Ernest Hemingway's works are often criticized by feminist critics because of the way he writes about women. Hemingway is often described as “the poster child for the archaic masculinity that many would like to see eradicated” (Haske). Many believe that Hemingway embodies patriarchal attitudes through the way he characterizes women and how they are portrayed in his stories. In all Hemingway's stories the main characters are always men. Although there are usually female characters as well, they are never present as protagonists. Even then, many critics feel that the female characters are misrepresented. The way women are characterized in her stories makes it seem like women are not taken seriously nor respected by the men they are surrounded by. Hemingway chooses to leave women in the shadows of his writing. Even though it appears that Hemingway is a misogynist because of the way he degrades and misrepresents women in his writings, Hemingway's writing represents realistic situations based on the time in which it was written. By carefully analyzing his stories, the reader can see that Hemingway is trying his best to adapt to the social changes occurring in this historical period and could undoubtedly be progressive. The analysis of the way Hemingway characterizes the female characters in his stories "The Soldier's Home", "The Cat in the Rain" and "The End of Something" illustrates that Hemingway was not a misogynist, but rather depicted realistic situations associated at the time in history. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Feminist literary criticism by definition “assumes that literature reflects and shapes stereotypes and other cultural assumptions. Therefore, feminist literary criticism examines how literary works embody patriarchal attitudes or undermine them” (Napikoski). In Our Time by Ernest Hemingway was originally published in 1925. During this time, the United States was in the midst of the women's suffrage movement, which began in the 1920s when women were given the right to vote. Steven Lynn explains that our “Western society has actually been structured to protect women from the brutalities of war and trade, allowing them to be nurturers, mothers, and housewives… it overlooks the fact that isolation and honor are themselves a sort of suppression and exclusion. And it assumes that women are the weaker sex (emotional, unstable, passive, irrational), in need of protection, incapable of competing with men. But all women are in no way weaker than all men” (Lynn, 223). While women gained more rights and a greater voice in society, most women remained in the traditional role of homemaker. Dismantling gender norms and societal expectations has been extremely difficult. This time period produced many inconsistencies in beliefs and values ​​due to the different ideas of the older “traditionalist” generation and the “new woman” brought forward by the younger generation (Alchin). An instructive narrative, regarding these issues. “The soldier's house”. In this story Krebs is a young man who has just returned home from the war. His transition to life at home proves extremely difficult. His family begins to worry about his well-being, so they encourage him to get a job and a good girl to date. Unfortunately, Krebs is no longer able to relate and connect with those around him, forcing him to take action towards his family. In this story, Hemingway describes the idea that the main goal ofwomen should be the desire to be housewives. The beginning of the story introduces Krebs' sister, who has the first active role for a woman in the story. In the dialogue, he asks his brother "Aren't you my fiancé, Hare?" (Hemingway, 74). She keeps talking about how her brother is her boyfriend and asks him if he loves her. She doesn't stop asking Krebs questions until he reluctantly gives her an accepting answer. In “Rhetoric and Women: The Private and Public Spheres”, an essay that appeared in Constructing and Reconstructing Gender, Lesley Di Mare explains that in literature “women are defined in terms of their biological function… other disciplines (history, philosophy, art, film , and so on) have been used by patriarchy to create the perception that women function better biologically, none have been used as effectively as the discipline of rhetoric. Indeed, the rhetorical tradition has acted as a tool of the dominant cultural position to promote the idea that women are capable of only one function – the biological one… the secondary status of women in society becomes a self-perpetuating status” (Di Mare, 47 ). Di Mare explains that literature often depicts that the only purpose women have in society is to have children and be housewives. Krebs' sister represents the idea that women, from a young age, believe that their function in society is to marry and have children. Even at a young age, society taught her sister that her primary concern should be gaining acceptance from men. Likewise, we are given Krebs' mother who represents a woman who is fulfilling her "biological function". In the story she is presented as a hyper-religious, annoying and emotional housewife. Although being a stay-at-home mother is the “job” that society expects of her, she is still criticized even when she acts like a good mother. The famous literary critic Simone de Beauvoir, explained in her