.

In two of our previous essays the readers are exposed to three minor animal characters that help to build the characterization of the protagonists in the essays. In “The Fourth State of Matter,” the collie dog and squirrels help to convey the kind of person JoAnn Beard is. Similarly, in “Repeat After Me,” Henry the parrot, helps to build on who Lisa Sedaris is as well as to create a reflection of himself. With these animals as support for the protagonists, they help develop certain aspects of the protagonists’ personalities and identities, thereby consequently conveying the authors’ deeper messages of the essays.

Years after reading the book I had the notion that horse ranches were terrible to horses. I also felt that horses were very human in the sense that they could think, feel, understand, and have emotions.

This book begins with Old Major gathering all the animals into the barn and telling them about a dream he had last night. He saw a place where the animals were free from the rule of the humans. After describing his dream he gave a speech about the evils of man and taught the animals the song called “Beasts of England.” The animals sang the song five times in a row and had a lasting impact on them, this shows how respected and influential Old Major was. The rebellion that took place after his death was inspired by him. He set the foundation for Animalism and if he was still alive after the rebellion things would have gone much

No matter the attempt, an individual will fail to live up to their own definition of themselves. When a society put a title on an individual and expect them to act a certain way, the individual will eventually follow the expectations no matter how hard he or she tries to outrun it. The short story “Boys and Girls” by Alice Munro, shows a girl living in a society that is dominated by men. Women are expected to act a certain way and follow the man of the house. The narrator of the story tried to live the way she wanted and not let what people expect of her to affect her.

1.Mr. Jones is a drunk,old man who does not care for the animals on Manor Farm. He whips them when they are not behaving and he under feeds them. In conclusion, he does not have any respect for them and the animals do not have their own free will. 2.Old

The animals have their own persona and thoughts; they are able to talk and speak to each other, as well as fight for themselves. But at the same time, the animals say, “In fighting against man, we must not come to resemble him” (Orwell 4). This is a classic example of expressing the problems humans have, by using animals.

Many of the animals no longer wish to follow Man, or human beings, anymore because of how controlling they are over what the animals do and how happy they are with their lives. In addition, Major feels that, “‘No animal in England knows the meaning of happiness or leisure after he is a year old. No animal in England is free,’” (2). He feels that all of the animals are slaves on the farm who are miserable doing their jobs and living their lives to do work instead of having freedom.

Under this interpretation, the Narrator is the camel, loaded up with the societal expectations and managerial responsibilities expected of him, he is fully subjugated to the Dragon. Somewhat into the movie the protagonist confronts Tyler in a hotel room, Tyler then explains that he is the ideal that the narrator aspired too, but could not achieve alone, Tyler is the freedom of the Lion, he is “Free in all the ways you are not”. The Narrator then kills Tyler in a final confrontation, but he does so by shooting himself, in doing so he acknowledges that he is himself was Tyler, he himself was the Lion, upon shooting the Lion he is left with the freedom it provided, now with the opportunity to become the child, and create his own values.

By late summer, news of Animal Farm have spread across the country. Mr. Pilkington and Mr. Frederick, who own the neighboring farms, fear that the rebellion will spread among their own animals. However, they are rivals, which prevents them from working together against Animal Farm. They only spread rumors about the farm's inefficiency. Meanwhile, animals everywhere begin singing "Beasts of England," which they