Representation of women in Morrison's Song of Solomon and Butler's Essay

Representation of women in Morrison's Song of Solomon and Butler's Parable of the Sower - Essay Example The clear impression here is that women are fiercely dependent on men and have little to do once the men are at work and the children are at school. It is this setting that accentuates the individuality of the lead female protagonist once it becomes clear that she is anything but submissive. Although Song of Solomon is set in the 1950s through the 1960’s and Parable of the Sower is set somewhere into the future, women’s dependence on men is similarly exploited by Butler. Lauren Olamina who is only fifteen at the start of Butler’s novel observes the plight of three widowed women who live near her: Although Lauren goes on to note that the three women are now employed she adds that â€Å"they don’t earn much.† (Butler, p. 19) Clearly without their husbands the women are struggling to make ends meet. More importantly, Butler’s message is also one of feminie strength in the face of adversity. These women who were previously dependent on men for surival have found a way to survive that loss. Similarly, in Morrison’s Song of Solomon, Guitar’s grandmother finds a way to survive following her husband’s death. Like the three widows in Butler’s novel, Guitar’s grandmother is able to support her grandchildren. These women are different from Morrison’s Ryna, the male protagonist’s great grandmother who lost her mind after her husband left her with several children. There is no escaping the conclusion that women have a double burden in Morrison’s Song of Solomon. They are forced to endure the consequences of racism and at the same time are prisoners of the male quest for freedom and the resulting abandonment. Yet they are judged differently than men. In the example given where Ryna is abandoned by her husband, Ryna is marked as weak for suffering her breakdown and her husband is hailed as a hero despite abandoning his family. Pilate Dead is Morrison’s femlae protagonist whose remarkable