Ethan Frome and Feminism Essay

Ethan Frome is the main subject of the book Ethan Frome. Ethan’s wife Zeena from Ethan Frome represents middle class women. For a long time, social roles of women in the society and within the family were limited by gender stereotypes and social norms dominated since prehistory in a myriad of cultures. These norms were closely connected and influenced by class location of women and their social status. The following paper will focus on the main characters Zeena, Mattie and Ethan of Ethan Frome and their presentation as literary characters and their attributes of the real world struggle for feminism. It is with Zeena and Mattie that the story hinges upon an idea of the lifestyle of women during this time period and the needs which they staunched through patriarchy. The paper will focus on how the values of this time period did not leave room for independent women and the reaction of women to this societal assignment will also be analyzed. In the work, Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton the author explores questions concerning the role of social class and social position in life of ordinary people especially in reference to the gap between women and men in reference to equality. The female characters are influenced by false social values and traditions accepted by society’s mores, but their ‘awakening’ is caused by different events and life circumstances, so they choose different methods to resist social oppression and tyranny. The dissection of women’s social roles and their ability to traverse these roles will be examined through character analysis of the literature mentioned. Ethan’s story is told, or discovered by the reader when the narrator becomes fascinated by the history of this lone man who comes into town to pick up mail. Interest sparks greater when the silent ride to Corbury Flats is bridged by a hint or two of what Ethan lived, or had done in his life. There are elements of feminism in this book as they relate to the strength of the women of the story, such as Mattie. The main focus of this paper will explore the dual role of feminism and strength of the women through love. A snow storm comes which permits the narrator to spend the night at the Frome farm. Here the reader is shown the complete past of Ethan Frome as told by Mattie in the kitchen. Mattie and Ethan had a forbidden love because Ethan was married at the time of their tryst. Ethan was married to a woman named Zeena and Ethan was logical with himself and thought that it would be better to run away with , and as Lawson states, The warmth of the evening is brought to an apprehensive end by the accidental breaking of one of Zeena’s sacred, never-used pickle-dishes. That the pickle-dish, a wedding gift, has never been used makes it a strong symbol of Zeena herself, who prefers not to take part in life. The depth of Zeena’s reaction to its being broken is revealed by her angrily twitching lips and by â€Å"two small tears†¦ on her lashless lids. † (Lawson 30). And their love could flourish outside of the watchful eye of his wife. Their fate together however was doomed. One winter night when the moon was high in the sky, in desperation for fear of dying slowly without eachother Ethan and Mattie decided a double suicide would be a better fate and symbol of their love. Here certain feminism elements in the story can be examined such as the lack of strength in the character Mattie, but as critic R.  Baird Shuman states, â€Å"there is probably no more pervasive single element in Ethan Frome than the symbolism. † Although Mattie loves Ethan, she does not attempt to ask Ethan for a divorce from his wife, but her ‘logical’ thought pattern suggests to there that suicide is the answer for both of them. There is a definite emasculation in this action as it does not allow the lovers to actually be together in a life, but rather to die dramatically and when this type of death is decided upon it is purely an act of attention to say to the world, or to Zeena that they are better off dead than with her in their lives. Thus, the act of suicide is not a strong feminist action but merely a cowards way out of a live neither of them want, without each other nor understand. The suicide attempt is done by sleigh riding into a tree together. The plan ultimately and tragically fails and they live with Zeena where the narrator finds them. It seems that the true feminist in the novel is Zeena. Despite the fact that she was abandoned by her husband for his new lover, and in the fact that she takes both of them back in, her strength as a character comes through. Ethan Frome was a strong young man doing what he thought was right. It was a sad thing that he married Zeena but then he wouldn’t have met Mattie. Ethan is an upright man with enough loyalty to love to end life with love and enough honor toward marriage to not run off like he was going to do. Ethan was a man with few woes but the ones he did have were seemingly too large to bear. How could he live without his love, but in living at all live being changed by guilt to his wife. He was a sad man that life couldn’t do without because it made him live through the torment of having a faithful wife, this is what Kenneth Bernard speaks of when he mentions ‘true dimensions’. These true dimensions center around the