Alice Walker's 'Roselily'

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Alice Walker’s short story entitled, “Roselily” tells the story of a hardworking woman who is marrying a man she barely knows in order to escape poverty and to provide a better life for her children. In the short story, the reader gets an insight into the mind of Roselily as the narrator describes the racing thoughts and daydreams as the ceremony takes place. Even though she is escaping from her hometown, where she lives a hard life as a single mom, she wonders if it will get better after she gets married and moves to Chicago. One of the first things that Walker made clear was that the man that Roselily is marrying is not of the same religion. For Roselily, this means that she will have to cover herself up and practice her future husbands religion. The narrator …show more content…

Instead, her life will dictated by her husband. He is already stripping her from her roots and religion. It’s hard to tell how much freedom Roselily will have because she will have to give up so much of what she has known for her entire life. Yes, she will be in a new city where she doesn’t have to work long hours. However, she will have to take care of the home and have more babies. That will be her life from now on. She will be confined in the walls of her home. She will be confined in a black veil. She will be confined by her husband who she must obey. These are the thoughts that occupy Roselily at the time of her wedding ceremony, they also foreshadow a future of confinement. It isn’t a joyful wedding ceremony with a happy ending. Roselily comes to the realization that getting married to this man may not have be the right choice. However, by the end of the story, she is married. Her life is no longer in her control and this made me feel sad for Roselily, her future for herself doesn’t seem promising. The only hopeful aspect of the story is that at least her children will have a better life than they did

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