Women’s Power to Change in No Name Woman, Maxine Hong Kingston

Once everyone knew about Abigail and Proctor she ended up running away from her guilt, which is never good. Her motivation of hiding from her guilt caused her to run away from her problems. Running away from problems is not a display of justice, but simply injustice for everyone it

She ran away because she was tired of being treated poorly, so she went to fight for her rights to be free. No one should be forced doing things that they are not comfortable with. The whole marriage thing brought a negative effect on women during the western

The abandonment of her children through death leaves no chance for Nora to be able to reconnect with them like she would be able to if she were to strike out on her own looking for her independence. Nora’s children would have psychological problems that would leave them emotionally damaged and leave them with enormous guilt. Suicide presents the same problem the ending in which Nora stays with her family does, reinforcing the role of women as being repressed and controlled by a patriarchal society. This alternate ending does not highlight the message Ibsen was trying to portray like Ibsen’s original

She has taught Waverly the art of invisible strength, but she does not allow her to use it. Lindo has fought an entire misogynic culture to gain strength and to free herself, but ends up with this unhealthy bond to her daughter. Waverly is equally bound to her mother and perceives the world in black or white, lost in a world of endless choices, forever wavering (!) between extremes, unable to love people for who they are. Rich is caught in the fire between the two, without even knowing it.

The Awakening In The Awakening, Edna Pontellier is a selfish character. She wishes to live her life the way she wants without anyone interfering. She did not start selfish, but grew selfish as her hidden desires were awakened. Her selfishness comes from her complete disregard for anyone’s happiness besides her own. Edna refuses to attend her sister’s wedding, describing the event as lamentable.

She didn’t like the idea of going against her uncle’s orders like as she says here “ you cannot mean....to bury him? Against the order,” (1.1.38). That showed that she didn’t have enough courage to go against the orders. However, towards the ending of the story she wanted to be a part of the burial but she wasn’t so she didn’t get any credit for it. Antigone however, did bury Polynices all by herself and then later committed suicide.

It is this realization, as well as the oppression she feels from her marriage and the suppression she feels from her children that lead Edna to commit suicide, for she realizes that is the only way she will truly be able to escape her troublesome life. Edna Ponteillier’s suicide at the end of The Awakening is a result of her failed attempt at a new life. Edna’s suicide was her last resort, and was simply a way to escape from the troubles that resulted from the unhappiness she felt with her life. Edna’s suicide was not representative of the final stage of her “awakening”, but was merely an escape from the oppression she felt from her husband, the suppression she felt from her children, and from her failed relationship with Robert.

As a handmaid, she is not allowed to see Nick or have any relationship for that matter. Because of the riskiness, the relationship was doomed from the start just as the one with Luke. As soon as Offred got comfortable with Nick and they were intimate, Offred began analyzing so many things and questioning everything, but she gave into herself as she is her own enemy. She was incapable of standing up to her temptations and therefore Offred did not learn to become a better person. Aside from Nick, Offred also had a forbidden relationship with the Commander.

She cheats on her husband, disregards her children, and defies her societal expectations. At the end of the story, Edna Pontellier commits suicide to free herself from her confusing and scandalous life. During the first phase of Edna’s transformation (awakening), she realizes that she is not content with her lifestyle; she wants to could change her life and achieve freedom and bliss, so she turns her pursues this new goal. Chopin describes Edna’s perspective of her life during the beginning of her awakening: “There were days when she was unhappy, she did not know why—when it did not seem worth while to be glad or sorry, to be alive or dead; when life appeared to her like a grotesque pandemonium and humanity like worms struggling blindly toward inevitable annihilation. She could not work on such a day, nor weave fancies to stir her pulses and warm her blood.” (97).

Backman notes that, "The will to confront reality seems to be losing out to the need to escape"(p.184). Miss Emily is a woman who had the whole town wondering what she was doing, but did not allow anyone the pleasure of finding out. Once the men that she cared about in life deserted her, either by death or by simply leaving her, she hid out and did not allow anyone to get close to her. Miss Emily was indeed afraid to confront the reality that Backman discusses. Since she did not want to accept the fact that the people she cared about were gone, she hid in her house and did not go out.