revelation of character through landscape; such as the snow as a symbol of things being dormant between Frome and his wife. Although Ethan was an honorable man there does seem to be a striking difference between Zeena’s honor and Ethan’s honor; could both of them be considered feminist? Feminism is not an theory based primarily on the injustices done to women, but is in fact a statement that women have had injustices done to them, and there is finally action and unification among women and men to stop such actions. So, the question becomes how is Wharton’s book about feminism. The concept of feminism in Ethan Frome is arranged around how the characters react with one another. Zeena is a strong willed woman who does not cheat on her husband and thus is an upright and outstanding wife, except for the fact that Ethan is not in love with her. Zeena does not appear to have any character flaws, but she does seem to be overbearing in parts, unless that is the impression the other characters want to give of her. However, it does seem that the characters only exhibit qualities of feminism during parts of the book. It may safely be surmised that Zeena was only a faithful wife out of spite. She used her faithfulness as a weapon to shove into Ethan’s face to keep him chained to her. Zeena was a typical wanna be invalid: Complaining about anything for attention and if someone found something to be good at she despised that thing and that person. She wanted to be the perfect Christian girl and be good to Ethan and Mattie just so that the town would feel sorry for her and say what a splendid woman she was to be kid to such a vile husband. She wanted that glory, thus although she was a strong woman in her own character this strength was a curse to those around her. The debate then is, is Zeena feminist or just a spiteful woman. Her husband cheats on her, tries to kill himself with his lover, and she takes him back and nurses Mattie. This may seem like a genuinely good woman according to this unbiased facts, however, it is in Zeena’s reaction wherein lies the true character. This type of characterization does not have to be with patriarchy or developing an equality among women and men but facing the fact of Zeena’s deplorable character in the reasons that she allows Ethan and Mattie back in the home. Therefore, although Zeena is a very strong female character there is no reason except a selfish reason of propriety to allow her husband back in the home, and this is not a feminist woman. Mattie’s character can best be described as sweet, loving, and at least trying to do something nice. She puts up with Zeena silently which is more than what most of the women in the novel could have done. She did what love, or what she love wanted her to do and be, a silent woman. A simple country girl looing for a life to live with someone she cares about. Thus, here is the counter to Zeena’s character. Mattie is not a strong character, so love for her does not prove that she is strong but rather weak since her escape is suicide. She does not stand up to Zeena in any way in the beginning or middle of the novel and thus her character is even further away from being considered a feminist than Zeena. In view of this comparison Mattie is not a feminist but Zeena would be considered one, only in comparison with one another. Mattie is a silent woman, she does not challenge what Ethan says to her, she does not voice her own opinion, and she goes along with Ethan’s suicide attempt without a word of complaint or counteraction. Almost the entire story is told in the kitchen, which in a patriarchal society is considered the woman’s part of the house. Although most people attribute women’s liberation to Betty Friedan’s wakening book Feminine Mystique the dates of women’s freedoms go as far back as 1848. During the freedom’s ferment era, women were contributing their time and ideas to many movements. One such movement included greater power for women. During the late 19th century women were not well accepted or permitted to hold positions of power in any political regime. Their daily duties consisted of housework, and motherly duties not to say that women were not including themselves in political venture, but the common belief of women’s place being in the home was widespread. Thus, it seems that the focus of the book should not be on Ethan Frome but these two female characters. The emotional entanglement of Edith Wharton’s characters to their situations of love, sex and death, the reality for the story is one, is the complete circle of the other, and for Wharton this circle represents the emotions of the characters themselves in their unique situation, as Kuribayashi writes, â€Å"†¦erotic impulses are often born of close encounters with death, either one’s own or that of a loved one, though contact with death may also quench one’s sexual urges†. In addressing these topics the subject of writing style isn’t elusive to its relevance in feminism. It is in postmodern feminism style that Wharton writes. This style of writing begets the transcendence of female writers and characters into a world where not necessarily control but freedom from man exists. This is how Wharton writes, with patches of reality mixed with cerebral counterparts. Wharton’s writing style does not reflect a precise example of