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The Significance Of Dating In Beverly Cleary's Jean And Johnny

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Recommended: Women in america during 1950

Beverly Cleary’s 1959 young adult novel, Jean and Johnny, is about fifteen-year-old Jean Jarrett whose life suddenly changes unexpectedly after a boy, Johnny Chessler, shows interest in her. Cleary’s novel set and written in the fifties focuses on naivety, the innocence of first “love”, and dating before the existence of mobile phones and the internet. Although times have changed since the fifties, young girls and women can relate to showing interest in someone, and realizing that they may not be worth the effort. While the book, Jean and Johnny, was set in the fifties, it teaches people what dating and relationships were like before the internet. It also taught me about wisdom, and the importance of self-respect not only relating to dating. Cleary begins her novel by introducing Jean Jarrett and her friend, Elaine, while they are viewing their favorite teen idol, Kip Laddish, on television. That night, Elaine’s mother asks the girls to help her make wreaths for the country club Christmas party. On this night, the country club is having a formal and Jean and Elaine decide to watch the upperclassmen dance when suddenly a handsome fellow, …show more content…

Although this story is from the 50s, young girls can still relate to having a crush such as an unrequited crush. After all, crushes existed more than 70 years ago. While I appreciated the author’s argument, I thought it was unnecessary for Jean to ask another boy to the dance. There is no issue with attending the dance with another boy, but this may imply the reader to believe that they need to find another love interest soon after. Cleary could have presented her argument by showing that Jean could be self-empowered, and confident on her own without a date or reliance on a boy. As I mentioned before, this was the fifties, so the author’s argument may only be reflected based on the gender roles of the

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