Who ARE Sorority Girls?

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A brunette with ambitious goals, Hannah Hollon isn’t the first example of a sorority girl to come to mind. In fact, she calls sorority girls “Pink and green girls” because of their super animated accents and “sisterhood for life” mentality.  This stereotype of sorority girls is evidenced throughout American culture in movies such as “The House Bunny”, “Sydney White” and “Legally Blonde”. But not all sorority girls are similar to the cliche that Hollywood has set out for them. Hannah Hollon is proof that the stereotype of sorority girls is false; she has ambitious goals, isn’t “pink and green” and doesn’t care about what other people think of her.

In the movie, “Legally Blonde” Elle Woods decides to drop out of her college and sorority in order to chase down her rich boyfriend, Warren who recently dumped her. She studies hard for her LSAT, gets into Harvard Law, all so she can be at the same school as Warren to win him back. Unlike Elle, Hannah has bigger dreams and goals for herself. Because her parents work in the medical field, Hannah grew up in the hospital and has wanted to become a doctor since the 2nd grade. Interested in Math and Science, Hannah plans on going to Medical school in Charleston. However Hannah doesn’t want to major in biology because everyone who is pre-med majors in biology. Instead, she plans to add variety to her medical school application and major in nutrition since it fulfills most of the pre-requisites for medical school. Hannah has also always been a healthy eater and exercises everyday, so she feels that nutrition is a good fit in terms of majors for her. Contrary to Elle’s goals of marrying a rich man, Hannah wants be a doctor and already has defined plans to achieve her goal.

One example of the “Pink and Green” girls would be from the movie “The House Bunny”. In the movie, sorority girls are compared to Playboy “bunnies” in that they are all clones: they look and act the same. “Pink and Green” girls are all similar looking girls with a lot of spirit for their sorority and show it by using letters, wearing pins and dressing like the other girls in their sorority. However, Hannah is not a “Pink and Green” girl. Although Hannah enjoys being in a sorority, she doesn’t flaunt her sorority. She’s a brunette who enjoys camping and the outdoors rather than wearing makeup and partying all the time. Outside of her sorority, Hannah is also in nutrition co-alition, Habitat for Humanity and is taking 17 credit hours. She hates the combination of pink and green, letters and is much more laid back than “Pink and Green” girls tend to be. As evidenced by her personality and hard work, Hannah shows that the “Pink and Green” girl stereotype of sorority girls is a false one.

It seems that Hannah isn’t at all the stereotypical sorority girl, so why did she decide to join one? Coming from out-of state, Hannah didn’t know many people at UNC so she felt that joining a sorority would help her meet people. While visiting UNC, Hannah stayed at a sorority. She liked the girls because they were nice and not what she thought they would be like. The sorority she choose, Pi Nu, shares a lot of the same personality traits such as not being as uptight. Hannah thinks she breaks the stereotype by having a more carefree personality. “I don’t focus on my reputation, and I don’t worry about what other people think of me.” In the movie “Sydney White” Rachel, the President of Kappa Phi Nu Sorority, only cares about whether or not she’s still considered the most attractive girl at her college. As displayed through American culture, it is shown that sorority girl put a lot of time and effort into their appearance and reputation. Hannah however, breaks this stereotype and shows that people can be sorority girls and not have to care so much about how they are perceived by others.

The idea that most people have of sorority girls is that of a group of peppy blond girls who are only friends with each other. Hannah Hollon, a sorority girl at UNC, is proof that not all sorority girls are part of the stereotype since she has ambitious goals, isn’t a “Pink and Green” girl and doesn’t care what other people think of her.

A Transitioning Move

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Any kind of move can be hard, whether to a new school, a new home, a new city, etc. Imagine changing all three at once at a young age. This kind of transition would be challenging and possibly even life-changing. Bridie McDonough experienced this degree of change in the seventh grade when she moved from Rocky Mount to Raleigh. Not only is this a move to a new school, home, and city, but a move from a small town to a big city, which can be unexpectedly different because there are certain stereotypes and personal attitudes associated with people from both backgrounds. Bridie exudes the caring nature associated with living in a small town, yet she breaks the small town stereotype as she has become open-minded and enthusiastic about new things as a result of her move from a small town to a big city.

