This is a Re-post of the previous post, as I am uncertain of weather or not my reblog included by commentary.

Original Post title : Maggie VS Daisy

Authour: superdifferentanduniqueguy99

You make a lot of solid points for how similar Miller and Maggie are. However, I disagree with the notion that both stories have the same message about womenhood. 

“ I would argue that they are both saying the same thing of womanhood, that a woman’s place is where she’s told it is”

Characters who share similarities, do not always carry the same message. It is true that just like Daisy, Maggie was shamed for pursuing a man. The difference is that Maggie’s relationship with Peter is a part of a larger story about class and privilege. In Daisy Miller, Daisy and her relations with men is the whole story.

It could be argued that in both cases, each woman dies because of her interest in men. Daisy wouldn’t have gotten malaria had she not gone out with  Giovanelli, and Maggie wouldn’t have been disowned had she stayed away from peter. A strong connection , right? Not really. They were both compelled by completely different forces. Maggie was looking to escape poverty while Daisy was trying to escape boredom. Their motives are too dissimilar for them to be making the same statement on womanhood.

Additionally, the similarities between Daisy and Maggie’s endings are because of sexism, not because they have the same message. Women dying in literature was a popular trope during the time of publication. 

The original post is on tumblr, so I cannot traditionally reblog it. The post I am referencing is Titled “The Fall of Maggie” and was written by Yifan Xu.

Your interpretation seems to attribute Maggie’s misfortune to the people in her life . “Maggie’s family and her neighbors  who only cared about their respectability but neglected the final beg of saving from the soul-broken girl” I agree with this partially. The callous actions of her family/Pete definitely played a part in ruining her. However, because of her environment, Maggie was bound to end up in a tragic position. In my opinion, the main culprit to blame is the environment, not the actions of others. It’s likely that Maggie would have suffered an untimely death regardless of how she was treated

Additionally, I do not believe that Maggie’s “fall” had an exact starting point.  To say her “fall” began at some point implies that she was in a good place to begin with. Her family was composed of addicts and assholes. The area surrounding her is stricken by poverty. The way I see it, Maggie was falling throughout the whole story. It is true that she becomes increasingly troubled after she loses support. However, she is only going from bad to worse.

The messages and themes in slaughterhouse five still have relevance to modern day society. The book is centered around Billy and his life. The book time jumps often, giving us the story little by little and out of order. Why the story is relayed in this manner is debatable. I personally believe that one of the reasons for this type of narration is so that the audience understands that billy’s actions are more important than the time frame. The focus should be on whatever is happening in the story, at that moment. The lack of chronological order forces you to work harder to comprehend the story. This is relevant to modern society because we often look for instant gratification and instant answers. Typically we are used to getting what we want immediately. The internet allows for us to have results in seconds. With Slaughterhouse 5, you need to be present for the whole book to fully understand it. Reading the last few pages won’t give you any serious revelations. The main theme of this book is war, but I think the style of narration itself sends a message that can be related to our current culture.

Maggie, a girl of the streets, implores people to consider the damage that poverty does to individuals. In modern american politics, the topic of personal responsibility in relation to finances is hotly debated. The connections between peoples financial troubles and their location is undeniable. The cycle of poverty is still extremely prevalent in america today. Maggie a girl of the streets was written to open people’s eyes to the bleak reality of living in poverty. Thanks to modern media outlets and the internet, our society has access to a wealth of information related to poverty in america. Despite this, most people do little to help those in need. The lack of action and empathy that people have towards people in poverty is telling of the culture we have in america. A prominent theme in the novel is that our fate is predetermined by our circumstances. This message is still accurate in america today. It is intriguing to see that people’s attitude towards poverty in America has not undergone any significant changes. 

In modern america, many feminists view abortion as a right. This fight for autonomy over oneself is perhaps one of the biggest political issues that feminists advocate for. In Herland, the female characters are disgusted by the concept of abortions. This is ironic because these women live in an all female country. One would assume that in a populous made up of women, women’s rights would be taken care of. This detail is very telling of the differences in gender politics from the 19th century versus now. The fact that the author made abortion non existant in what is supposed to be an all female utopia reveals how deep the culture of sexism was around the time period of this books publication. The views that the women in herland have on birth and motherhood are very far off from the views of american feminists today. This is interesting to me because of herlands publication date, 1915. 105 years is a large gap to us, but In the grand scheme of things, this book came out fairly recently. A century is a blip on the timeline of the world. The amount of social and political advancements that we have had since 1915 is immense.The values of feminism change as society progresses and develops new standards. Herland is a fascinating look into how society used to view women’s bodily autonomy.

The ideology of loyalty founded in history is extremely prominent in America and can be seen in the relationships in Sula. Public figures and brands are encouraged to stick to a certain narrative, lest they get “cancelled”. Cancel culture, funny enough, rarely results in damage that sticks. Almost always, the individual/company in question will release an apology and within a few weeks their fan base will have forgiven their mistakes. This kind of dynamic can be seen in Sula. Due to their differing morals, Sula clashes with Nel, causing a long separation. However, despite their issues, Sula is still loyal to Nel in the end. Albeit, in Sulas case, it takes longer than a few weeks to become pronounced.

The yellow wallpapers themes are highly relevant to modern american gender politics. The dismissal of women’s thoughts/feelings are an issue even today. Movements like “me too” serve to bring light to the injustices that disproportionately impact women. Many right wing individuals find the protests and demands of modern women to be excessive and overly dramatic. When in reality, their reaction is completely understandable if you consider the years of systematic oppression they’ve had to endure. This is similar to how the protagonist’s husband is in shock after seeing his wife snap and tear down all the wallpaper. He doesn’t think of the mistreatment he subjected her to, and only sees her seemingly ridiculous reaction. The yellow wallpaper is a reminder to us that people who act explosively often have good reason behind it. Feminist protesters who march and scream do that for a reason. The protagonist had her dramatic break down for a reason. Sometimes the only way to get people’s attention is to behave in an outlandish manner.

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