Hairball A solitary woman sits in conversation with a benign tumour that had just recently been removed from her ovary. As the woman speaks, the inanimate tumour, which she has named Hairball, looks on from its glass encased perch atop the fireplace. The scene is macabre and certainly unusual, but such is the life of Kat, the main character in Margaret Atwood’s short story, Hairball. Kat’s life is filled with the unusual and the shocking, a lifestyle that has been self-imposed. Throughout the years, Kat, an "avant garde" fashion photographer, has altered her image, even her name, to suit the circumstances and the era. Over time Kat has fashioned a seemingly strong and impenetrable exterior, but as Kat’s life begins to disintegrate we discover that the strong exterior is just a facade devised to protect a weak and fragile interior. Kat’s facade begins to unravel and she undergoes significant personal losses; in fact, the losses go so far as to include her identity or lack there of. As Kat begins to lose control, her mental and physical disintegration is hastened by three major conflicts: The conflict with the society in which she lives, the conflict with her romantic interests (specifically Ger), and finally the physical conflict she faces with her own body. In the end, these conflicts will threaten to strip Kat of her lifestyle as well as her name. From the beginning of Kat’s life, she was at odds with her environment. When she was a child, she was Katherine, a doll like representation of what her mother wanted her to be. As a teenager she was Kathy, a representation of what she believed others wanted, “a bouncy, round-faced [girl] with gleaming freshly washed hair and enviable teeth, eager to please and no more int... ... middle of paper ... ...he vehicle for the ultimate bizarre act reflecting Kat's personality disintegration. She has gone from Katherine, to Kath, to Kat to being “temporarily without a name.” The journey that Kat takes through the story, from a person defined by others to a person without definition, is somewhat of a birth in reverse. In the story the character of Kat is defined by the conflicts she faces and her inability to adequately deal with them. The more Kat attempts to find herself within the parameters of her society, work and relationships, the more she becomes lost. It is the conflicts that bring Kat to a moment of clarity as she is left broken and abandoned. It is in this state that Kat is able to lose her name and begin to reconstruct herself apart from the influences of others. Without a name Kat is now the blank canvass onto which she hopes to paint her final masterpiece.
However, it is the the effects of each of these situations that allow us to evaluate the two as a whole. Although Kat’s emotions go up and down about Patrick nonstop throughout the movie, in the end she is much happier than she was before she met Patrick. Similarly, Katherine ends up stating how submission has “made her heart great”, implying that she is content with the situation, but she does not appear to be truly happy with Petruchio. She is aware that she has no choice in regards to submission, and that her life will be better if she just accepts it. Thus, Katherine’s happiness is superficial as opposed to Kat’s which is real. Also feminism did not exist until the 19th century, so during the time of Shakespeare Katherine and Bianca did not even think of the idea that they could have a choice when it comes to men. Marriages were arranged, and that concept was accepted for many centuries,In fact, Katherine and Bianca are not even considered to be citizens because they
She, at times, was forced into territory that was unfamiliar and for which she needed to develop new skills – for example, the speech-giving that was required of her position and the business decisions that needed to be made at the Post. However, she never seemed to be playing any parts or brining any characters onto the stage, just being authentic Kay throughout her life. This may be because she was so good at playing the parts and the acting came so naturally that she never appeared to be inauthentic; or perhaps because she was not conscious of this action and therefore didn’t write about it. Nevertheless, it does seem interesting that she was trying to be the same person throughout her life, but that different circumstances demanded different components of her
Kate, from Frances O’Roark Dowell’s book The Kind of Friends We Used To Be, is a round a static character. Kate used to be best friend with Marylin, until middle school. In middle school Kate decided to make a change and become her own person. Kate, in elementary school wore, “gym shoes, running shoes, soccer cleats, hiking boots, and red Chuck Taylor high-tops” (1). Kate decided to leave the popular club, ballet shoes, and cheerleading act. Kate threw all of that away and turned to playing a guitar, wearing some black combat boots, and music writing book. Kate is a shy and talented guitar player. Kate loves to write music and because of that love,
The expectations of one’s surroundings shape who he or she is. Whether it is requirements from parents, society, or oneself, these pressures determine a person’s decisions and their behaviour. The plots of Cat’s Eye by Margaret Atwood and The Shape of a Girl by Joan MacLeod both focus on the bullying of a girl and the effects of these actions on those involved. The victims in both pieces of literature are singled out because they do not fit into societal norms. In The Shape of a Girl and Cat’s Eye, the stress caused by attempting to conform to society’s expectations causes the characters mental distress and keeps them in a subordinate position. The negative effects on one’s psyche are caused a variety of reasons. First, the expectations placed by society are constantly changing, thus they are impossible to achieve. Next, these expectations are enforced through dehumanizing methods. Finally, victims are forced to create a persona to fit into society,
First, Katsa defies King Randa. King Randa treats Katsa like a personal thug and demands she punish innocent people. Katsa realizes that “No one can make [her] do anything” (164). She rebels because she knows that King Randa’s men cannot “force [her] to go against [her] will” (167). Katsa’s confidence strengthens her, which allows her to face King Randa. Also, Katsa does not want “...to live like a tracked animal” (170). Her dignity gives her the strength to escape King Randa’s control. Additionally, Katsa allows herself to fall in love with Po. Katsa respects herself and her desires. Self respect allows Katsa to fall in love with Po and be happy even though she fears that “Her freedom would not be her own” (237). She dismisses the notion that being in a relationship restricts freedom and independence, which demonstrates that she wishes the best for herself. Equally as important, Katsa keeps Bitterblue alive in Grella’s Pass. Katsa chooses to go through Grella’s Pass because she has confidence that she and Bitterblue can survive. Katsa respects her survival skills, which gives her the strength and courage to trek through Grella’s Pass. All in all, Katsa’s self respect helps her overcome obstacles that she
Bianca metaphorically referring to her sister as a ‘mutant’ shows Kat is not perceived by others as a beautiful person, conseq...