            When thinking of a small town, one may think of sheltered viewpoints, lack of worldly experience, and limited opportunities. There is such a contrast between the big city and a rural town, yet each has their positives and negatives. People choose to live in these different areas based on the way they grow up and their common preferences. Bridie has experienced both climates, yet still represents the mindset prevalent in rural areas. She has ridden on a plane once, and she has never even left the Eastern time zone. Bridie has also never become engrossed by the technology that has seemed to take over the twenty first century; she purchased her first cell phone, laptop, and digital camera this past summer. While this may seem crazy to some, there is something to be said for not becoming obsessed with this new technology. When people think of big cities, they imagine crowds of people rushing from place to place with their cell phone attached to their ear. The city has become impersonalized by technology, and these people have an unfriendly and almost rude reputation. On the other hand, small town people are known for being kind and caring. Because of the small feel, everyone knows everyone and really cares to know each other, which creates a sense of community. This characteristic is very evident in Bridie. She is genuine and real, characteristics which reside in small towns. Bridie is always friendly, for she truly cares about others. These qualities are hard to find in people who have lived in a big city their whole life, which is why Bridie exemplifies the small town girl.

            When Bridie reached the seventh grade, her mother got a new job as an administrative assistant at the Duke School of Nursing, which relocated them to Raleigh, forcing her to adjust to living in a bigger city. Having to move schools as a seventh grader is hard enough, for the thought of change at a young age can be scary, but Bridie also needed to adjust to a bigger city environment. In Rocky Mount, she had been a minority at a poor, rural school where she received a below average education. Moving to Raleigh meant more educational opportunities paired with a yearning to learn and expand more. She enrolled in a privileged, diverse, and more laid-back school, and even as a seventh grader, she realized that she would have access to more opportunities in a bigger place with a better education. She described the move as easier than one would think. Even though she left behind the friends she met in kindergarten, the kids in Raleigh welcomed and accepted “the new girl” quickly. Bridie saw this as an opportunity to reinvent herself, for she has always been adventurous and enthusiastic about trying new things. However, it was not all smooth sailing. She describes stepping into Raleigh as “culture shock.” Having been used to Rocky Mount, Raleigh seemed huge and still does.

Bridie became more determined and enthusiastic as a result of her big move, and she is more aware of the wider world around her than she might have been had she remained in Rocky Mount. While she has never traveled, she hopes that her future career will take her all over the world. She describes herself as open-minded and eager to learn more through literature, music, and films. She loves meeting new people because new things and ideas fascinate her. These characteristics are not typically associated with the mindset of someone who grew up and lived in a small town. That is what makes Bridie different. Her move to Raleigh really opened her up to the world around her in a good way, which may not have been possible had she remained in Rocky Mount, yet she remains grounded and genuine despite her exposure to the city.

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Rural Upbringing with World View

Joining the Peace Corps promises adventure, experience abroad, exposure to unique cultures and traditions and diplomacy for the average American.  These global experiences attract so many young Americans, often from rural areas, because it offers a truly life changing experience.  Chris Martin grew up in a smaller town outside of Durham, North Carolina, but he, like many other Americans, has big dreams of joining the Peace Corp and making a positive impact on the global community.  PSAs released by the Peace Corp are targeted at a younger audience, which attracts recent college graduates.  The experience of traveling abroad and engaging in diplomacy stands in stark contrast to the rural American lifestyle.

         Although the Peace Corp is open to anyone that has an undergraduate degree, the majority of members are young, just like Chris Martin.  The average age of a person who joins the Peace Corp is 28 and 90% of people at least have an undergraduate degree.  This clearly shows the target audience of recruiting younger people who are usually recent college graduates.  In just one encounter with Chris you can feel his energy and excitement, which is ideal for a job abroad that presents a new challenge everyday.  This targeting of young volunteers is what drew Chris Martin in, and many other young adults in the United States.

