Essay on The Girls in Their Summer Dresses

Authors in many instances use the main elements in the story such as setting and narrative to prove a point in the story. For example, writers often use characters, their actions, and their interaction with other characters to support or prove a theme. In the short story “Our Thirteenth Summer”, Barry Callaghan effectively uses characters to develop the theme that childhood is fragile and easily influenced. One of the ways that Callaghan makes effective use of characters to develop the theme is by describing the tension between Bobbie and his parents. This usage of characters supports the theme because Bobbie’s childhood is no longer free to do what he wishes, but has to bow down to his parents’

In the first scene of Stepford Wives, Joanna is seen looking in the mirror and then staring outside the window, listening to the noise of the city before moving to Stepford. While the camera focuses on her in these shots, she isn’t being watched by a male character; she seems to be alone in the apartment, with the exception of the dog. The audience’s first shot of her is her reflection in the mirror, looking pensive and uncertain. The second shot, it seems as though the viewer is watching Joanna from around the corner, between doorways in the apartment. The viewer can only just see Joanna’s full form in the doorframe while she looks out the window. As the camera zooms in on Joanna, it becomes more obvious that she is the focus of this shot. The audience or even a character watching Joanna in this shot might not be a red flag at first, but “at the extreme, it can become fixated into a perversion, producing obsessive voyeurs and Peeping Toms whose only sexual satisfaction can come

The chosen quote, (“It was like a child’s game in which you stare at foliage, grass, clouds in the sky, and suddenly you see a face or a figure, and after that recognition you can’t not see the hidden shape, its staring you in the face.” (Oates, 95)) plays not only to the main plot of the story (the “girl-poets” discovering Marilyn Monroe in the Strand Bookstore), but also to the subplot (the “girl-poets” sharing their first kiss and becoming lovers) as well. It applies to the main plot very clearly through two sides: that though by this point in the story only the “girl-poets” have discovered it is Monroe, the realization that others could at moment’s

The film that I chose to write about is a Paramount Pictures presentation titled Mean Girls, starring Lindsay Lohan and also featuring a handful of Saturday Night Live cast members, including Tina Fey the author of this picture. The reason behind choosing this film is because it has a unique style of introducing characters, transitioning between scenes, and various tools to help spice up the film. Being one of my personal favorites, Mean Girls is a comedy about a home schooled teenage girl who enters high school for the first time. She tries to figure herself out by where she can fit in and who she needs to become friends with.

Boys & Girls Clubs of America is a program that was introduced in the 1860’s in Hartford Connecticut. “Believing that boys who roamed the streets should have a positive alternative, they organized the first Club. A cause was born.” Now made up of more than 4,300 clubs and in their 103rd year, the goal of these clubs is “to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.”

Dress codes is a standard of clothing for school, office, club, or restaurant. Schools have dress codes to promote professionalism and a distraction-free learning environment. More standards of dressings are set in place for girls than males. This causes an unequal amount of bias towards women and sexism to occur in the dress code.

His first encounter with the girls happens when they walk in with their scandalous swim suits, and he takes the time to describe their appearances from top to bottom. He can see a type of “class” coming from the girls by the way they

“How could this be?” Frances mumbles, “Andy with another woman? How could I be so blind! We were together for one night. I guess it meant more to me then him.”

 Furthermore Michael does nothing when Frances is crying face down into her handkerchief. "Michael didn't say anything. He sat watching the bartender slowly peel a lemon."(Shaw 8) This shows that Michael does not care about Frances' feelings. It looks as though for Michael the relationship is based on physical appearance because even after a long discussion at the bar when Frances got up from the table, "Michael watched her walk, thinking, what a pretty girl, what nice legs."(Shaw 9) If Michael really loves Frances he should try to see her inner feelings instead of her physical appearance.

Irwin Shaw's short story "The Girls in Their Summer Dresses" is about a couple's marriage in danger. The man in the relationship, Michael, desires other women. His wife, Frances, knows this and is confused about her feelings in their committed relationship. Michael and Frances are jeopardizing their marriage. Both of them have different attitudes and expectations for a committed relationship therefore leading to a failing marriage.

In The Girls in Their Summer Dresses, it is necessary to explore the personal differences that cause problems in the relationship of the couple. The details of the story will lead to a conclusion that for Michael the relationship could just be a mere convenience or an affection solely generated by his physical wanting of Frances, so with the way she looks and appreciates the girls of New York.

500 days of summer is a story where a boy meets a girl, he falls in love with her yet she does not truly love him. The movie shows the progression of the relationship of Tom and Summer. It begins when they first meet when Summer begins working as a secretary where Tom works and progresses to them casually dating. Summer is obviously hesitant and against relationships yet Tom is overly eager to find the perfect girl. The story ultimately shows the demise and after effects of their relationship. At first thought anyone could think this is the typical love story where the movie casually progresses to them living happily ever after. This is not that kind of fairy tale love story.

He idolizes her as if she were the Virgin Mary: "her figure defined by the half- opened door . . . The light from the lamp opposite our door caught the white curve of her neck, lit up her hair that rested there, and falling, lit up the hand upon the railing." Yet even this image is sensual with the halo of light accentuating "the white curve of her neck." The language makes obvious that his attraction is physical rather than spiritual: "Her dress swung as she moved her body and the soft rope of her hair tossed from side to side." His desire for her is strong and undeniable: "her name was like a summons to all my foolish blood"; "my body was like a harp and her words and ges­tures were like fingers running upon the wires." But in order to justify his love, to make it socially acceptable, he deludes himself into thinking that his love is pure. He is being hypocritical, although at this point he does not know it.

1. Go to a public place and OBSERVE the community of people in that place for at least 30 minutes; perhaps as long as 60 minutes. In your report, describe the setting and note the date and time of your observation. Describe the element of “community” that you observed.

From his description of her face, we get a glimpse of their entire relationship. "Her face, which must have been handsome, had remained intelligent" (120). Her appearance is not as important to him as her intellect - the base of their later relationship. He also notices the fact that "she seemed so little awkward" (120). He notices in her eyes "a defiant note" but also "a temperament of great sensibility" (120). The way her eyes are described, as if a battle is happening there, suggests maybe on an uneven person, maybe a clue to what will come later in her death. We know that she is married and has a daughter. We learn that she is alone most of the time "As the husband was often away and the daughter out giving music lessons..." (121), and that the relationship between her and her husband is not close: "Captain Sinico encouraged his visits... He had dismissed his wife so sincerely" (121). From his description of their relationship in the newspaper article "had lived happily", we understand how oblivious he was to the fact that she wasn't happy.