A.29 years old / single / pianist
B. 3-1-4-5-2
(3) The narrator is given money when she is in Philadelphia.
(1) The narrator’s father dies.
(4) The narrator is back in Dayton.
(5) The narrator asks for money.
(2) The narrator decides to write to suitors again.
C.The mother is first annoyed/irritated/cold and then she softens.
D.Common points:caring* / give money
Differences: mother: Bitter / Urging /Marriage-focused /pragmatic
father: Proud / Supportive /Career-focused
E.1.The narrator is indifferent to what her mother wants her to do.
False:-(ll. 18-20)‘My thoughts in turmoil’ / ‘I was unable to sleep’ / ‘and my complexion turned sallow’/ ‘I wrote letters to former suitors’/-(l. 27) I wrote to Edward.
2.The narrator’s letters to her former suitors were successful.
False. (l. 21-22) ‘Iwaited for the mail. ‘I am married, former suitors wrote.’
3.The narrator is not ready to get married at any cost.
True. (l. 25) ‘Marriage to any one of them would be the final humiliation.’
F.Solution: marriage / children
Why:financial security/norm
G.“Do as I had to.”(l. 3)
Marriage
Marriage = financial security
A woman can’t live on her own / the mother had to remarry / bitterness
H.David: INDECISIVE and PRACTICAL
INDECISIVE:(l. 4) “To be honest, I’m not so sure what to do next.” / (ll. 6-7) “I’ve been looking in the newspaper at the jobs available, wondering what it is I might want to do.” / (l.7) “I’m not even sure which direction to take.”
PRACTICAL:(ll. 5-6) “I suppose there was something very neat and reassuring about having my future planned out by my father.”(l. 6) “I’ve been looking in the newspaper at the jobs available.”
Sue: DEFENSIVE and PROGRESSIVE
DEFENSIVE:(l. 19) “Why is it that things such as languages and literatures are ‘feminine’ courses of study?”
PROGRESSIVE:(ll. 29-30) I’m not a suffragette, but when it comes to the topic of women and education, I do get irate.” / (ll.23-29) “Now that the doors… dress a roast chicken.” / “But why is a woman… studied literature?”
I.réponse qui témoigne de son irritation ou de son agacement.
J.-women can have professional careers.-women have access to jobs previously denied to them.-women may attend college.
K.No
They are too few / not many
Some women are not ambitious enough
L.Sue: Free-spirited. Praises independence. Women should study and not limit themselves to ‘feminine courses’. She can understand that some make another choice. Idea of fulfillment through professional career.
Catherine’s mother:Focused on marriage and children. Traditional view of marriage not questioned.Children / marriage/ home = fulfilment. Women should get married to secure their future.
M.Worried about their children’s future / Help their children / Demanding / Inquisitive
N.Catherine’s father supported her in her choice of being a pianist. She decided on her own without pressure.
David’s father had plans for David that he may not follow. David may renounce the comfortable life his father had offered.
O. 1. Both mothers try to fit in what a “traditional” society expects.
David’s mother:(l. 8) “undignified”, “discreetly”, (l. 9) “respectable”.
Catherine’s mother:(ll. 2 and 11 to 14) “the etched lines around her lips deepened”, “you should…look after you”,“Catherine, please…quickly”
2. Their mothers fear a loss of respectability or social pressure
P.Catherine and Sue don’t fit inthe traditional vision of women. (Catherine is late for marriage) They have chosen their own career path.
Sue is determined / driven about women having access to education. (No compromise)Idea of rebellion against social determinism /She is modern in that respect / independence
.Catherine is less determined in her choices than Sue. She follows her mother’s choice. She seems more traditional in a way / Obedient in the end. Seems ready to forget her aspiration for money reasons