postmodernism but a hybrid form of it with feminism. She doesn’t write disjointedly but when looked at as a whole, her story comes together to reveal Ethan Frome as a patriarch of the story despite his honor and Mattie as the typical silent woman and Zeena as the witch of the story, and their story is quilted together with a basis of shared experiences coupled with various reactions. Wharton’s style of writing is one that isn’t intrusive as most postmodern writing reflects but is inclusive allowing the reader to form a cohesive viewpoint once each side of the story is known. Wharton doesn’t focus on the complete picture but the experience and emotional narration of the character’s experiences. For these issues the inclusion of Wharton in a literary canon involves this narrative style which is very avant-garde and deserves recognition in her ingenuity and preference for that state of emotional landscaping (for it is through the details of the lives and events of these women and Ethan that the quilting effect or common thread is revealed). This is the new literary canon as derived from Munro; feminist postmodernism. This metaphoric approach to writing ensures that her craft delivers reference to feminism for each of these three characters. In this the narrative gives space to the character’s desires. For Wharton, these desires aren’t about love necessarily but about being touched and gaining experience and not being lonely as Ethan seems to be. The true genius in Wharton’s new literary canon is that of upsetting the normal devices of narrative. As Nunes states, â€Å"As a metaphor for narrative, quilting/piecing destabilizes notions of unity, coherence, and balance; it becomes a source of disruption for patriarchal narrative structure† (1997). The style of piecing together a story becomes in this new tradition of a canon a feminine aspect. Wharton works her writing style in metaphor. In Ethan Frome each character circles around to the next until they complete eachother, despite this circle having a negative connotation. Her writing style doesn’t necessitate an attachement between the characters but does give concord to their actions. The capacity Edith Wharton has to deliver a unique and persistent narrative exudes her place in the literary canon and the new definitions she lends to it. Her style of writing, at once reflecting her life and at once giving the reader clear identities to the characters and their emotional attachments to each other or to their own experiences makes Edith Wharton a literary genius. It is her writing wit, intelligence, eroticism and her complexities in dealing with these issues through characters and personal development that contribute to the changing face of feminist postmodernism. The association the main characters have with each other and their identities is what makes this story intriguing in a feminist way, and their identities seem to be lost with one another as the story progresses is definitely felt. Through lack of communication between the genders, the characters find themselves imprisoned with one another.

Education Is the Only Key of Life for Turkish Women Essay

Education right, right to vote and stand for election are basic rights of humanbeings and the elements of democracy. These rights are essential to prove the existence of a person in society. Altough, these rights were given to Turkish women before many western countries, Turkey fell behind in applying and improving these rights. In many parts of Turkey, women are not allowed to use their rights and it is still debated that should women have job, should they get education and basically, how women should live. Even if, there are many dissenting opinions about if women should be educated or not, Turkish women should be educated to be able to get their economic freedom and be aware of their rights.. Being able to make own decisions, living independent is crucial necessity for people and having economic freedom is the first step to be independent. However, in Turkey, either women are not allowed to work or they prefer to be housewifes. When they are not married, they live with their families and they depend on them, after they marry, they are dependent on their husbands. Either way, they never live their life the way they want to and they are content with what they have. In Turkey, if a woman works, she is accused of not being good mother or wife. Yet, on the contrary, if woman work, she feels herself productive, effective, social and only then,she gains self-confidence. Meghan O’Rourke says, â€Å"Only by working, can women can have a fully â€Å"flourishing† life† As she says, only a working woman gets whatever she wants and so, she becames more beneficial for her families. Also, if women work, she supports family financially and it brings to having high life standards. However, in patriarchal societies, being independent women mostly causes problems in family. Times of India’s IDiva research shows that, The survey of over 24,000 adults in 23 countries, conducted by Reuters/Ipsos and released on the eve of International Women’s Day, showed that people from India (54 percent), Turkey (52 percent), Japan (48 percent), China, Russia, Hungary (34 percent each) and South Korea (33 percent) were most likely to agree that women should not work. 52 percent women in Turkey think