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sSubject/Class Paper was submitted for  [English 2              ]
SSubject/Topic of paper (Please Be As Descriptive As Possible)   
a[In past literature, female characters avoid their problems rat]3 Letter
Ywith them. Works that are compared/contrasted/discussed are   Abbrev.
 [The Handmaid's Tale, Raise the Red Lantern, A Doll's House    ]for
S       Grade Level (For High School Students):      9 [ ] 11 [ ]Major
u                                                   10 [X] 12 [ ]Education
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I                                                    2 [ ]  4 [ ]
s                                                           5 [ ]English
SSchool/University/College/Institution [Bellarmine College Prep.][ENG] [X]
iCity & State (Province) of Inst.      [San Jose, CA            ]History
OName of Teacher/Prof. submitted to    [English-2               ][HST] [ ]
nGrade Received (If Received Yet)                           [A- ]Science
 Date Paper was submitted (mm/dd/yy)   [11/94                   ][SCI] [ ]
FName of Author (Real or Alias)        [Soultaker               ]Health &
oHigh School Avg./College GPA of Author                 [3.913 -]Sports
RIf used, Textbook/Novel/Classic Translator/Editor and Version/  [HTH] [ ]
m Edition Info [The Handmaid's Tale, Raise the Red Lantern, A Do] -
 Additional Comments [5 paragraph essay including intro and conc]The
 [                                                              ]Information
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                                                          English Per.2

                                                          Essay #2


       Unlike men, women have been facing unique problems for centuries.

   Often times, women experience harassment and discrimination. In

   today's society, females are trying to combat their tribulations

   through law suits and protest rallies. Literature often deals with people

   being unable to articulate their problems. Often, unforeseen circumstances

   force people to conceal their true emotions. In "Raise the Red Lantern",

   The Handmaid's Tale, and "A Doll's House", the main female characters find
   
   ways to escape their situations rather than deal with them.



       Songlian, the main character in the foreign film "Raise the Red

   Lantern", finds unusual ways of dealing with her oppression. For

   example, Songlian often takes her stress out on her maid, Yan'er.

   Whenever Songlian feels the need to relieve her tension, she screams

   at Yan'er. Songlian's treatment towards her maid results in a bitter

   rivalry between the two and ultimately leads to the death of Yan'er.

   Instead of expressing herself publicly, Songlian chooses to keep

   her emotions bottled up or take them out on Yan'er. Another example

   of this concept occurs when Songlian becomes intoxicated. Due to her

   unfortunate situation, Songlian chooses to drink an enormous amount

   of alcohol on her birthday. In her mind, she feels that she has

   nothing to look forward to in life. So Songlian escapes real life by

   drinking. This is yet another example of Songlian's feeble attempt

   to escape her troubles. Furthermore, Songlian's outlook on life becomes

   so bleak that she literally goes insane. Since she witnessed the

   death of the third mistress, she confirms her fear that there is no

   escaping her situation. Thus, she drives herself crazy. Therefore, we can

   see that Songlian uses techniques to try and escape her fate.



      The next work, entitled "A Doll's House", deals with Nora, the main

   character, struggling to achieve happiness in life. While Nora

   lives with her husband, Torvald, she pretends to be happy and satisfied

   with life, but in reality, Nora lacks purpose in her life. For eight

   years, she never discusses her situation with Torvald because she

   does not want to face the truth about herself. Nora feels obligated

   to live her life as a caring mother and an obedient wife. Also, Nora

   pretends to be happy for a reason. Whether she knows it or not,

   Nora tries to be the ideal wife and mother by letting herself be governed

   by the laws of society. Because she decides to settle for what she

   has, her life is pointless. Nora's first step towards achieving happiness

   occurs when she leaves her husband and kids in search of a better life.

   Although Nora's life is not yet fulfilled, she is on her way attaining

   a better one.



      Lastly, Offred from The Handmaid's Tale uses different tactics to
                          
   cope with her situation. Offred, the main character of the novel, is

   trapped within a distopian society comprised of a community riddled by

   despair. Though she is not physically tortured, she is mentally enslaved

   by the overwhelming and ridiculously powerful government. First off,

   Offred reminisces about the way life used to be by remembering stories

   about Luke, her husband, Moira, her best friend, and her daughter. As

   mentioned earlier, Offred lives in a horrific society which prevents her

   from being freed. Essentially, the government enslaves Offred because

   she's a female, and she's fertile. Remembering stories of the past provide

   her with temporary relief from her binding situation. Also, Offred befriends

   the Commander's aide, Nick. Offred longs to be loved by her husband, and

   she feels that she can find that love by being with Nick. Offred risks her

   life several times just to be with Nick. Feeling loved by Nick gives

   Offred a window of hope in her otherwise dismal life. Finally, instead of

   proclaiming her feelings out loud, she suppresses her feelings. The result

   is a series of recordings which depict her life and the things she wishes

   she could change. Through these examples, it is apparent that Offred

   cannot face her problems because of outside circumstances.



      Works such as "Raise the Red Lantern", The Handmaid's Tale, and "A Doll's
                                             
   House" deal with females being unable to face their problems. A plethora

   of authors have written on this subject matter. Though some problems are

   unavoidable, one can overcome certain situations by being more assertive.

   Along with male domination and the laws of society, women have had to

   contend with other challenging and oppressing situations. Yet despite this,

   women in modern society are becoming more powerful.
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