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"The Confession" By Maureen Owen
"The Confession" by Maureen Owen, includes several examples which illustrate women using the automobile as a means for self-discovery. In the short story a woman wrecks her car as she is backing out if her garage just after her husband finished telling her she is a risk on the insurance. She claim's that it is not her fault because the garage door is too short for her to back out of. However, she says that if a man had done the same thing she did, then it would be considered an "accident," but since she is a woman she gets the short end of the stick and it looks like she should not have been driving in the first place. She does not want anyone to forgive her because she feels that it is not her fault and it is not because she is a woman that the incident occurred. Her not wanting any forgiveness from anyone shows how independent she is and how she can do things by herself. The woman had an inherent feeling within that made her have a sudden urge to get behind the wheel and go out to experience the road like her dominating male counter part. This story shows the general masculine perspective aganist a feminine perspective and how the road and automobiles generally are not considered to be feminine spaces.
Introduction to Feminism
Women have gone through numerous societal transitions over the past decades, challenging the preceding traditional standards of American culture. The image of women has taken a great turn, where women have become more independent and autonomous by fighting the remnants of the older societal values. Women traditionally were given the assumed role of being a housewife; this was the expectation for all American women years ago. The attitude of men towards women has also taken a drastic movement where men are now regarding a woman as more of an individual person. The automobile and the road have traditionally been equated as being the man’s domain. Women were dominated by men in all facets of living in the past. Gradually the women persistently fought their way into the workforce and eventually broke free of their husband’s grasp.
Feminist Transition
When the woman got behind the wheel she immediately experienced a sense of empowerment and pure confidence she had never had the opportunity to wield before. This is a tremendous transition, from the traditional treatment of women to in the past where one is attempting to drive while displaying an independent attitude. In the short story the woman claims “since it is our car the roof can be half mine now and don’t forgive me!” (Owen) in this excerpt she is talking in an aggressive manner by claiming joint possession of the car and she then proceeds to claim ownership of half of the roof. The change from the position of women years ago, who were not able to possess any type of property, to that of women today, who claim something as being theirs, represents an example of how women are taking charge and becoming more independent.
Feminism and the Road
The road has always been an open place for both genders to take and explore by their own way. Women have been traditionally repressed in the area of traveling across the open road at their leisure. However, the men have always had a command of the road by traveling around looking for ways to survive. The automobile is an element that allows people to explore what the world has to offer and conveys a sense of independence and liberated feelings. As the story shows women are empowered by the road as it gives one a feeling of individualism, it also adds to the notion of the automobile as being an engaging element.
Feminist's and Society
Women were put on the outside of society by being a housewife, with the element of the car coming into perspective of the woman, it allowed them to become fully engaged with other parts of society by giving them the ability to travel. Being called a housewife to women years ago and still in the present, delineated a notion of degrading women and perceiving them as being less than human. With the action of the woman getting behind the drivers seat and making a notion to try to drive the car, that testament expresses a daring attempt by a woman.
An Assessment of Feminism and Gender Inequality
The image of women in the workforce from the male perspective has changed greatly. Years ago, a woman’s only occupation was to stay at home and raise the kids, they were looked at as not having the ability to become a professional in the field of work. If women tried to go outside their housewife and mother images by taking on other roles in the business world, which was considered a man’s domain, they were immediately shunned. This situation called for women to assess their own position and see what kind of changes were necessary for them to be perceived as more of a men’s equal. One way women thought they could counter this gender inequality was to attain a college degree. Little did they know they would be making the “same [income] as a male with an eighth-grade education” (Pollack 13).
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