         Joining the Peace Corp involves spending a minimum of two years abroad in a completely different cultural atmosphere than the individual is used to.  In many rural areas of the United States access to unique cultures is often limited, which is part of the reason why Chris Martin is seeking opportunities to expose himself to something unique.  In Durham, the city that Chris lives outside of, 41% of the population is Caucasian and 38% is African American.  Chris describes his school as a place that has some diversity, but nothing like the experience of diversity in the Peace Corp.  This international opportunity is a means to escape the routine of daily rural life.  This lure of new experiences and a complete change sparks interest in the Peace Corp in thousands of Americans.

         There have been many reports recently about the risk of joining the Peace Corp.  Numerous stories of violence and more often rape have been exposed, especially for women who are abroad.  Despite these horrific stories many young adults still have a great desire to join the Peace Corp.  Chris Martin is one of these individuals, and when asked if he was concerned about his safety in the Peace Corp, he responded that he was only worried about missing the ones that he loved while away.  This bravery is truly commendable and is what will guide our world to a more peaceful state.  This inner strength may not be seen in many females that are considering the Peace Corp because of the recent stories of violence.  The threat of rape and violence and the exercises of patriarchy can seem overwhelming to a woman, especially in a foreign country.  Chris Martin is able to avoid this fear simply by being a man, and feeling as though he could properly protect himself, even in a foreign country, because of his gender.  

         Chris Martin has plans to join the Peace Corp after college, and his decision was influenced by his young age, rural upbringing, and gender. The Peace Corp program specifically targets recent college graduates, which attracts numerous young people looking to make a difference, just like Chris.  Chris Martin grew up in a rural area with a father who is a chemist and mother who is a veterinarian.  The idea of the Peace Corp. stands in stark contrast to rural United States, and is a way to escape this lifestyle for foreign experiences.  Chris Martin is confident in his decision to join the Peace Corp. and also is not worried about his safety partially due to his gender that gives him an inner strength.    

Works Cited:

"Fast Facts | About Us." Peace Corps. United States Government. Web. 02 Nov. 2011. <http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=about.fastfacts>

Durham, NC - City of Medicine. The City of Durham. Web. 02 Nov. 2011. <http://www.ci.durham.nc.us/departments/eed/diversity_city.cfm>.

Agnostic Holidays

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Despite growing up in a household in which both Christian and Jewish beliefs were represented and supported, Sarah McCauley defines herself as agnostic. This scenario demonstrates the overall trend in the United States during the 20th and 21st centuries of a growing percentage of agnostics and atheists in the population. In 2008, 34.2 million people in the United States claimed to have “no religious identification,” which is a 7% increase from 14.3 million in 1990, to comprise 15% of the nation’s total population (Kosmin). Interestingly, although religious views seem to be in the decline, commercialism during the religiously affiliated holidays has remained at a steady rate. This trend implies that more and more citizens of the United States are superficially practicing the culture of a religion without the connection of its underlying beliefs. Therefore, reasons must exist for these holidays other than to celebrate a God. Sarah McCauley cites the importance of traditions, a desire to please older generations, and personal relationships, as reasons for continuing the apathetic celebrations that many can relate to today.

          Even though the United States strives to hold the status of a secularized nation, several obvious examples exist that suggest otherwise. For instance, public schools and most companies will receive a day, or multiple days, off for Christmas, Easter, and the like. Therefore, religious holidays remain an important national tradition - one that is not likely to dwindle, no matter how many agnostics are present. In theory, atheists and agnostics should not celebrate such holidays because they disagree with the fundamental beliefs that these holidays celebrate. However, there are many traditional aspects that any group of people can support. For example, Sarah McCauley claims that Christmas not only acknowledges the birth of Jesus Christ, but it also brings forth the ideas of generosity and family togetherness. In addition, Lent recognizes Jesus’ time spent in the desert, but according to McCauley, from this event comes the idea of sacrificing an item from one’s life in order to strengthen one’s character. If atheists and agnostics were not to partake in these traditions, they would most likely lose an opportunity to grow together as a family and as a person. Moreover, separating the religious ideas from the traditional ones allows one to really think about his or her beliefs. Sarah McCauley states that “celebrating both Christmas and Hanukkah, and not attending church or synagogue, allowed me to develop my own ideas of religion.”

