A Feminist Reading of A Woman on a Roof Essay - 1020 Words

A Feminist Reading of A Woman on a Roof The short story, A Woman on a Roof, by Doris Lessing may seem to be about a few men who become annoyed with a woman because she suns herself out on her roof. The men feel that she is a distraction and are obviously bothered by her presence. They are not happy that this sunbather is out there on display and illustrate these feelings of discontent by constantly whistling and yelling at her. The men also make several rude and sexist comments to her throughout the story. In a time period such as the one this story takes place in, males were considered far superior to women, and comments such as the ones the men make would not be considered out of the ordinary. What is extremely surprising,†¦show more content†¦Stanley, one of the men, adds, If my wife lay around like that, I’d soon stop her (857). Both quotes illustrate that the men seem to think they have some sort of control over women and their actions, and that the women would naturally abide by their demands. However , upon discovery of the woman’s refusal to respond to the men’s comments, their frustration with her escalates, and the true source of their anger becomes clear: the men are not annoyed with her just because she is a woman making a public display of herself out on her roof. Instead, they are angry with her because she is a woman who is deviating from the norm in her actions by not giving in to them. The second day, when the men see the woman out on the rooftop again, another instance occurs in which the men became angry with her. In response to Stanley letting out a whistle, the sunbathing woman merely lifted her head, startled, as if she’d been asleep, and looked straight over at him. The sun was in her eyes, she blinked and stared, then she dropped her head again. At this gesture of indifference, they all three , Stanley, Tom, and Harry, let out whistles and yells (857). The men’s frustration is not merely because she is out there, but because she remains out there in defiance of what they seem to think is appropriate. Otherwise, they would have whistled and that would have been the end of it. Instead, they continued to watch, to wait and see her reaction, and when she did not seem to care, theyShow MoreRelatedPsy Paper1224 Words   |  5 PagesIndividual Assignment week 4: Issue Analysis: 15 points After reading the selected critical issue, complete the worksheet below to analyze the issue. 0. Read Issue 17: Are Professional Women â€Å"Opting Out† of Work by Choice? This reading is located in the Taking Sides text. 0. Provide in text citations within each response and references at the end of the worksheet that follow APA guidelines. 0. 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