Theme Of Gender In Cat In The Rain By Ernest Hemingway

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The beginning of 20th century brings a lot of cultural changes. Gender roles are challenged and redefined. That change is reflected in American literature as well. Ernest Hemingway in “Cat in the Rain” as well as Kate Chopin in “The Story of an Hour” confront changes regarding gender and their roles. The titles the writers choose often have a greater meaning. The title of Ernest Hemingway’s short story “Cat in the Rain” suggests parallel between abandoned, scared, and lonely animal and wife, who is also lonely and trapped in an unhappy relationship. The body of that short story seems to suggest just that. Hemingway refers to the cat as she: “The cat was trying to make herself so compact that she would not be dripped on” (Center, n.d.). The choice of animal, a cat, can also be interpreted as referring to a person who is antisocial and individualistic, a loaner in a sense. The use of the word rain can either suggest troubles in the relationship because rain is often viewed as a bad …show more content…

Modernists believe that the human mind perceives and created the world, and that the qualities of the post-World War I societal problems in America are alienation, loss, and despair. That fits very well with the themes in “Cat in the Rain” (The American wife feels alienated from her husband). The way Hemingway strays from that literary movement is his approach to the “new woman”. “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin belongs to realism. The short story focuses on the concern about marriage. The author accurately presents the marital life from the woman’s perspective. Through writing, Chopin presents her own perspective, her own feelings on life at the end of 19th century. Realism is defined as a revolt against Romanticism. Mrs. Mallard is anything but romantic. Even upon learning about husband’s death, she is consumed by her own dreams and desires. Themes truly fit that particular literary

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