As I Lay Dying Analysis

A woman’s role presented in “As I Lay Dying,” and Raise the Red Lantern is associated with having children. In these two stories, women are used to have babies, and once they complete that task they are forgotten about. A woman’s personality, and wellbeing is unimportant to the men, therefore leaving it up to the women on whether or not they want to please the man, or choose to do what makes them happy. In “As I Lay Dying,” Dewey Dell, a seventeen-year-old girl, was faced with the challenge of keeping her pregnancy a secret. Dewey Dell was forced to keep her secret quiet, so that she was not looked at as a disgrace. In the film, Raise the Red Lantern, Songlian faked a pregnancy in order to receive attention from the Master. Songlian was told that being pregnant would make her receive special treatment, …show more content…
These women are put in situations where they feel it necessary to benefit a man instead of putting their selves first. Songlian and Dewey placed themselves in their challenging situations by choosing to have children, factoring in social influences, and by letting their lack of maturity take control of their situations. Dell These are examples of two very different views on whether or not being pregnant helps you, or puts you in a tough situation. Two very different perspectives were shown between two women who were not only placed in opposite environments, but were also taught different beliefs and values. In “As I Lay Dying” Addie, Dewey Dell’s mother, always made a point to say how having children added sadness and decay into her life. “Through their handling of their pregnancies, Dewey Dell and Addie variously rebel against maternity. While largely ignorant of her options, Dewey Dell doggedly pursues an abortifacient until she is