Reading Response #2

We live in a world where there has always been gender inequality and there will always be, not only for the fact that some people may consider the opposite sex to be inferior to them, but also because they grow up with the stereotypes of each gender, for example men are supposed to be though and rough, women are supposed to be gentle and lovely, men don’t want children, women want to be mothers, men are the ones who cheat, women are loyal. The truth is that women are not different than men and men are not different then women, as human beings we have desires and everything you do should be based on those desires and not on your gender. In “How” by Lorrie Moore, gender completely changes the concept of the story and it makes us realize that all the stereotypes that’s been put into one gender can also be applied to the other. Usually men are supposed to be the ones who cheat or have the initial though of cheating, many women say that men don’t want families all they want is sex, but the author really emphasize the role of genders when it comes to stereotypes by showing that women are  as much likely as men to perform these roles. The girl in the story shows that all the stereotypes about unfaithful men can also be applied to women and she even shows that some women are even colder than men when it comes to cheating, because as the girl in the story, she doesn’t show any sense of guiltiness after cheating on the man who supposedly was the love of her life. In fact she even fantasizes about his death and how much she would enjoy it.  And she makes it seem that she’s speaking for every women who cheats on their men and explaining what is going through their mind during that time.

In “Hills like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway there’s a complete different concept, since now we deal with a couple that do live by the stereotypes. In this story the author makes us understand that when a person really loves somebody, that person can be easily manipulated and taken advantage of, since the person who is in love would do anything to keep their partner and their partner sees this as an opportunity to take control over that person specially when that person is their most vulnerable stage, such as the girl in the story who left, her partner take the decision to abort their baby. Gender and stereotypes play a big role in this story because as always men are the ones wo take advantage of the situation to manipulate girls to do what they want and girls as always play the role of the fragile and stupid victim. As I read their conversation I came to the conclusion that the American man wanted the girl to abort their baby because if she didn’t do it he would not love her anymore, but the way he convinces her is such a cruel and sarcastic way because he doesn’t just act as the victim but he has the hypocrisy to say to the girl that it’s her decision and it would not change things between them. When it’s actually him that is making the decision for her and what’s even worst is that the girl lets him because she’s afraid he will leave her if she has the baby. And as a women this is a really dumb decision she makes by letting the American man take control of her life like that. In some way I think the author is trying to address this message by using the stereotype of the dumb girl who is manipulated by the alpha man and how stupid a woman can be when she is in love.

Last but not least we have the story of “The Sun, The Moon, The Stars” by Junot Diaz, and this story talks about something that is very common now a days and this is something that I think most humans go through today, not only men but women as well, specially teenagers. Sex plays a big role in this story because as a humans we’re sexual creatures and we feel an urge for sex, but that same urge can make you do really dumb and stupid decisions and one night of passion can ruin what could’ve been a long and beautiful relationship. In this story Yunior cheats on his girlfriend Magda, but he tries not to see himself as the bad guy of the story by saying that he I a good person and he really loves Magda and that one affair shouldn’t be an obstacle to their relationship, but what he doesn’t think is the emotional damaged that he’d already caused Magda by cheating on her with another woman and even worst, by the way she found out about it. He ruined what could’ve been a long and trusted relationship. That’s the power sex have in our lives, If we act like animals and let our instincts guide us, it can not only ruin love relationships, but it and also ruin friendships and even one’s own life. As a man I don’t justify Yunior’s actions because even if we all make mistakes, we’re totally aware of the consequences and that shouldn’t be an excuse for a man to do whatever they want. Same for women, now a days women are more sexual than ever not only because of media but because as time passes society changes and women feel more free than what they were in previous generations, they don’t have to deal with the controversy people would put on their backs if they ever cheated on their men. And today there’s an equal chance for a man to cheat on a woman, as for a woman to cheat on a man.