Single Women with Personal and Family Issues
In life a single woman may have many adverse situations to overcome. Over seventy-five percent of single women in one survey said that they have difficulty dealing with personal and family issues that affect their lives on a daily basis. I am going to present how these three stories are connected. Joyce’s, O’Connor’s and Faulkner’s narratives explore the effect immediate family has on a single woman. These effects also lead the woman to have her own personal conflict. To begin with, in the short story “Eveline” one of the major issues is that Eveline has a problematic life compounded by having to make the decision to stay at home or leave with her boyfriend. Some examples in Joyce’s short story show this, Eveline living under her father's abusive control. The fear she had of uncertainty of a life with her boyfriend Frank, and her being unable to escape the paralyzed existence of the "duties" and inhibitions of home which is her family. In “Good Country People” Hulga is plagued by her low self esteem, a lack of respect for her mother and naiveté. Also in the narrative “A Rose for Emily” Emily is ambivalent to her attachment to an overprotective father. Emily is desperate for attention from a man and her ‘hoity toity’ attitude made her naïve.
Issues with family particularly parents can play a major role in an individual’s life. Eveline has an abusive father whom she labors excessively for to support. This is highlighted by, “Her father was becoming old lately, she noticed; he would miss her. Sometimes he could be very nice” (Joyce 6). This shows how Eveline feels sorry for her elderly father and this leads her to be conflicted over wanting a better life. In this situation Eveline lets her family issues trump her wants and needs.
Although Eveline wanted a life much more fulfilling than her mother’s for herself; the uncertainty of a life with a stranger has her at a crossroads. Eveline is guaranteed stability in her...