Marginalization Paper

Grace DiMuccio

Professor J. Migano Brady

EGL 102

20 April 2018

Marginalization in Society

Marginalization is a serious form of oppression that can have major effects on individuals socially, economically and politically. Within the short stories The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin and White Woman of Color by Julia Alvarez , you see the roccurance of the major theme of marginalization. The main character Ms. Mallard in The Story of an Hour shows feelings of joy after finding out she is able to be “free”. In the past she was marginalized based on her gender and role in society by her husband. After his death she feels a sense of relief as though she’s not being oppressed by him anymore. Julia Alvarez talks about her experiences of marginalization in The White Women of Color. She explains the struggle and hardships she faced growing up as a Dominican girl in the United States. In the movie “The Help”, directed by Tate Taylor, many major forms of marginalization are shown. The film takes place in a setting of racism and segregation. The African American women working in white peoples’ homes are constantly being discriminated against. Marginalization can take place in many different ways and can affect individuals and make them feel like they aren’t worthy in society or don’t have a sense of belonging.

Within The Story of an Hour, it shows the affects a certain human being can have on another human being. Ms. Mallard must have been greatly affected by her husband. Although the story never explains their relationship before, once Ms. Mallard got the news that her husband was dead, she was sad at first but then became cheerful. She now felt as though she didn’t have to live under his rules. She states in the story "Free! Body and soul free!"(Chopin 1). The setting takes places in a time where men were in control and had more rights than women. Now that she received news of her husband’s death, she realized she did not have to be controlled by him anymore. She was a free women and finally had the ability to do what she wanted. The narrator stated  “And yet she had loved him--sometimes. Often she had not. What did it matter! What could love, the unsolved mystery, count for in the face of this possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being!” (Chopin 1). Without being marginalized, it gave Ms. Ballard a sense of power and belonging.

Based on where you live, different forms of Marginalization take place. In the story White Women of Color, Julia Alvarez explains the struggle within her own family based on their skin color. Julia was a white Dominican girl but was still seen as “black” to Americans. Back at home, her skin color was considered light. Once she reached America, her beauty was not seen the same. When explaining her struggles, Julia stated “people of color were treated as if they were inferior, prone to violence, uneducated, untrustworthy, lazy… all the bad adjectives we were learning in our new language” (Alvarez 6).  She was not used to being treated like that therefore it made her feel powerless. “We were lucky to be white dominicans, but white as we were, we still encountered prejudice” explained Alvarez. Her background was so different, therefore when she came to America and the perspectives of people changed, she was greatly affected. The story explains how this discrimination was affecting large groups of people, not just her family. She states , “ Had we been darker, we certainly could not have bought our mock Tudor house in Jamaica Estates. In fact, the African American family who moved in across the street several years later needed police protection because of threats” (Alvarez 6). People could not even live comfortably or safe in their own homes. These people of America who are constantly being discriminated against expect it now. Marginalization has occured to the point where anyone being racially discriminated against is used to it because it’s so common.  The story shows how many families had to face many consequences on a day to day basis just because certain Americans considered their skin “dark”. It made Julia herself feel worthless along with all the others being marginalized. There is no real reason for it or explanation as to why they are even being treated that way.

Marginalization and racism are shown again in the movie “The Help”. It takes place during the Jim Crow era when there were strict laws on segregation, especially in the south. “The Help” looks at rules and norms governing gender in a Mississippi town in the early 1960s. White women were valued in society by their ability to produce children, who are then to be cared for by black women. Few jobs are available for women of both races. Black women are expected to be passive workhorses, and to sacrifice their own homes and family lives for those of their white employers. Women in general were being marginalized by men but most of all it was the black women who had no rights at all. For many black characters in the movie, there is little justice. Violence and injustice are committed against them and there is little they can do to fight it. They are not worthy of anything to the higher social class except to their watch kids.

Marginalization refers to the act of perceiving or assuming that a particular individual or a group of individuals do not have certain characteristics, qualities or traits that would make them equal to other people in the society. Marginalization can leave a whole group of people with a different mindset. Treating people poorly or as if they aren’t worthy can damage the self image of that person. Within the short stories, you understand how social, economical, and political marginalization can affect many different groups of people. The main characters in both stories and the film felt a lack of belonging after being marginalized. Some also felt relief and a gain power and strength when they were not being marginalized anymore. .