          Just like holiday traditions, older generations have a lasting effect on teenagers’ religious beliefs. McCauley felt pressure from grandparents growing up to attend church services and to commit to their religions. Like numerous other young adults, McCauley did not feel the same strong convictions that older generations guided her towards. Yet, most youth do not wish to purposefully disappoint his or her parents and/or grandparents, so church and synagogue services are attended with secret apathy. For McCauley, being “exposed to very conservative and strict religions” has shaped her ideas and may have ultimately led to her agnosticism. 

          Whether one realizes it or not, the religious views of family and friends infiltrate and influence the ones held personally. Even if one does not agree with every opinion relayed, exposure to various beliefs remains key to distinguishing what one considers fact and fiction, and can even lead to new pathways of belief. For example, McCauley says “many of my friends are religious, and this has allowed me to explore and see other views.” Yet, there is a difference between blindly accepting the views in which one was brought up and critically analyzing a religion in order to decipher one’s own feelings. Many agnostics and atheists reached their lack of belief through assessing their surrounding religions, finding faults in them, and deciding to stray from these beliefs. McCauley recalls asking important question throughout her adolescence, like “If there is a God, then why is there suffering?,” in order to critically evaluate religious claims. This separation from the religious community in one’s home can cause stress on familial relationships. Religious parents do not wish their child to strike down God because they hold concern for his or her soul to be saved from damnation. Therefore, the child may consider agnosticism or atheism to be a saving of the soul from false views, while parents may consider it the soul’s damnation.

         For many young adults, “finding oneself” is a long, drawn out process. Discovering one’s own, independently formed, religious views remains an important step in that process. Though some agnostics and atheists may have just inherited their own parents’ lack of beliefs, or copied a friend’s, most like Sarah McCauley gained that position by critically assessing the religions to which they were exposed. Therefore, participating in traditionally religious holidays is to be expected because, although they may not share the religious beliefs, they may believe in the universal values connected to those holidays.

Works Cited

Kosmin, Barry A. and Ariela Keysar. American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) 2008. Trinity College., Mar. 2009. Web. 28 Oct 2011. <http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS_Report_2008.pdf>

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From Ferry Boats to Jumping Frogs

Mark Twain, renowned as one of the most talented and famous American authors of all time, has a list of literary works that includes novels, short stories, and lectures. Although critics view many of Twain’s works as American hallmarks, not all of his works have received fame and flattering reviews. For example, while A Dog’s Tale remains relatively unknown, lacking much literary criticism, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County is considered one of Mark Twain’s most famous short stories and an American classic. The difference in the varying success and popularity of Mark Twain’s works is determined by the story’s audience, themes, and contrasting tones.