book, The Second Sex, that “women have been depicted in literature and culture as Mary or Eve, the angelic mother or the evil seductress. Such a portrayal of women, especially in the works of men, serves to make women unreal…rather than something positively feminine or mutually human” (Lynn, 227). According to de Beauvoir, Krebs' mother in “Soldier's Home” functions as a “Mary” because of her housewife stereotype. De Beauvoir argues that describing women as the perfect housewife is an unrealistic portrayal of women, thus perpetuating the misogynistic views of our society. Although “Soldier's Home” primarily portrays the idea that a woman's purpose is to raise a family, Hemingway attempts to subtly negate this idea with Krebs' sister. Krebs' sister talks about his love for baseball and even says "I can pitch better than a lot of boys" (Hemingway, 74). Before the 1920s, it was considered unfeminine to play sports ("Women in Sports and Physical Education at the College of Wooster"). The fact that Hemingway acknowledges the fact that his sister is thriving by competing in sports (even against boys) shows his attempt to dismantle typical gender roles during this time period. Similar to "Soldier's Home," "Puss in the Rain" features a female character who appears to be seeking the approval of a man: her husband, George. In the story, an American couple is stuck in a hotel room because it's raining outside. While the wife looks out the window, she sees a cat caught in the rain. The wife decides to go get the cat, but this upsets the husband and causes a series of disagreements between the couple. In any case proposed by the wife, “the male character is disturbed by this jarring experience ofdifference” (Holliday-Karre, 70) and is told no. During the conversation in the hotel room, the woman - who is never given a name other than "the American girl" - talks about how much she wanted the cat that was outside. She continues to talk in the hopes of gaining recognition or attention, but George is completely uninterested in what his wife has to say and does not look up from the newspaper. He doesn't start the conversation until she asks him, "Don't you think it would be a good idea if I let my hair grow?" (Hemingway, 93). Once the conversation turned to something concerning his wife's appearance, he gave her his full attention and "had not taken his eyes off her since she began to speak" (Hemingway, 93). Virginia Woolf, one of the writers most important modernists of the 20th century, states: “Women have served throughout these centuries as mirrors possessing the magical and delightful power of reflecting the figure of a man at twice its natural size... This serves to explain in part the need that women so often have for men” (Holliday-Karre) Here, Woolf explains that both historically and in literature women have been objects that men want to control: they serve as whatever man would want them to be. . Before the women's rights movement, women were expected to submit to their husbands and were often seen as objects, rather than people. The wife in "Cat in the Rain" depicts this idea and therefore serves as a spotlight of the husband. Some critics believe that the way Hemingway portrays his wife's behavior in "Cat in the Rain" as narcissistic and that "[her] desire for emotion and feeling" physical contact is unrealistic” (Holliday-Karre, 74 years) because she is trying to distance herself from her husband's expectations. During this time period, women were expected to be compliant and not question their husbands. Like many women in the 1920s, the American wife in "Cat in the Rain" had to show great strength and boldness in attempting to break away from the expectations of society and her husband to seek recognition for being herself. person. As previously explained, the women featured in his stories are often characterized negatively. Some critics believe that Hemingway in his story "The End of Something" the female character is described as naive and delusional, but this is not the case. Unlike the previous two stories, this story instead represents a strong, independent woman who ignores the gender norms often associated with women featured in Hemingway's stories. In the story, Nick and Marjorie are in a serious relationship. Marjorie believes that her relationship with Nick is going well and also believes that there may be the prospect of a marriage in the near future. Unfortunately Nick no longer feels the same and has decided that he can no longer be with Marjorie. Throughout the story, the reader is able to pick up on Nick's subtle hints of disinterest. Marjorie has no idea that Nick feels this way and doesn't give much thought to his short, condescending responses. Eventually, Nick argues with Marjorie feeling frustrated that she "know[s] everything". This moment infers that “Marjorie's knowledge, therefore, appears to be the source of Nick's unhappiness” (Daiker, 246). Marjorie's knowledge and confidence defy typical gender roles, thus “challenging her dominance” (Daiker, 246). This argument leads Nick to break up with Marjorie because “everything had gone to hell inside [him]” (Hemingway, 34). Despite her confusion, Marjorie remains composed. Hemingway writes: “Marjorie stood up… 'I'm going to get the boat. You can go back around the point'” (Hemingway, 35). This scene.