Blog 3: Gender Roles and Characters

The southern gender roles are very present in this portion of Salvage the Bones. The different expectations set for Esch and her brothers are more transparent due to their economic state. It seems as if the only expectations set by Esch's father is for her to help around the house. However we can see how the boys' expectations have rubbed off on Esch. Growing up running around the pit with her brothers and their friends have shaped Esch's attitude. Esch is strong, fast and wise.We see these developed skills when she helps Skeetah steal from the white neighbors.

If anything Esch's family fall into more stereotypical gender roles. Esch fulfills the "loose girl" stereotype becoming pregnant at the age of fifteen without a mother figure in her life. Esch's single father is a cruel stone like drunk. Skeetah is a poor boy who turns to crime. China the pitbull is an aggressive dangerous dog, referring to the end of chapter seven. The expectations are less clear because of their finical state however they fall into many stereotypes.

Esch falls into multiple female gender roles. Although Esch is brilliant at the age of fifteen she is soft spoken. We see her constantly stumble when it comes to her brother's friends, especially Manny. She uses the phrase "I wanted to say...." often. Esch has her nose stuck in a book and her dreams in the sky.

It is hard to desribe how gender plays into Bois Sauvage because the audience is only exposed to a small portion to the area.

Gender Roles in Salvage the Bones

In "Salvage the Bones", we see gender roles play a prominent theme in this novel. As young Esch, battles the constant conflict of not having a motherly figure, or any female role models in her life, she is left to grow up confused on how to fit the mold of being a lady in Bois Sauvage. I think this is the reason she acts out and is misguided, and trying to find herself, honestly in a rather devious way. Esch also suffers from low self-esteem, and really doesn't truly love herself ; Which could be because she feels she doesn't fit into the typical mold. Her growing up in an all-male household definitely affects her, and she kind of has to have be tough in order to fit in or survive with the others, so she has to adapt these "masculine" traits.
At one part, all of the guys jump naked into the book, and Esch does the same. This was a part in the book, where any gender norms or roles kind of faded away, because usually that would be atypical for society and seen down upon.

Blog 3: Gender

In Salvage the Bones, the role of gender plays a few very obvious roles. In Esch, the narrator, we see a very curious amalgamation of femininity. Her sexuality is very much in the forefront of her character, something not typically allowed of women, particularly young women. This is assumably because of the household in which she was raised; surrounded by boys and men in a very rough and traditionally masculine landscape, Esch appears to be assembling for herself a distinct version of what it means to be a woman. While the boys in the family had their father to hedge out for them what it meant to be a man, all Esch is left with is China, a dog, and the memory of her mother (albeit with the addition of other mother-like figures like Mudda Ma’am, and Sharylin). The way Esch values herself also speaks to her interesting gender expression; the only two things she believes she can do well is have sex and swim, one a form of sexual expression and one an example of physical prowess. Whats relevant about this in terms of gender is that these are things that young men normally consider valuable talents; sexual prowess and sports, but for Esch, this is how she defines herself and by proxy, how she defines herself in terms of gender. While the boys all succeed in very obvious forms of masculinity, Esch’s gender expression appears much more complex. The absence of her mother likely plays a rather large role here. While its obvious that all the kids were in a way left to raise themselves, in a place like Bois Sauvage, masculinity is fed through everything, meaning Esch is left to discover femininity alone in a way the boys were never required to do for their masculinity. It then, makes sense, why she struggles so much. The knowledge of her impending motherhood scares her, and rightfully so, because what she’s learned about motherhood from China and her mother is something very scary. The way motherhood and sacrifice play into this conception of femininity for Esch, I believe, would be starkly different were she to have actually grown up with a mother.

Blog 3:Gender in Salvage the Bones

In Salvage the Bones,Gender diversity is absent. Our main protagonist, Esch, is conflicted by the lack of female figures in her life. Esch struggles to find a balance between being a girl and fitting into a male centric household. She bounces between roles and exhibits personality traits of her rasied environment. Bois Sauvage is a small rural land,located near the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, Esch lives here. This is her life and it's all she knows. Gender pressure has to do a lot with the location you find yourself in. Depending on how far south or north you live could dictate the acceptance of your gender. Here in the South, Esch finds her self conflicted. She is the only female in her family after the passing of her mother. This has left a feeling of feminine absence in her life with the exception of China. Now facing pregnancy, Esch is left to face the trials and tribulations of womanhood all by her self. She doesn't fit the archetype of your ordinary southern girl. Esch prides her self for being strong,tough and hardy. These are great attributes for delivering a child to this world,as shown by China but, Esch is lacking something else. She is lacking the fundamentals. Esch needs the love of a supportive women figure in her life. Someone who is able to nurture and show Esch the process of being a mother. While she is shown to be capable of pulling through she often finds herself haunted by the lack of not having her mother. She uses distraction like hanging out with Randell,Skeetah and Manny to distance her self from what she is. Esch shows eagerness to impress her older brothers and friends furthering the mental gender separation. Esch is looking for acceptance in her life, the metaphorical "void" she is trying to fill spreads across more then just her mother. She is trying to discover the missing element in her self. Through being a mom she may find that missing element. The realization and understanding of her own gender.