One of the main determining factors in a story’s success is how it is perceived by it’s audience, and the audience is something that is very different for Mark Twain’s stories. Before Mark Twain ever became a famous literary figure, he was just a river pilot on the Mississippi (Merriman). It was when Twain published The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County that he was whisked into the public limelight as a talented writer, gaining him fame and recognition, while at the same time giving him the boost that he needed to continue on with his writing career (“Mark Twain: The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”). However many years later, when Mark Twain wrote A Dog’s Tale, he had already been famous for some time. A Dog’s Tale was published in 1904, though it never became nearly as well known or popular as some of Twain’s previous works. So why is it that one of Twain’s short stories can make him famous while another had almost no effect on his career trajectory and is hardly read by anyone today? A large part of why The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County is so much more popular and well known than A Dog’s Tale has to do with the audience of the two stories. The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County was written for a newspaper called “The Territorial” in which Mark Twain and his fellow writers would actually have contests to see who could create the most absurd, yet still believable stories (“The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”). So when writing The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, Mark Twain was trying to appeal to an audience that would be entertained by such a tale. The audience reading “The Territorial” might be juvenile or just seeking a good laugh, but they were certainly not literary critics. Therefore, although The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County does contain a good deal of symbolism, figurative language, and themes that relate to the time period, it was made popular because of its humorous tone and characters that the audience can relate to. A Dog’s Tale, was aimed at a very difference audience. The audience of A Dog’s Tale would most likely be much more sophisticated and knowledgeable about current issues than that of many of Twain’s other works (Davey). Since the story is meant to be neither humorous nor entertaining, the audience is not just simply looking for a laugh or something to pass their time. While The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County is primarily aimed at entertaining its audience, A Dog’s Tale requires the audience to think deeper about their morals and societal issues, and that is not very appealing to the general public. Therefore, although Twain was already a renowned writer by the time he wrote A Dog’s Tale, a large reason why the story was not made as popular as The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County was because the two stories were aimed at very different audiences.
Another important factor as to why some of Mark Twain’s stories became much more popular than others has to deal with the themes of the story. While A Dog’s Tale is characterized by its deep and meaningful themes, aimed at its sophisticated audience, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County has less complex and in-depth themes, aimed at a less scholarly audience. Some of the primary themes of The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County are the intellectual difference between easterners and westerners, deception, and gambling (Ryan-Dey). These themes are themes that are not hard for a general or uneducated audience to relate to, therefore the story has a wider and more popular audience. On the contrary, A Dog’s Tale contains themes that are harder for a general audience to understand. Some of the themes of A Dog’s Tale include the use of language as a weapon, the evils of science, and slavery (Herzberg 20). Themes such as these are not easy to pull out of A Dog’s Tale, in fact they require a deep reading and analysis of the story, and this means that the story has a much smaller readership than some of Mark Twain’s other stories such as A Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County. An important factor as to why Twain decided to write one story with more basic and understandable themes and another story with highly complex themes has to do with the cultural context of the stories. Because The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County was one of Twain’s first publications, he wanted to appeal to a popular audience in order to get his name flowing in the literary world and become more well known. In order to appeal to a popular audience, he knew that the story needed to have entertaining themes that were relative to the cultural time period. However because A Dog’s Tale was written later on in Twain’s career, it was Twain’s main interest to appeal to a more sophisticated audience and so he wrote a story with controversial themes that were much harder to decipher. While the themes of Mark Twain’s stories do make a difference in how popular the story is, the aspect of the story that makes the biggest difference in its popularity is whether or not the story can make the reader laugh.
A major and noticeable difference when comparing the stories of Mark Twain is the stark contrast in tone between many of his stories. A Dog’s Tale and The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County are perfect examples of the contrasting tones of Mark Twain. While A Dog’s Tale displays a serious, somber, and sophisticated tone, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County is characterized by a more humorous and entertaining tone (Davey). A large factor in what kind of tone a story displays are the themes of the story and the events of the story. Because A Dog’s Tale contains more complex and divisive themes, the tone of the story is more serious and scholarly. A serious tone is certainly not a bad thing, in fact the story’s themes have more of a resonating effect when displayed through a somber tone. However one major consequence of a serious and scholarly tone is a smaller readership, because there are less people who want to read one of Mark Twain’s short stories that have a serious tone than there are that want to read one of his stories that have a humorous tone. One of the most important reasons why The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County became so famous so quickly is because people actually wanted to read it. People are interested in reading a story that will make them laugh. The story contains humorous scenarios and characters that readers can laugh at (“Mark Twain: The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County”). In this way, readers can relate to the story while being entertained, which makes the story very pleasant to read. This means that the tone of the story, something determined by both the themes of the story, the language of the story, and the events of the story, actually plays a huge role in determining how popular the story is going to be.

Although Mark Twain is commonly regarded as one of the most talented and popular American authors to ever live, not all of his stories are as popular as he is. The main factors that separate Mark Twain’s most famous stories from his least popular stories are the stories audiences, themes, and use of a humorous versus somber tone. Along with these three main factors, the cultural context of the stories, such as Mark Twain’s career path, also has a significant effect on the success of the story. The correlation between Twain’s writing styles and the relative popularity of his works are clearly displayed through the comparison of A Dog’s Tale and The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.

Works Cited 

Herzberg, Gary S. “A Dog’s Tale: An Expanded View.” Mark Twain Journal. Winter 1977-1978: 20.           Print. 


 “Mark Twain: The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.” Tu-chemnitz.de. N.P. N.D. Web. 5 October 2011. 


 Davey, Douglas P. “School Library Journal.” Graphicclassics.com. N.P. 1 March 2004. Web. 5 October 2011.