that women’s place is at home because, women and man not equal in working arena. When women work, she is still charged of house chores and these chores take a lot of time, besides these chores women have to take care of children. So, it is really hard to carry out all together these works and when women cannot balance house work and job, man began to complain. These complaints are another reason for women’s stress therefore, women are fed up with everything and they give up their job. If they do not, it causes serious damages in family, and if women insist to continue her job, it even may leads to divorce. So, many women have to give up their job fort he sake of family. Another reason why women should get education is that education brings women awareness, only an educated women can be aware of her rights. Being aware of rights is important for women because, women are exposed to violence, rape. Also, they are forced to marry when they are children and in Turkey, man can have a second wife and women are forced to live together. According to KSGM’s research, 39 percent of Turkish women are exposed to violonce by their husbands and 48. 5 percent women cannot tell anyone about violance that they are exposed. Women are ashamed of being subjected violance and also, due to they afraid of their husband, they do not tell anyone. Mostly, they cannot tell because they depend on their husband and their families usually do not protect them†¦ After violance, one of the biggest problem in Turkey is child brides. Especially in east of Turkey, little girls are forced to marry a man who is older than them for Money. According to surveys, â€Å"Turkey has one of the highest rates of juvenile marriages in the world† ( Tokyay). Also, the survey points out that, in Turkey there are 28 percent of child brides, and 41 percent of this is unofficial religious marriages. Tokyay). To challenge with these injustice, cruelty, and oppression they have to get education because if they get education, they become independent and aware of their rights therefore, they do not have to yield man anymore. They can sue their husband, their families that commit violance or force to marry and they can defend themselves. In a patriarchal society like Turkey, woman who are aware, and protect her own rights, is thought as insolet versus man and she is accused of losing femininity. In this type society, there are certain roles for man and women. Man are charged with taking care of his family, protecting his wife. As to women, â€Å" their main preoccupation, fostered by parents and educators alike, is â€Å" the pursuit of a wedding ring. † As one editor put it, college for women was the â€Å" world’s best marriage mart. † † (reed 4) They are raised to be perfect wifes who respect, trust, yield to their husbands. It does not matter how she is smart or successful, marriage is the only aim. If she does not have good marriage, she thinks that she is inadequate. Therefore, men see women as their properties. So, when a woman defends herself, resists again her husband, man takes this as disrespectfulness and disobedience. Not just man, also society think that if woman is smart and she has job, if she can live herself without man supporting, she is tought that she loses her femininity. â€Å" Collage girls, terrified lest they lose their â€Å"femininity† through any display of brains or serious study, learn to camouflage their intellegence or obediently empty their minds altogether ( Reed 3). They avoid to show their intellegence and talents because they are not supposed to think, they supposed to toe the line by told their husband or families. substaining and extending this redirection of women are the powerful moulders of public opinion: editors and writers of slick magazines for women, newspaper columnists, TV shows, movies, popular novels, pulps, and aii the rest. Indiously and unremittingly they warn women that even yearning to Express their intellects and talents would be â€Å" heavily paid for† by the loss of their â€Å"femeninity†Ã¢â‚¬  ( Reed 5). In All soap operas, all women magazines there are subtitles that manupulate women to stay at home and to be good wife. They teach them how they can make merry their husband or what they sould do to not lose their husband. Because all women should live for their husband, children and all they should think to protect this joyful life. So, if women put herself with brains and qualifications, it makes her unfeminine and not to proper for marry. To conclude, women should get education in order to be stronger, to be independent, to stand on her own legs. In patriarchal societies like Turkey, women should not yield to rules, traditions, on the contrary, they try to change society perspective because women shape the whole society.. As Mustafa Kemal Ataturk says, â€Å"Insan toplulugu kad? n ve erkek denilen iki cins insandan olusur. Kabil midir bu kutlenin bir parcas? n? ilerletelim, otekini ihmal edelim de kutlenin butunu ilerleyebilsin? Mumkun mudur ki bir cismin yar? s? topraga bagl? kald? kca, oteki yar? s? goklere yukselebilsin ? †. society will progress, upgrade as long as women have a real sense of community. Finally, first and foremost a woman should get education for herself if she wants to make her life meaningful. otherwise, she will be nothing but man’s slave.

