Boys and Girls

1. Chose the character in the story whom you identify either the most or the least and explain the reason why. 2. how do the narrator’s carefully described ” adventure stories” relate to the theme of “Boys and Girls”? Explain what these stories suggest about the world she lives in and the world she would like to live in . 3. assume the role of the narrator and write the beginning of a short story (minimum one page) that serves as a sequel to “Boys and Girls” 1.

The narrator of the short story “Boys and Girls” is a common farm girl who struggles to achieve a lifestyle not dictated by social expectations but in the end submits to the fate of being a girl. One thing that I can connect with her is that we both desires to live free of the restrictions due to our parent’s expectations. This can be seen at the beginning of the story when she dreams of herself as being a saviour of the world. She says of her dreams: “they took a place in a world that was recognizably mine, yet one that presented opportunities for courage, boldness and self-sacrifice … acknowledging the townspeople’s gratitude for some yet-to-be-worked-out piece of heroism” (Munro 47). This dream shows her inner desire to be a hero, something that goes against the expectations of her parents. She hopes to achieve her own aspirations rather than others’ goals for her.

2. The adventure stories shows her desires to be free. A example that shows her desire is her decision to open the gate and let Flora run away from the farm. She also does not regret her decision of helping Flora run away, as she later reflects upon her action saying that is “the only thing she could do” (56-57). When she thinks of shutting the gate, she remembers the experience of seeing Mack being killed. She does not want to be the one responsible for the death of Flora and the deeper sense of right and wrong of her mind drove her to open the gate. Though the interaction of the girl and her family, we can sense that she desires to be free of the restriction from the stereotype of society . When her grandmother visited her house, the grandmother said: “and I heard other things. ‘Girls don’t slam doors like that.’ ‘ Girls keep their knees together when they sit down.’ … I continued to slam the doors and sit as awkwardly as possible.