Custom «Boys and Girls» Essay Paper Sample

Boys and girls is a story by Alice Munro. The story is written in a female perspective and it deals females. It is a unique story because many other stories show the achievements of boys in the hinting and killing of animals. The narrator, a young girl shows that he father was a fox farmer and she assisted him with his work, Munro A. 1998, pp 45. The narrator remains unnamed in the story and the author only refers to her as a farm girl. Most times, she is said to be at home helping her father with his farm chores. The narrator says that her mother works in the house and she never gets out unless when she is needed to be out. The family gets horses and when time comes for them to be killed, the girl narrator lets one of them out instead of closing the gate to keep it in. Her father notices the act of the daughter and laughs at her saying that she is just a girl.

The story tries to show identity prejudice among people. In this story, we learn that women are treated differently from men. When the father says that the narrator is just a girl, he portrays women as weak beings who cannot do tough duties as men Munro A. 1998, pp 241. On the contrary, the narrator tries to prove the society wrong for the way they treat women. This is seen when we learn that the narrator helps her father in farm work. When we look at the duties of her mother, we realize that the society mostly keeps women in the house and they are not allowed to walk out unless when it is necessary. According to Munro A. 2010, pp 23, the narrator's participation in farm work shows that modern women are coming of age and they can perform similar duties as the male counterparts. The story also shows that women are considered social inferiors of men. The narrator as an example of modern women prevents herself from being a male inferior by resisting her parents and grandparents training her in the habits and behavior of women. The story is thus a feminist parable where the narrator refuses a future that will prevent her from doing what pleases her Munro A. 2010, pp 45. .

Boys and girls by Alice Munro is a story that explores various themes. Feminism is the main theme in the story boys and girls. The narrator shows that women can manage the duties of men just as fine as or even better than the men can, Munro A. 2010, pp 45. The story shows that the narrator is against gender discriminations. Such discriminations are seen in the duties and responsibilities assigned to the different genders. According to the story, women are seen to perform duties that were traditionally considered for men. This is seen when we see the narrator helping her father in farm work. The story shows how women try to look for their own identity as portrayed by the narrator. The theme of feminism is shown when the author presents the narrator with masculine qualities. The narrator would work with her father in the farm in daily basis this shows how masculine she was. The memories of the narrator also show male qualities as she says that while in her bed, she would rescue people from bombed buildings, rode horses and shot wolves, Munro A. 2010.

Coming to age is another theme in this story. The author shows how societies explain the passage from one age group to another. The shift from childhood to adulthood for the narrator shows the cultural values of her society. The narrator shows her transition from childhood to womanhood. Change is another theme in this story. The narrator tells us that change is important in the society. She depicts a change in perspective of the roles and responsibilities of women in the society. She shows how she wanted to prove the society wrong for depicting women as male inferiors. She performed the duties and responsibilities of men and this shows change in the society.

The author has used various styles to pass her message to the readers. One of the styles employed in the story is allusion. The author refers to well known events that conjure up associations relevant to what goes on in the story. For example, the narrator tells us that her father's favorite book was Robinson Crusoe; the narrator makes an illusion of her story. The use of songs is another style that the author has used. The songs jingle bells and danny beds is used in the story to pass message to the reader, Munro A. 2010. Direct speech is another writing style that the author employs in her story. For example, "is it right?" my father said and "never mind" my father said. This helps to involve the all the characters in telling the story. Lastly, direct speech is also used in the story. The narrator describes her life in the farm by showing how strong, courageous, imaginative and adventurous she was.