Importance Of Social Issues In Dumplin

Dumplin’ also centers on social issues, mainly the issue of being bullied based on appearance. This social issue is important because it is the reason many of the characters are confident but also distant. It is also important because it is what causes the characters to bond with one another. This social issue’s importance is shown in with the girls and the pageant, in the relationship between Will and Hannah, and in the relationship between Will and Ellen.
The first time we see this social issue affecting the characters is when Will decides to enter the pageant. As was mentioned in the previous chapter, Will felt like if she could walk around in a dress with a bunch of skinny girls, she would be confident again. An important part of her idea is the fact that Will isn’t one of the skinny girls. Everyone is expecting attractive, talented, scrawny girls to be up on that stage, and Will wants to make a statement and prove that overweight girls or ugly girls deserve to be queens too. By making Will’s “revolution” so important, Murphy is showing that these characters don’t care about being bullied, and that the social issues in this book don’t often get beneath their skin. This is also important, because the fact that Will, Amanda, and Hannah don’t care about being bullied is what makes it so hard for them to open up to other people. Murphy has these characters build walls, and they don’t let anyone in, leaving them alone. Because of that, Will lost Ellen, but she also gained Hannah as a friend. Therefore, …show more content…
This social issue is shown through the girls and the pageant, the relationship between Hannah and Will, and the relationship between Ellen and Will. Overall, this social issue plays a critical part in the development of character’s relationships, and helps readers comprehend why characters like Will face challenges like