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Metaphors in virginia woolf professions of women
Metaphors in virginia woolf professions of women
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A Critical Response to Virginia Woolf’s “Thought’s on Peace in an Air Raid (1940). ”
In her article “Thought’s on Peace in an Air Raid (1940),” Virginia Woolf speaks on the stipulations of being a woman and the emancipation from mental fear in the Second World War. As the German’s use of power causes a sense of intimidation, there is a great aspiration for a unified peace amongst all. Woolf recaptures the traumatic experiences and effects of this war. She speaks on unification: those that should come together and put their minds to great use to help devise solutions in light of great turmoil. She also addresses the physical responsibilities of war as it relates especially to women. Though Woolf speaks a lot about women in this article, the idea is that she wants these women to be catalysts to a greater cause: awakening minds and being an aspiration to others. The mind is a very powerful thing: it holds no restrictions and can be both destructive and victorious. This article is clever in its emphasis to awaken and enlightening minds to conceive the necessity for change for the benefit of all mankind.
Woolf uses
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Woolf uses metaphorical phrases as she attempts to describe the war and the experiences that took place. Such phrases as “listening to the zoom of the hornet, which many at any moment sting you to death.” Hornets are usually aggressive insects and the thought of being bombarded by a swarm of hornets is paralyzing to the mind, which may bring out a state of fear. In reference to war, the metaphorical use of hornets in this context, relates to the German fighter jets striking fear in the hearts of the people. Much like venom, the thoughts of a never-ending war intoxicate the mind into a continuous chain of undesirable thoughts. Woolf captures the moment of fear and ignites a fire within you to understand the feeling of being afraid at such a crucial
“There was much more to women’s work during World War Two than make, do, and mend. Women built tanks, worked with rescue teams, and operated behind enemy lines” (Carol Harris). Have you ever thought that women could have such an important role during a war? In 1939 to 1945 for many women, World War II brought not only sacrifices, but also a new style of life including more jobs, opportunities and the development of new skills. They were considered as America’s “secret weapon” by the government. Women allowed getting over every challenge that was imposed by a devastating war. It is necessary to recognize that women during this period brought a legacy that produced major changes in social norms and work in America.
The events of World War II have established a new public perspective on women. Through women’s accomplishments, they justified females were capable of achieving high standards that existed once as only attainable by men. Once vulnerable to prejudices, they’ve given an opportunity for all to comprehend there can be a life when the populaces aren’t segregated by race or gender. Women have rehabilitated the faded thought of their rights and responsibilities, bringing history closer to a more righteous and responsible dawn.
When the war started, women had to take over the jobs of men and they learned to be independent. These women exemplified the beginning of change. Coupled with enfranchisement and the increased popularity of birth control, women experienced a new liberation. When the men returned from the war they found competition from the newly liberated woman who did not want to settle for making a home (Melman 17). This new class of women exercised a freedom that shocked society.
World War I began in 1914 and lasted until the end of 1918. In that time young men had to go to the front and fight for their country. It is also the time when Ernest Hemingway’s novel A Farewell to Arms takes place. It talks about Frederic Henry, a young American who is an ambulance driver for the Italian army. He is also the novel’s narrative and protagonist. He falls in love with an English nurse, Catherine Barkley. She is the main woman character in the novel and it is noticeable how she is shown as a stereotypical female during World War I. Throughout the novel we can see how women are shown in a stereotypical way and how they were mistreated by men. The purpose of this essay is firstly to analyze how Hemingway describes women in his novel A Farewell to Arms and finally to discuss Catherine’s attitude towards Frederic.
Birdy, who is a new soldier, fears that he will end up dead during the war. He said,“Then I realized that it was the noise, the constant booming, that just filled my guts with a trembling sensation. I knew if I heard the boom I was safe because whatever had exploded hadn't hit me. But it was the idea that at any moment it could be all over, that I could be dead or lie in the sand twisting in agony, that filled me with a terror that I hadn't known before. Terror. It wasn't just being scared. It was a feeling that was taking me over. I knew it but I hoped no one else saw it,” (Myers 71). This description of Birdy's fear develops the idea that in Iraq, surviving emotionally during the war is important to be alive. Walter Dean Myers wants the reader
Knowing this you would think women would portray themselves more seriously, but the exact opposite is happening. These continuous loops of failure have severely weakened women’s physical presence, and because of this, are continuously singled out in world discussions on topics such as war or threats to national security, and are constantly burdened with tasks regarding health and family life. In my research I read many books from the nineteenth-century onwards, such as, Stuart Mill’s book ‘The Subjection of Women’ (1869) to Butler’s ‘Gender Troubles’ (1990), both of these and many more books has helped in my quest to conjure up a personal concept of women, but out of all of them I found Berger’s ‘Ways of seeing’ the most fruitful in terms of a literal explanation of women.
