Response to Gender roles

I would first just like to say that contrary to my previous notions about the short story "Hunting Years," I thoroughly enjoyed reading the story. It gave me a whole new perspective for men and the struggles that they may face in coming of age in a society. In my opinion many people have these preconceived notions that women, in general, have it tougher than men in regards to social expectations. Whilst women do face a different sort of battle of their own, men too, must face the harsh expectations of society. Franklin's "Hunting Years" allows the reader to get a window into the life of a man who shows us what it means to be a man of the south. He did this by narrating through memories of his hunting years. Franklins detailed recounting of his memories made the reader feel the stress, embarrassment, shame etc. of him when trying to shoot his first deer. Not only does he have to shoot this deer, but he also must do it properly and honorably. Franklin portrays the pertinence of shooting his deer when he , despite his hatred for killing things, fully commits to hunting. The irony of it all is that he shoots the largest deer in his family despite the fact that he, at least initially, hated hunting and was not very good at it. In this way we see that his desire to prove himself to his family and society was vastly more important than his own personal feelings regarding hunting and killing. In "Girl" by Jamaica Kincaid the reader is sees her frustration and anxiety that she feels. the pressure put on by her mother and society is portrayed through the long-winded rant that she gives. The cadence of the paragraph gives off a stressed tone that really confirms our narrators feelings of pressure from her mom and society. Both these stories convey a sense of importance in fulfilling your role as a man or women in society. Franklin compelled the reader with his detailed narration and Kincaid with her lengthy sentence each using a different method, but both effective.