Gender roles and sexuality are as prevalent in this book as they are in society. The literary element used in this connection that I have chosen is theme. The theme that I used to make a connection is gender roles/sexuality. It exists in speak in numerous ways. Heather is a great example of this as she pursues a job as a bathing suit model and the photo guy asks her to be sexier. This shows how at a young age we start sexualize the bodies of young girls trying to get them to conform to societies form of perfection. The second example I am going to use is Melinda’s mom during thanksgiving; She is trying to conform to the stereotypical “mom” and “wife” image. The mother/wife that cooks for her family and takes care of them. She tries so very …show more content…
Melinda overtly says “Cooking thanksgiving dinner means something to her. It’s like a holy obligation, part of what makes her a wife and a mother.” (Anderson 58). Another example that can be used is the janitors closet, “All the girls avoid the new lounge because of the way the janitors stare and whistle softly when we walk by” (Anderson 26). The girls are being sexualized by the very people who work in their school and that makes the girls self conscious about their bodies, they are at the age where struggles with body image are at their peak and the janitors aren’t making that any better They are sexualizing young girls bodies at too young of an age. The Martha’s are another great example of this as they further promote the wholesome American women image as they are a group that attempts to be the original domestic goddess Martha Stewart. Melinda specifically hates these gender roles more than the everyday high school student because of her rape, she doesn’t want to grow up because that mean accepting a female gender role and wants to avoid that as much as possible because she hates the idea of it. She has not been taught that you don’t have to fit one of those molds, that you can be your own person. I am connecting