"From Home Front to Front Line." Women in War. Ed. Cecilia Lee and Paul Edward Strong. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. The Churchill Centre. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
In Rebecca West’s The Return of the Soldier the continual coverage made by the media of the war during its occurrence and the infectiousness it had on those back home is portrayed through the eyes of her narrator, Jenny. The use of a female narrator wasn’t uncommon nor new but the way West includes her feminist values into Jenny without making it central to the story is fascinating. Up to this point in history, coverage of a war had never been read about as it was during this period. Because of this advancement in getting news out had improved drastically from the last war, people back home were more aware of what was occurring from reading a newspaper without having to wait for letters from their loved ones out on the front lines. West took this information in full stride and wrote about the emotional turmoil it causes the women back home waiting for their men to come back. She makes mention by focusing and bringing to attention the elements of class, exile from being deployed and the trauma that war causes on the soldier.
It is evident that the occurrence of war throughout history has made a lasting impression on soldiers and civilians alike. This has been expressed over the years through different works of literature. The cost of war to the individual is illustrated in “The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich, “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, and “The Shawl” by Cynthia Ozick because each story shows some element of mental, emotional, and physical toll.
The three narratives “Home Soil” by Irene Zabytko, “Song of Napalm” by Bruce Weigl, and “Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen all have the same feelings of war and memory, although not everyone experiences the same war. Zabytko, Weigl, and Owen used shifting beats, dramatic descriptions, and intense, painful images, to convince us that the horror of war far outweighs the devoted awareness of those who fantasize war and the memories that support it.
(1)- Tix, Andy, Ph.D. "The Pursuit of Peace." "Kristallnacht:" The Night That Shattered Humanity. Psychology
The whole world’s scared and they decide to swallow the fear. Growing up in a wartime environment isn’t easy at all. All of their lives have been mistreated, misplaced, misunderstood. Yet, Anne Frank still believed that people are good at heart. Jeanne and Elie Wiesel decided to write about their experiences, teaching others about the World War II. Their childhood and adolescence may have been taken away, but they are all still endeavoring for their future.
The film titled, “The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter”, looks at the roles of women during and after World War II within the U.S. The film interviews five women who had experienced the World War II effects in the U.S, two who were Caucasian and three who were African American. These five women, who were among the millions of women recruited into skilled male-oriented jobs during World War II, shared insight into how women were treated, viewed and mainly controlled. Along with the interviews are clips from U.S. government propaganda films, news reports from the media, March of Time films, and newspaper stories, all depicting how women are to take "the men’s" places to keep up with industrial production, while reassured that their duties were fulfilling the patriotic and feminine role. After the war the government and media had changed their message as women were to resume the role of the housewife, maid and mother to stay out of the way of returning soldiers. Thus the patriotic and feminine role was nothing but a mystified tactic the government used to maintain the American economic structure during the world war period. It is the contention of this paper to explore how several groups of women were treated as mindless individuals that could be controlled and disposed of through the government arranging social institutions, media manipulation and propaganda, and assumptions behind women’s tendencies which forced “Rosie the Riveter” to become a male dominated concept.
Crane, Stephen. “Do not weep, maiden, for war is kind.” The Modern Age Literature. Eds Leonard Lief and James F. Light. 4th Ed. Holt, Rhinehart and Winston; New York, 1981. p. 137
What I have discussed are two women authors that have faced trials in their lifetimes pertaining to feminism that society had forced upon them. We are given insight into the ways and values of their time and how these experiences influenced their writings. In conclusion, we can see how societal issues concerning the roles of women have differed in principles, but remain the same in the way that there is an unbroken tradition regarding how men and women differ in their roles as well as their perceived rights. Female writers and advocates of women’s rights show these influences with Mary Wollstonecraft using her strong personality and direct writings and Virginia Woolf using her narratives, and both giving us insight to the struggles of an ongoing debate.