Nguyen 1

Andrew Nguyen

White

AP Language Per. 7

5 March 2020

Combating Expectations with Self Identity

Fitting into the expectation of others can often be quite difficult, providing a limited

range of abilities that one can do and to instead follow the expectation that others have set.

Within society, individuals have the ability to define who they are and can follow what they

believed to be their own identity. However, those that differ in ideas towards the standards of

society that people have cultivated can often be outcasted and ostracized for having different

opinions than a homogenous idea that the people in a society may have. These kinds of dilemmas

can be represented in both the books A Room of One’s Own and The Bell Jar. In a Room of

One’s Own, it introduces Virginia Woolf and her idea of the differences between the two sexes,

male and females, as to the opportunities and standards that are placed on each of the two

genders. She realizes that they are not upholded to the same standard, where women were

restricted from the amount education and financial wealth that a men would have and instead

would have to hold roles such as a stay-at-home mother who has to take care of the children and

husband. This in turn leads her to go deeper and find the problems that are apparent in society

and in turn comes to a call to action that talks about creating a legacy that allows for more

opportunities for women. In The Bell Jar, it introduces Esther Greenwood and her experience of

summer in New York. Recently winning a trip to New York from a fashion magazine, she goes

and rooms with eleven other girls and tries to meet the expectations that many have for their time

at New York. Being worried about a multitude of things ranging from meeting expectations of
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roles to trying to accept values that she does not agree with, feeling left out and unaccomplished,

her mental state of being worsens to the point of a failed suicide attempt. The overall

complications of the desire to meet many expectations has ultimately led to the problematic

ending that occured for Esther. Between both A Room of One’s Own and The Bell Jar, the idea of

conforming to a standard or expectation can be problematic that can limit a person's ability to be

who they are, where by embracing self identity can resolve the conflict and in turn remove the

limits given from expectations allowing for more free reign and freedom of one’s identity.

“It would be better to draw the curtains; to shut out distractions; to light the lamp; to

narrow the enquiry and to ask the historian, who records not opinions but facts, to describe under

what conditions women lived, not throughout the ages, but in England, say, in the time of

Elizabeth.” (Woolf 35) With references to the scope of perspective, the use of concrete diction

helps to convey further ideas of women with the words such as “draw,” “shut out,” and “light.”

These selection of words help to describe the ideas about narrowing a topic, to focus more on the

details and ideas rather than skimming and only focusing the attention on more important ideas.

The use of these words allows for readers to have a better understanding with references to the

five senses, mostly pertaining to touch and sight, implying an idea about the focus of women

throughout history. This in turn allows for a deeper understanding to be developed about the idea

of women in history. Throughout history, there have been significant social changes with women

as to what they are allowed to do; however, narrowing the scope down to time periods of

Elizabeth would show the lack of changes apparent within that time period. Women would still

have to abide by the standards that society expects of them to uphold, where those that do not

follow the expectations are ostracized and often judged for. “There is no mark on the wall to

measure the precise height of women. There are no yard measures, neatly divided into the
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fractions of an inch, that one can lay against the qualities of a good mother or the devotion of a

daughter, or the fidelity of a sister, or the capacity of a housekeeper.” (Woolf 72) With the idea

of measurements with the use of “yard measures,” the use of symbolism within the quote allows

for a better understanding to be developed about the problems that women may face with societal

standards. The use of objects such as “yard measures” can commonly be referred back to their

concrete use of measuring a number of things, such as measuring height, or in general the length

of an object. However, in it’s abstract form, it can be referred to the idea of standards or

expectations. Within the quote it mentions how “there is no mark on the wall to measure the

precise height of women,” which in turn can be inferred as there are (or should not be) standards

that are being applied to women, where in turn the quote referes to the ideas of a mother,

daughter, sister, housekeeper, and much more. Essentially saying that there are no particular

standards (or formula) that women should be uphold to (since everyone is unique in their own

way, sort of like individuality); however, this idea contradicts what actually happens in society

where in some instances in society (especially in Woolf’s time period), women are not equal as

men, such as the availability of education and the forced upon jobs that women have to do (such

as having to take care of the children and raising them, which in turn shows the lack of

availability that women have in order to even shoot for a opportunity to chase their dreams or

goals. It in turn ties back to the theme by referring to the societal standards that have been placed

on women and the limits it has caused. (Essentially restricts women and overall is a disadvantage

to them). “I was supposed to be the envy of thousands of other college girls just like me all over