Gender & Expectations

Many people may not be aware of it, or may be oblivious to it, but either way it can be shown that gender affects anyone’s life style whether it be for the good or the bad. In Salvage the Bones, Esch states that she is feeling “alone as the only girl” and this is due to her role and expectations of gender in society. Although Esch is not truly the only girl in Salvage the Bones, she does feel heart ache over the fact that she has self-esteem issues not only physically but as well as how she handles herself. Esch believes that in order to gain affections from Manny or possibly any man that she must be willing to give everything to them even if it may be detrimental to herself. Esch does not realize that this is not the only way, but because Esch lost the most influential person to her, her mother, she does not know any better. Esch still remembers and thinks about all the lessons learned from her mother, however her role with the family I feel has left her muted or feeling almost like an outcast. She is not truly involved with her brothers and friends because she is almost always the only girl. Although she is loved by her siblings such as the concern Skeetah has as he is suspecting her pregnancy or the amount of care shown by Randall in treating her cut hand. There is clearly a divided line in how gender is portrayed in this novel. I believe that expectations for male and female characters are different in the sense that male characters are loving jerks. The undertone in the language as well as the actions that the male characters use while conversing with Esch only prove more so. 

Alison Towell: Gender Expectations in Bois Sauvage

Esch is the only girl in a male dominated world. She is thought of as one of the boys  by her father so some of her feminine needs are not met correctly. She even shares clothing with the men in her family. Because of the loss of her mother and grandmother the only role of women is in her memories.  The lack of female presence makes Esch feel isolated and because of these factors she does not fit into mold of stereotypical women in Bois Sauvage. In the novel the best examples of the ideal women are her mother, her grandmother, and Mudda Ma'am. These women were expected to cook, clean, and take care of the children. Another important female role in Esch’s life is China.  Esch is having difficulty dealing with her pregnancy and is looking for ways to fill the mother role. She looks to her memories and also the only mother in her life, China the family dog. China is a new mother who is having difficulties filling the role for her puppies because of her background as a fighter. She even mutilates one of her own puppies. Esch wonders, “Is this what motherhood is?”

            The men in Bois Savuage are expected to be providers, strong, athletic, and resourceful.  They do what they have to do to provide for their loved ones. Some examples are Skeetah getting a job to provide expensive food for China and their father preparing the house for Katrina.  They are also expected to be physically and emotionally strong. Even Junior her youngest brother is described as strong. Even though Esch does not follow traditional gender roles, Bois Savauge has very different expectations for men and women.

Blog 3: Gender

Gender is explicitly present in Bois Savage as Esch defines gender among her family and friends. When Esch goes to the park, she gives description upon all the individuals at the park.  For her brothers and their friends, she defines athleticism and physical strength to define their masculinity when they were playing basketball on court, Skeeta jogging with China, and Junior riding his bicycle.  Though Junior is still young and acts as the child, he still has physical strength in his arms and is on the borderline between a child and a man.

On the feminine side, Esch provides example of her mother, Mudda Ma’am, and Sharylin as being womanly figures compared to herself.  These women carry an elegant fashion in them that is portrayed as motherly. From Mudda Ma’am, she has lived a long life in her home being a motherly figure taking care of children such as junior when they are very young. In Esch’s mother, we can see the care that she portrays towards her children and especially her husband when she cradles him in her arms when he is drunk. Lastly, we can she Sharylin being elegant as she was supporting Manny at the park and acting as a female would when approached by her lover. Compared to these women, Esch defines herself as confused and unprepared as she will have to eventually become a mother. Due to her witnessing the affects of motherhood on China and tragedies occurring with the puppies, the fear that she has within her body makes her want to escape it with the thought of miscarriage.

The expectations for males and females are clearly defined as males being proactive and females being passive. As men would work on outside activities such as farming or building, women would work indoors and attend to the children and chores. In the case, with Esch and her family, she has to be able to do both male and female jobs since the man dominance in the family overshadows and consumes her femininity. She also notes that her father rarely sees her as a woman whenever they interact. Therefore, the expectations for characters can differ by the situation of the family or social structure in current order.