Merriman, C.D. “Mark Twain.” Online-Literature.com. Jalic inc. 2006. Web. 5 October 2011.


 “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.” Shmoop.com. N.P. 2011. Web. 5 October 2011.


 Ryan-Dey, Laurie. “A Taste of Reality.” Ryangraphics.com. N.P. 17 March 2008. Web. 5 October 2011. 

Twain, Mark. “A Dog’s Tale.” Americanliterature.com. N.P. N.D. Web. 5 October 2011. 


 Twain, Mark. “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.” Americanliterature.com. N.P N.D. Web. 5 October 2011.

Kew Gardens vs. A Society

           

 

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         Virginia Woolf once said, “If one could be friendly with women, what a pleasure - the relationship so secret and private compared with relations with men. Why not write about it truthfully?” Woolf’s writings are interpreted as a feminist’s outlook on the world. This perspective also applies to two short stories from her posthumously published book “A Haunted House and Other Short Stories”, “A Society” and “Kew Gardens”. Published in 1919, “Kew Gardens” uses vivid imagery and vague generalizations of nature to support Woolf’s ideas of feminism. “A Society” channels its feminist themes through concrete plot descriptions. Although these short stories are located on opposite ends of Woolf’s stylistic spectrum, their messages of feminism both suggest the same idea. In “A Society” and “Kew Gardens” Woolf uses the male dominated society of the 1920’s to advocate women taking a more active and dominant role over men.

Notwithstanding on the surface “Kew Gardens” appears as a story about an afternoon surrounded by nature, Woolf suggests that women should not act submissive towards their men. Woolf sets the scene with her first example: a married couple unsure of where they stand in terms of power. relations. While in the gardens, the man recalls his previous relationship which included a failed marriage proposal. “And my love, my desire, were in the dragonfly; for some reason I thought that if it settled there, on that leaf, the broad one with the red flower in the middle of it, if the dragonfly settled on the leaf she would say 'Yes' at once. But the dragonfly went round and round: it never settled anywhere­of course not, happily not, or I shouldn't be walking here with Eleanor and the children­. Tell me, Eleanor. D'you ever think of the past?" As he recalls his rejection from this woman, he asks his wife whether or not she thinks of the past. Woolf brings up this memory in order to show that women can have a mind of their own and reject men. By suggesting that women can have this power, Woolf endorses feminism. After the man reminisces about his past, his current wife promptly ignores him and thinks about her own past. This shows that women don’t have to listen to men; they should do what they feel is best. “The people, though, all seem caught in a state of psychological stasis. The young couple, particularly the man, is trapped by desire for the other and the uncertainty of what to do next” (Martin). According to Robert Stanley Martin, the man is more unsure of himself than the woman is of herself. This supports Woolf’s idea that women should be in charge since women are more quick thinking than men. In “Kew Gardens” Woof shows that women should be independent of men, advocating for the ideals of feminism.

In “A Society” a group of women are discussing their everyday trivial matters when all of a sudden, Poll, a woman dependent on her father’s fortune, bursts into tears, complaining about mundane literature. At this proclamation, the women start debating whether or not they should bear and raise men if all they only contribute trite books to society. Therefore, the women start to investigate the world in men “[because] these women want to know if men have produced anything of high value” (Dick.) A couple of the women disguise themselves as men and start living as a male. This results in many hilarious stories focusing on the idiocy of men. One of the women tells the story in which a man orders one of the disguised women to spank him, “At length he decreed that if she gave him four strokes and a half in the small of the back at a spot indicated by himself (the half conceded, he said, in recognition of the fact that her great grandmother's uncle was killed at Trafalgar).” In this silly ancedote, Woolf suggests that perceptive and intelligent women should be able to control their own lives since men can’t even control their own “societies”. In “A Society”, Woolf suggests that since women are more aware of their lives they should control society.

In both “A Society” and “Kew Gardens” Woof suggests that intellectually superior women should be able to command society. Through witty examples and funny dialogue, Woolf proposes that women direct society because women are the paramount gender.

Bibliography:

Dick , Susan . "What Fools We Were!." 20th Century Literature. 33.1 (1987): 51-66. Web.