America who wanted nothing more than to be tripping about in those same size seven patent

leather shoes I'd bought in Bloomingdale's one lunch hour with a black patent leather belt and

black patent leather pocketbook to match. And when my picture came out in the magazine the
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twelve of us were working on -- drinking martinis in a skimpy, imitation silver-lamé bodice

stuck on to a big, fat cloud of white tulle, on some Starlight Roof, in the company of several

anonymous young men with all-American bone structures hired or loaned for the occasion --

everybody would think I must be having a real whirl.” (Plath 3) The use of imagery within the

quote helps to emphasize and point out the problems about society and their reflection (or big

idea) of women. Having descriptive details such as “size seven patent leather shoes,” “black

patent leather belt and black patent leather pocketbook,” and “skimpy, imitation silver-lamé

bodice stuck on to a big, fat cloud of white tulle, on some Starlight Roof, in the company of

several anonymous young men with all-American bone structures” helps to portray the image

through sensory detail such as sight and touch. From this instance it then reveals Esther

Greenwood’s attitude towards the standards of women set by society, where she seems to have a

completely different opinion of it and does not particularly want to follow it as shown with her

listing her trip to New York as something stereotypical that women would enjoy. It then shows

the kind of tone that she has towards the topic, where she gives off a more negative tone

(possibly sarcastic) implying about her resentment or disagreement towards the expectation of

women that society holds. The emotions that can be portrayed with the sensory detail could be

possibly anger or possibly even being desperate where she may be trying to hold up to those

standards, although she does not particularly agree with them (trying to fit in essentially). The

negative tone made could then tie back to the idea of the negative things that come with society

judging people and women especially. “I climbed up on the examination table, thinking: ‘I am

climbing to freedom, freedom from fear, freedom from marrying the wrong person, like Buddy

Willard, just because of sex, freedom from Florence Crittenden Homes where all the poor girls

go who should have been fitted out like me, because what they did, they would do anyway,
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regardless...’” (Plath 117) The use of syntax of the quote helped provide a better understanding

as to what was going on in the quote. With the use of an asyndeton sentence as shown here

“freedom, freedom from fear, freedom from marrying the wrong person.” What can be drawn

from the quote could be the repetitive use of the word “freedom” in repetition as she lists out

what she is able to receive. This in turn helps to emphasize on the importance of her being able

to do this surgery, which in turn could later be applied to the ability to choose for herself without

the judgement of society. The effect is that it shows that despite the culture and stereotypes that

society has set upon women, in the end they are able to decide for what they want, which in turn

could lead to being ostracized or being outcasted if different from the rest. Emphasizes the

hardships and possibly the reinforcements of certain ideas by society that it has nurtured, where

it could even be rare for this certain type of surgery that Esther is doing for women, possibly

seen as a taboo. (Essentially emphasizes the problems of society not being so open about ideas or

the abilities that women should do, sorta like sticking to tradition rather than experimenting and

trying something new).

Between both A Room of One’s Own and The Bell Jar, there are many complications that

occur in the books that are a result of conforming one’s own personal identity to a common

expectation. They both show a common idea about the lack of equality that women have or

women having to follow society's standards which in turn limits the abilities they have in order

to have their own self identity, which in turn can be harmful. By acknowledging and accepting

self identity, can resolve help open more possibilities and opportunities. However, despite

knowing that, it can be difficult to acknowledge self identity, where many people may still

follow society to prevent from being ostracized and be outcasted, where they may become

neglected.
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Works Cited

Plath, Sylvia. The Bell Jar. Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc., 1971.

Woolf, Virgina. A Room of One’s Own. Harcourt, Inc., 1929.