Respond Reflect

Before and after 

Before reading Beloved, I didn't know anything about the feminism movement. I only knew that women weren't equal to men, and this was obviously wrong. Women make 77 cents for every dollar men make today.  While reading Beloved, I saw lot extreme examples of the need for feminism. Reading about how Sethe's family experienced horror at Sweet Home: "This house he told her to leave as though a house was a little thing--a shirtwaist or a sewing basket you could walk off from or give away any old time." (66). 

 

This passage showed me how sweet home was a bitter part of her past. She was not only sexually assaulted here but also scarred emotionally. Even today, women (and men) who are sexually assaulted. These victims are seen as dirt and simply thrown to the side; they're treated like a "basket...you could give away". Through such symbols, I was able to understand how Sethe felt and the long term effects of her horrid experience at Sweet Home. I was able to see how Sethe's character not only developed, but how the characters around her developed. Baby Suggs influenced Sethe, who then influenced Denver. This raises the question, how should the reader observe Paul D. Should he be seen as a negative character for his role at Sweet Home? Or as a good character for trying to fix himself in the long run, by rekindling with Sethe and accepting Denver? This is up for debate. However, after reading Beloved, my idea of feminism expanded: I was able to see how women were portrayed from the eyes of an African American female. I saw that, with historical context, women were oppressed. Though this book is a fiction genre, the lessons learned are the same. We know that women are still seen as inferior and this has to stop. In general, Beloved taught me about the importance of keeping life equal for all. I understood the feelings of the characters by attempting to shift through other lenses. Other books can also be read through the feminist lens, such as A Series of Unfortunate Events, in which the youngest and oldest daughter protect their brother, creating the sense that females are in control. In other books however we don't see this control. Life of Pi, which I saw the movie, shows me that sometimes women aren't in control, and men take over. Thus, Beloved and its feminist view, allowed me it know one thing: society isn't simply equal because men are "upper", society isn't equal because women are put lower. We need to build more programs that women can be equal, such as equalizing the wage gap, and simply equalizing the world.