AP Biology Photosynthesis Lab

Photosynthesis is affected by light intensity, water, and temperature. Plants grow more abundantly because the weather is warm. Carbon Dioxide given off by animals is consumed by plants that replace the oxygen animals take it. Experimentation will help understanding how plants are vital because of the oxygen they release. If leaf disks in the experiment release oxygen, they will undergo photosynthesis and float. If there is no temperature buffer of water, the higher temperature will cause more leaf disks to float at a faster rate. (Experiment Central)Methods:This lab required 100 ml of water, 3 grams of baking soda, several leaves, a single hole punch, a plastic syringe with a removable stopper, a beaker large enough to hold 100+ ml of liquid, a beaker large enough to block out the prior, a light fixture, and a thermometer.This experiment began by preparing 100 ml of bicarbonate solution for each trial. To do this, 3g of baking soda was dissolved into 100ml of water. The bicarbonate served as an alternate dissolved source of carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. Then 12 leaflet disks (leaf chads) were cut for each trial. Single hole punches were used to cut these out. The disks were then placed in the bottom of an empty syringe. As the syringe filled with the bicarbonate solution, the leaf disks were immersed in the solution. A finger was placed over the opening of the syringe, and as the plunger was pulled down it created suction. The goal of this step was to create a vacuum, so the empty air pockets in the leaf chads that made them buoyant were filled with water (so they would sink).The disks were poured into  the 100ml solution, and sank to the bottom. The temperature of the water was recorded. A heat buffer that consisted of a larger beaker filled with water was placed in between the solution and the light fixture, and the light was then turned on. Over the course of 8 minutes the leaf chads underwent photosynthesis and began to float back to the surface of the water. The number of floating disks was recorded each minute and then the process was repeated without the heat buffer. While being repeated without the heat buffer, the temperature was checked every minute and recorded.Data and Results:Conclusions:The rate of photosynthesis was measured by floatation of leaf disks when oxygen was released. The hypothesis was not supported because the leaf disks did not float at a higher rate when the temperature was slightly higher. Figure 1 shows this because the rate of floating leaf disks did not increase as predicted. The change in heat did not affect the amount of floating leaf disks, perhaps due to a large margin of error. The margins for error include the clumps of leaf disks, too much water in the buffer, too many air pockets in the leaves and not having stronger temperatures. A follow up experiment would test the same leaf disks with a stronger heat source. This follow up would most likely support the current hypothesis.

Compare & Contrast Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Compare & Contrast - Essay Example The word â€Å"Fall† on the other hand (need I say more), connotes perhaps a â€Å"Fall from Grace.† This season reminds one primarily of old age, rot and decay. The scent in the air is of aging pines and burning autumn leaves damp with the cold feeling of a tomb. That same cold rainy dampness often creates an ache in the body that hints at mortality. Yes, there is a time of vibrant colors, leaves turning crimson and gold, but they soon fall to the ground wither and brown. While it is true that the blooms of flowers in spring also fade, they do so in a much more graceful way. Petal by petal fall and decorate the landscape, and just as suddenly they simply vanish. Leaves, on the other hand, have to be gathered up or they simply decompose and decay where they are. For me it seems that the world waits for spring to arrive. Winter is a time of rest and as the spring thaws surfaces, life begins again. Spring is a season of renewal and rebirth, which never comes early enough and can never outstay its welcome. It has often been said that Spring comes in on the wings of robins. The appearance of robin redbreast is the announcement that winter is over and Spring has come to stay. All the birds follow suit after that, cardinals, blue jays, goldfinch and all seem to come out of nowhere and into the here and now. Spring itself seems to magically appear. One day there is only the hint of enclosed blossoms on the Cherry trees and the next day spring seems to be in full bloom. Fall seems to be the season of the crow. The loud â€Å"caw-caw-caw† of this ravenous raven seems to echo through the woods and streets and towns in falls. Cemeteries look appropriately adorned with brown fall leaves blowing about and leafless desolate trees whose empty branches whip in the wind. The crows perch on he limbs in an attempt to replace the missing leaves and dot the trees with their dower countenances. Fall, like the crow,

Information Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words - 3