26 Sep. 2011. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/441332>.

Martin, Robert. "Fiction Review: Virginia Woolf, "Kew Gardens"." Pol Culture. 25 01 2010. Web.

11 Oct. 2011. <http://polculture.blogspot.com/2010/01/fiction-review-virginia-woolf-kew.html>.

Woolf , Virginia . "Kew Gardens." The Literature Network. The Literature Network , n.d. Web. 11

Oct 2011. <http://www.online-literature.com/virginia_woolf/862/>.

Woolf , Virginia . "A Society." The Literature Network. The Literature Network , n.d. Web. 11 Oct

2011. <http://www.online-literature.com/virginia_woolf/857/>.

Harmful Shells

“And our spending our whole lives among trivial, fussy men and silly, idle women, our talking and our listening to all sorts of nonsense -- isn’t that a case for us, too?” As depicted in this quotation from Anton Chekhov’s short story “The Man in a Case,” Russian society in the late nineteenth century faced many obstacles to truly gaining personal freedom. With an absolutist government under Czar Alexander III, the idea of freedom seemed like an unobtainable illusion. This lack of liberty had a great effect on citizens, including the famous author Anton Chekhov. In two of his short stories, “The Beauties” and “The Man in a Case,” the themes of self-enclosure and opportunities lost reflect the impact of Russian society during the late 1880s, while still remaining important today.

   
          In “The Beauties,” when the narrator notices two beautiful women, rather than expressing his feelings of attraction, he recoils into a shell and remains silent. Indeed, after observing a young Armenian girl’s enchanting features, “little by little the desire comes over you to say to Masha something extraordinarily pleasant, sincere, beautiful, as beautiful as she herself was.” And yet, the narrator decides to keep his opinions internalized, therefore inherently losing out on an opportunity at love. Still, the narrator fails to learn this lesson, and when struck by a second woman at a train station who was “remarkably beautiful,” he again does nothing. However, the narrator is not the only person so affected by one woman. A guard at the train station “wore a look of tenderness and of the deepest sadness...as though he were repenting and feeling in his whole being that the girl was not his.” This guard remains in his own type of shell, and like the narrator, chooses to never break free. Although the shells are supposed to serve as protection for these two characters, they instead generate pain into their lives from the regret of lost opportunities.

“The Beauties” marks a great societal transition in Russian history - the rise of industrialization. During the 1890s, Russia experienced a great increase in the building of railroads (Bruford 176). This change is evident within this short story because the first part takes place in the steppe, while the second part occurs in a train station. At the core of “The Beauties” also lies a significant past time, travel, to Russians due to the country’s large size. In both parts of the story, the narrator is travelling, which ties to the industrialization because the first trip is by carriage, and the second by train. These two distinct travel methods also reflect the amount of time the narrator had to appreciate the women’s beauty. While in the country, the boy has hours to cherish the woman’s looks. Yet, in the train station he has only the time of the break, which is significantly less time, comparatively. Furthermore, the two types of beauty further signify the shift in setting. According to Radislav Lapushin, “while the first girl is associated or directly compared with natural images of swiftness and motion (the bird, the wind, and lightning), the other one is mostly observed ‘standing at the window’ of the train car” (133). In addition, the realism of this story is achieved because it was based off of Chekhov’s life experiences. In a letter that he wrote to his sister on February 4, 1887, Chekhov described an encounter with a lady at the train station: “‘At an upper window at the far end of the station sits a young girl (or a married lady, goodness knows which) in a white blouse, beautiful and languid” (Bruford 17). Therefore, “The Beauties” depicts a realistic view on a pivotal point in Russian history, the transition of industrialization, through Chekhov’s real life experiences and his literary style. And this industrialization denoted a shift from relative freedom in the country to less freedom due to the increase in the bureaucracy and a higher concentration of people.

