Sunday, September 30, 2007
Mary Elizabeth
I thought Mary Elizabeth was a very interesting story. I think it brought up some interesting topics. The first I noticed was how naive the narrator was to Mary Elizabeth's sufferings from slavery and that even though it was abolished at the time it still had long term effects on people. At one point the narrator states "It had been such a long time since I had thought of slavery". This stood out to me because she could forget about slavery. To her it was an awful thing that happened and now it's over. I think the author really wanted to make that statement that some people can't forget. The other thing that stood out to me was the ending. The double standard of gender was painfully obvious when Roger told her that Maggie should have waited for him yet it was okay for Cassius to marry again. He then told the narrator that if she did that to him even though he had married fifty times he would kill her. That made such a statement in my head and it made me think- are things really that much different now?
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7 comments:
I agree with the double standard that you have pointed out here. Roger was completely irrational when he made that final statement. Roger's statement also made me question if things are any different today (I feel as though they are to a certain extent). In the beginning I wasn't sure whether to characterize the narrator as naive or just curious. I guess I would say the narrator posseses a bit of both.
I agree how although its been a long time since slavery, people can't forget it. I think slavery has made an impact on so many people including their lives, families, and who they are "today" that its something that can't be forgotten. I think it is also hard for Mary Elizabeth to forget because her parents were slaves and endured the harships.
I completely agree with the double standard arguement you made. It was what I posted on as well. I do feel that times have changed though. I do not think that the times reflected in the writings of Mary Elizabeth are the same type that reflect todays principles. Women are of course not completely at equal playing fields as men are yet, but it has gotten alot better than the time period reflected in the writing.
I think that the story told by Mary Elizabeth in fact emphasized that slavery had a major impact on people and unlike Sally they are unable to forget something like that. That just shows the difference between Sally and Mary Elizabeth because like you said Sally said, "It had been such a long time since I thought about slavery" when in fact slavery was something Mary Elizabeth had thought about frequently.
I agree with the double standard. If I was Sally I would have punched him in the face and left! I thought that the narrarator was just plain crazy. How could you stay with somebody that degrades you in a manner in which Roger did. The subject of slavery came up also. I think that Mary Elizabeth brings this up because she does not know who her family is. Her dad was married four times. She probably has brothers and sisters everywhere. By her coming in and having coffee and breakfast with the family everyday makes me think that she in some way incorporates Sally and Roger as her own family.
I agree with your post completely. I do find it odd that someone could forget about something like slavery but I think your write about the author wanting to make a point about that. I thought Roger was a jerk throughout this whole piece and although he did apologize to Sally at the end I don't think it was right that he said he would have killed her if she would have gotten married again the way the people in the story Mary Elizabeth told.
I really believe that gender roles come into play within Mary Elizabeth. Roger makes it seem as though it's okay for a man to marry as many times as he wants, but a woman can't. It's so ironic that he would say something like that after stating "Darling, I do think it is a sensible thing for a poor woman to learn how to cook, but I don't care as long as you love me and we are together."
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