As Cliff walks into the Kit Kat club he enters the world of promiscuous uninhibited dancers, and people of the like. Men approach him to dance, and women entice him with their charms. He obviously wasn’t all that accustomed to this kind of happening, but he didn’t shy away from it. The first night he lived this almost unreal experience, he met a woman. Sally was a one of a kind woman of her time, being on her own, making her own living, whether that living be on stage or with a man who suits her interest for a while.
He saddled the horses and glanced at Kat. He’d tried to figure her out. A woman that easy on the eyes didn’t just take off from family, but he’d made a mistake thinking he’d see her home. Hell, he couldn’t even get her to tell him where home was. She made her deal,
Her walk, which could be childlike and bobbing, or languid enough to make anyone think she was hearing music in her head; her mouth, which was pale and smirking most of the time, but bright and pink on these evenings out; her laugh, which was cynical and drawling at home- “Ha, ha, very funny,”-but high-pitched and nervous anywhere else, like the jingling of charms on her bracelet. (Oates 1) Even though she rejects her role as a daughter and sister to try to develop a sexual or adult like persona, which she only uses when she is away from home. When she is at the drive in restaurant she gets the attention she wants from boys and also from Friend who wagged his finger at her and said, “Gonna get you, baby” (Oates
Her own father warns Petruchio about her shrewish attitude even though he wants to court her, “Well Mayst thou woo, and happy be they speed but be thou armed for some unhappy words” (Taming of the Shrew 2.1. 145-146). She is jealous of Bianca, because Katherine wants to be wanted, and does not want her shrew identity, but she has given up on trying to overcome it. The movie 10 Things I hate about You, has similar aspects showing Kat has reasons for her attitudes. It is clear that Kat’s mother has left, and Kat has had a break up with her sister’s new boyfriend, Joey. Trying to deal with wanting love, the young Kat had a sexual relationship with Joey, and when she realized her mistake she expressed that she did not want to continue, so Joey broke up with her. In 10 Things I hate about you in the scene that Kat sits on Bianca’s bed she tells Bianca of her past mistakes to prevent her from making the same ones, this that even her own sister was not aware of Kat’s reasoning for her actions. Katherine and Kat were hurt many times in life, but once they received their shrew identities, it combined with emotions and both characters gave into societal expectations. When someone acts a certain way, people tend to judge them without knowing their true motives, and this causes people to act out
Tracy’s identity development is heavily influenced by her new friendship with Evie from that moment on. Evie is so popular, but she makes very poor choices and Tracy follows her lead because she wants to seem just as “cool” as her new companion. This is a type of peer pressure that affects many teenagers daily.... ... middle of paper ... ...
As a reader, it is given only Kathy’s perspective, which makes it difficult to know the history of the society, and how the donation program began. Since our understanding is to segregate the parentless, cloned children from the society until Kathy learns this herself. Kathy herself does not explicit question her origin, but rather notes and accepts the mysteriousness of it “There was an unspoken agreement to allow for a mysterious dimensions (Ishiguro, 2006, p. 123).” Much of Kath’s life as a child hailsham is marked by a vague awareness that she does not
Though this book the characters search for their Identity and try to understand who they are. Tessa being the main character also tries to find her identity the most. As she first comes to London, she thinks she's a plain average girl that is plainer than the rest of the population. She suddenly finds out she can shapeshift to any person she wants. She didn't even know that was possible before. As she learns about the downworlder,s which are that these vampires and werewolves exist in the world, she questions herself about who she is, and who her parents are. She wonders if she supposed to be in part with the Dark sisters to marry the Magister? Or was she supposed to be with the institute. She wonders what kind of Dark World she even is. As she does not fit into any of the categories because of her special abilities. She wonders if her brother also has powers. After being trapped in a new world. Tessa reconsiders her life and searches again to find herself and who she is. Many minor characters try to find their identity in the book. Will seems like he is striving for something but he is lost. Jessamine feels like she does not belong in the institute and wants to leave. Jem has a limit on his lifespan and there is so many things he wants to do. All of these characters in this story have something they want to fend for themselves. In the book they often wonder for their identity as they uncover more and more each
Originally, the narrator’s comprehension of herself was in sharp opposition to the opinions of her family. Her viewpoint on life and perception of herself was very childlike, and unprejudiced; whilst that of her family
The Kat Meow piece is my personal porta of a 50’s modern twist on the charter Lucy and My own character. The name “The Kat Meow” is to represent the Kat in Kathleen and the meow os the cats meow sang of someone or something wonderful or remarkable. This dress is a modest slightly fitted dress the pronces a woman’s