Like the industrialization in “The Beauties,” “The Man in a Case” uses an increase in government to project the themes of a “case,” the absence of individual freedom, and their detrimental effects. Byelikov, a teacher of Greek, falls victim to a “constant and insurmountable impulse to wrap himself in a covering” in order to protect himself from the outside world. For example, he always wears goloshes and a coat, while carrying an umbrella in its own case, no matter what the weather. In addition, Byelikov attempts to conceal his thoughts in a case, only speaking of “government circulars and newspaper articles in which something was forbidden.” This characteristic makes the whole town afraid of Byelikov’s ever-present, sharp judgment, therefore taking some of their freedom as well. However, Byelikov gains another interest in the form of a new colleague’s sister, Varinka, who in opposition to Byelikov’s character, was “so sprightly, so noisy; she was always singing Little Russian songs and laughing.” Yet, despite Varinka’s reciprocal affection for Byelikov, he fails to propose due to an embarrassing incident of falling down the stairs before her. Instead, he retreats to his bed and dies within a month. In the end, Byelikov spends eternity in the ultimate case - a coffin.

   
          The character Byelikov in “The Man in a Case” represents a whole Russian population during the nineteenth century when he becomes a victim to society. According to W. H. Bruford, Byelikov’s constant surveillance of his fellow citizens personifies the secret police controlled by the Ministry of the Interior, which came about from the “uneasy absolutism in an increasingly democratic age” (106). Byelikov’s overbearing observance forces people to feel uneasy and self-conscious about their lives for fear of being ridiculed, or worse. Furthermore, Chekhov often reflected his views on the lack of Russian citizens’ freedom in his letters. He once wrote, “My holy of holies is the human body, health, intelligence, talent, inspiration, love and the most absolute freedom - freedom from violence and lying, whatever forms they may take.” In general, this story reflects the lives of the intelligentsia, “a group broadly defined as the educated classes generally, excluding clergy and civil servants” (Clyman 73). Despite their education, they cannot escape the provincial conundrums of a shell covered in self-told lies “for the sake of a crust of bread, for the sake of a warm corner, for the sake of a wretched little worthless rank in the service.”
   
          Because Chekhov remains so widely read and recognized as an accomplished author, scholars have varying opinions on his short stories’ themes. Toby W. Clyman writes in A Chekhov Companion that Chekhov comments on “the inevitable sadness which true beauty evokes in us because it is both rare and ephemeral” (60). This statement is true, but misses important aspects of the story. The sadness felt by the men does have a root in the women’s beauty, but also in their lack of courageous communication caused by a loss of personal freedom, manifested in the form of a case. Similarly, Valentine Tschebotarioff Bill, in Chekhov - The Silent Voice of Freedom, claims that “Byelikov, in ‘The Man in a Case’ (1898) is the ultimate embodiment, the culminating symbol of fear and of isolation caused by fear” (158). Once again, the illusion of individual freedom is overlooked as the cause. Also, Byelikov serves a source of fear for the townspeople, as well as for himself. Therefore, when reading Chekhov, the cultural background of Russia remains vital in developing theories of themes in his short stories that should never be ignored.   

          In spite of the fact that Anton Chekhov wrote his short stories,“The Beauties” and “The Man in a Case,” in the late nineteenth century, their themes of personal freedom remain as applicable to modern times as they were when written. Even though teenagers in the United States are protected under the Constitution, the inescapable presence of the government still places limits on freedoms of expression and speech, thereby putting everyone in their own type of case. In addition, teenagers already place themselves in a case because no one truly expresses every thought that may enter his or her mind. Just like the closing of “The Man in the Case” stated, society places its citizens in cases through “our talking and our listening to all sorts of nonsense,” because no one really has the freedom to say how he or she truly feels.

Works Cited

Bill, Valentine Tschebotarioff. Chekhov - The Silent Voice of Freedom. New York: Philosophical Library, 1987.

Bruford, W.H. Chekhov and His Russia. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co., 1947.

Chekhov, Anton Pavlovich. “The Beauties.” American Literature. Web. Accessed 26 Sept. 2011.

Chekhov, Anton Pavlovich. “The Man in a Case.” American Literature. Web. Accessed 26 Sept. 2011.

Clyman, Toby W. A Chekhov Companion. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1985.

Lapushin, Radislav. “Dew on the Grass:” The Poetics of Inbetweeness in Chekhov. New York: Peter Lang, 2010.