Helga Crane Choosing to Live an Unhappy Life Book Review

Kate's attitude about her birthmark and her attitude towards her mother become a source of tension in their relationship. She hates that her mom simply will not apologize for the birthmark.. Kate begins to hate her mother for her lack of compassion and so she seeks other women with which to form bonds. Mo Rhodes and Angela become substitutes to compensate for the close relationship that Kate lacks with her own mother. Mo Rhodes is the epitome of a "cool" mom. When the Rhodes' move in across the street, Kate is intrigued by Mo and overwhelmed by the chance to get to know Misty, a friend her own age.

During the course of both novels, Edna and Janie’s decisions and actions significantly impact the outcome of the novels. Edna’s desire to be completely free from the shackles of society ultimately backfires as her need to be surrounded by people who understand and objectify society the way she does impedes her journey. Although Adele is a dear friend, her ignorance about their true condition makes Edna feel both furious and compassionate towards her. Adele due to the birth of her children and her inability to

And is it really a positive thing in all circumstance? Walker creates Dee as a selfish, unfeeling individual, who has an incredible zest for knowledge. She emphasizes her character as distinct from that of Maggie Johnson her younger sister. ”She used to read to us without pity, forcing words, lies, other folk's habits, whole lives upon us two; sitting trapped and ignorant underneath her words" (7), because of this her mother, Mrs. Johnson sends her to school in Augusta after she and the church raises the money. Dee thinks she is better than the rest, she wants to leave her family and heritage behind because she feels like they aren’t as sophisticated as she is.

The apparent power plays through religion, and social class made a very clear message of how social classes can divide someone. Throughout the novel Jane didn’t value herself or see herself superior because of how she was raised as an orphan and was isolated to everyone around her of a higher class. She thought of herself as useless until later on in her life when she saw the true purpose of her life. When Jane acquired money she felt as she had amounted to something, but truly met her match when she married Rochester who was of a higher class. Through the Marxism lense I was able to see Jane grow as a woman even with her setbacks in life because she continued to push the envelope and break the social status that she was born

Tita disagrees with the rigid tradition because it confines her to a life without love. She doesn't sit back and accept her position; she fights for what she wants. However, Tita doesn't question the practice to her mother. Mama Elena is the supreme authority in the household and Tita fears her. Tita refuses to accept her undesirable social role even though others accept it in her family.

As a female Jane must deal with the caste system of her time as a threat, and as an orphaned child she must deal with the cast system as an obstacle. The family of Reeds that she lives with reminds her everyday of her low position. “She suffers precisely because she knows the value of caste; She may be poor, but she does not want to belong to the poor” (Bell 2). This makes Jane want to thrive more because she realizes the odds against her. Originally, Jane comes from a middle-class family but when her father dies she is left to the pity of the Reeds.

Although Jane Eyre was considered radical for its time because women weren’t supposed to play the role of heroine, Jane Eyre rises up from her oppressors, fights for what she thinks is right, and above all stays true to herself and today is considered a true role model for heroine characters. Jane Eyre tells the story of an orphan who goes through her life with challenges and goes on to have an ‘awakening’ in the process. Jane goes through a “life-pilgrimage” (Bomarito 405) where she grows mentally and emotionally. From her low beginnings Jane is unwilling to accept her place in society and what other people believe where her place is. (Magill’s) Her family’s abusive ways don’t let her believe she’s less than what she is or will become.

Except that forgiveness is hardly the word.”(2761) She try to push this problem behind so that she would not have face the chaos of her marriage. “Charting the failure of communication and later decline of love.” (Janina Nordius) Matthew and Susan’s relationship begins to slowly deteriorate as lies and deceit plies in their marriage. These are all factors that gives to Susan’s aspiration for solitude, so that she can get away from all the tension and hassles. Susan’s pursuit for peacefulness and isolation is driving her mad since she is always surrounded by overwhelming commotion. Mrs. Parkes, the housekeeper, is constantly asking for Susan’s approval for everything that she does.

We see this even through her family atmosphere, her mother is convinced that everyone in the Breedlove family is not attractive in anyway. This has a negative effect on Pecola mainly because she wants to be like everyone else instead of always feeling different from those around her. In Pecola’s life she is surrounded by fighting and hate. Her parents are always fighting and she sees in her community problems with race. One of the reasons she wants blue eyes is so maybe she can see things with a new view.

In Song of Solomon, Toni Morrison constantly shifts the setting of the novel, tone, style and theme to frame Hagar’s character in the novel as a round character revealing her weaknesses due to a love obsession also foreshadowing her upcoming decay. Hagar being one of the central characters of the story is also a very contradictory character who as a child was an independent, intelligent, realistic and unattached girl with the freedom that her mother and grandmother “passed on” to her. They had no attachments or necessities for support from men as white women and many black women did during and before the Civil Rights movement, yet (she) “loses” power over her will for a “love” that drags her to death. Although, Hagar possessed identity of a black child due to freedom, she was also a spoiled child who lived with nothing, yet desired everything just as a white spoiled child who would ask and be pleased. It is presumed by many characters that this was the cause of her failure and inability to recover.