Information Systems - Essay Example stakeholders, implementing a better mitigation plan for potential risk and ensure that they clearly understand and support what the project should achieve. This report presents the detailed risk analysis, mitigation and recommendations for the new information technology based system implementation for the submission of personal tax returns at a large European country. In addition, this report will outline some of main and inflectional risks those can make this project a failure. In this scenario I will also recommend some of effective mitigation steps to effectively manage and handle this project. According to (Whitten, Bentley and Dittman), the current era is known as the age of information technology since the information technology is playing vital and major roles in almost every walk of life. Additionally, the business sector is also tremendously influenced and improved by the information technology. Furthermore, at the present, organizations have more effective and well-organized ways for performing business functions. Furthermore, to perform managerial tasks, the development and implementation of information systems have turned out to be essential task for almost every organization. Since, the accomplishment of the information systems in the organizations and corporate structures has provided many advantages and ROI (return on investment). However, at the present time, the information systems are strongly attached with business activities and management operations. Since, these systems are presenting a valuable return on the organizational data stored in these informati on systems. In addition, the development of the off-the-shelf information systems has presented various facilities to the business data and information handling. Thus, at the present, the information system is the main factor of the concentration for every organization (Whitten, Bentley and Dittman; Hutchinson and Sawyer). This report is about the implementation of new information system

Information policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Information policy - Essay Example More and more people turned to the internet for almost anything and everything they need, whether for academic research, for checking celebrity activities, for commerce such as buy and sell, ordering and ticketing online and the likes. Even real time communications have found its way into the homes connecting two or more people from different parts of the world through email, chat, web calls, video conference, etc. As the usage and the advantages of the internet to information and communications technology could not be undermined, it also became susceptible to misuse and abuse by unscrupulous individuals who also saw the opportunity to perpetuate crime and evil through the world wide web and prey on unsuspecting victims usually children even from half way round the world. â€Å"Child pornography, bestiality, excessive violence or sexual violence, detailed instruction in crime, violence or drug use, and/or material that advocates (and incites) terrorism acts† (Foo, 2009) are among the common types of abuse in the internet. Often, the victims are minors or those who are under 18 years old. This became the foundation of the clamour of some citizens to censor some information available in the internet and to filter the content of websites. This is basis of the Australian government’s move to filter the information that comes in to the Australia through the information network. And the debate about internet censorship has ensued. The advocates of internet censorship promotes that this is the only way to protect the citizens from the malevolent crimes that abound the internet. They are specifically targeting the welfare of the children and the minors who are more susceptible victims because of their innocence and naivetà ©. The pro-censorship group claims that the internet has been made safer for the users because of the commonwealth government’s Broadcasting Services Amendment (Online Services) Act 1999. The other side

Human resources management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Human resources management - Research Paper Example Mayo Clinic is one of the top 50 companies in the United States. This position represents the success of the company in terms of employment, revenue, and profitability. The current number of employees at the company is estimated to be around 61,100 (Mayo Clinic). This number comprises staff physicians, scientists, residents, fellows, students, and allied personnel in clinics and hospitals. In terms of revenues and profitability, Mayo Clinic has revenue of around $8.8 billion, an estimated profit of $395 million, and benefactor contributions of around $245 million. On its part, NuStar Energy is a leading company in the energy sector. This company ranks in the second half of top 100 companies in the United States. NuStar Energy is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, and undertakes business operations in at least six countries (NuStar Energy). The company’s progressive growth came after it went public over a decade ago. Today, NuStar Energy has at least 1,900 employees, and its revenue standings are in excess of $6 billion. In light of the above discussion, human resources are critical to the success of any given organization (Noe et al. 91). Mayo Clinic’s human resource policies are aligned with the organization’s objective of enhancing patient care, education, and research. To do this, the company employs diverse and dynamic human resource strategies. Notably, Mayo Clinic works with physicians, scientists, fellows, students, and allied health practitioners. This allows the company to diversify its human resource approach towards long-term effectiveness, efficiency, and success. Most importantly, the company understands that remuneration and employee rewarding are significant in the health care sector. The company’s benefits include comprehensive health benefits to employees over and above part-time or full-time pay. Work hours are divided into up to three shifts of around eight hours per shift. In terms of pay,