English Literature

Abstract

Young Female Adolescents (YAL) represent a group that is depicted differently in both traditional and modern literature. Therefore an analysis of Young Adolescent Literature (YAL) can provide an in-depth understanding of this group that can be used to solve eminent social problems. Specifically, gender-based discrimination can be analyzed through a study of YAL and most likely viable remedy adopted. It is imperative to understand the various cultural aspects that inform different social problems that this specialized group of characterizations in their roles face in YAL for prompt resolution.

Key terms: Young Female Adolescents (YAL), Young Adolescent Literature (YAL), Social Problems, Remedy.

Introduction

This paper critically explores the roles young female protagonist as adolescents in (YAL) as depicted in modern fiction and non-fiction literature with the goal of identifying most suitable remedies for underlying problems. In particular, it analyzes the existence of the problem of gender inequality and gender stereotyping and how they impact on the identity of young female adolescents. The genesis of the problem is the orientation of gender roles based on the beliefs of different societies. Subjective nature of cultural beliefs that reveal discrimination in YAL needs to be addressed through the promotion of objectivity. The discussion is based on the fundamental assumption that gender inequality exists among young female adolescents consequently necessitating the establishment of remedies to address the problem. The discussion begins with the analysis of modern literature with respect to the challenge for problem justification. The paper proposes changing the role of young female adolescents in modern literature with the aim of addressing the challenge of gender inequality. The paper holds the view that the role of young female adolescents in modern literature should be adjusted to eliminate the challenge of gender inequality that is prevalent in modern literature (Hyman 5).

Background

A large portion of reading material including most of the history books are concerned with the achievements of the male gender, from the perspective of the male gender. As a result, this focus in the content unveils domestic roles at a time of definitive societal challenges with undertones of negative stereotyping and discrimination against young females in YAL have emerged. However, a new directive of focus in the roles of young female adult characters in many of the 18th century works of literature, cultivated social, political and cultural attempts at changing the worldview of women. This was an intentional motivation as females are perceived as weak creatures and therefore most of the roles of young women depicted in young adult literature aims at confirming that position of inferiority of young women in society. Female protagonists who are young are presented as being insignificant an inconsequential and thus contemporary literature aims at discouraging this fact by exhibiting young female adults as being not only relevant but equally exhibiting strength both physically and mentally to overcome the tribulations. They are cable to overcome teenage experiences that predispose them to delinquent behaviors, during adolescent and exhibit their prowess in showing their worthiness to the society. It helps demonstrate the roles young female adults can undertake in society in spite of prevailing activities by persistent anti-progressive resistance forces that still persecute this group (Coates and Cameron 20).

Military books, scientific achievements during the modern period shifted their focus to male achievements. However, literature like “Fever 1793”, is concerned with acknowledging the positions of young women in society. This book is centered on the struggles that women underwent during the period, and they had to put up the fight. However, there exists a considerable difference between current literatures for young adults. Most of the existing literature has a different perception especially because they are predisposed to delinquent behaviors. Authors have embraced the cognitive theory of adolescents who have difficulties in making sound decisions and thus it might be challenging for them to make rational decisions in life. The primary aim of the literature is to focus on the experiences, growth, emotional and intellectual capabilities of young adults. Many works of literature of the 21st century portray young adults as being delinquent as this are the things that they mostly experience as they grow up. This might have an adverse impact on the emotional development of adolescents, during this stage, known for its developmental stage of self-awareness and self-identity. YAL, exposes a world full of age bias and gender prejudice, which aims at commuting and upgrading the roles of female adults in the community, and also to prepare young female adults to face the realities in life by seeing themselves depicted in roles that defy the norm. (Michael 23).

Analysis

Analysis of modern literature highlights pervasive gender stereotyping, consistently undermining their presence in the depiction of roles played by young female adolescents in society. Habitually, the female gender was perceived negatively as powerless as minimally productive outside of the limited role of domesticity and reproduction, therefore depicted not only or limited to these demeaning roles as they were portrayed in print, but socially, artistically politically, culturally, religiously and financially as lacking both mental and physical strength thereby deeming them inferior to their male counterparts. In the text, “Fever 1973”, Mathilda is not accorded the procedure of draining blood during her treatment for the fever. This is despite the fact that other members of their community such as her grandfather were undertaken through the procedure (Anderson 30). In the text ‘fault in our stars’ challenges faced by young adults are imminent too. Despite the fact that Hazel; the female protagonist, is in a relationship with a young male adolescent; Augustus, both of whom have cancer, she is discriminated against by Augustus parents. In this case, she is viewed as undermining the well-being of the Augustus family despite him having cancer as well.

Despite the overwhelming discrimination against young female adolescents that has mired modern literature, a few works have prevailed and still connote the group as agents of strength in society. Literature that exists to this effect serves to strengthen the mainstream challenges faced by young female adolescents in society successfully overcoming stereotypical limitations as a result of the negative perceptions generated by negative depiction in literature. In the text fault in our stars, Hazel mother sympathizes with her when she becomes sad not only because of the pain, but concealing her own personal pain and the pain of others she causes the family, due to the grave prospect of dying of cancer.

“Thinking about you dying makes us sad, Hazel, but you are not a grenade. You are amazing.” (Green 214).

To this end, such efforts help weather down the challenge of gender inequality suffered by YFA in the society. It represents an approach that can be adapted to enhance the ability of modern literature to address the challenge of discrimination that faces YAL in society. In the text “Fever, 1793”, Matilda is a female protagonist who is able to overcome the difficulties and helps makes the family business to be operational once again. Therefore there is a need to prepare young adults as they grow into adulthood to be able to face the difficulties of the world. “Fever, 1793” demonstrates a situation where adolescent female protagonists are prepared for future roles when they are adult. When the family business totally collapses due to the fever that strikes the town, the young female adolescent is able to bring back the family business into its fit again.

Another point that underscores the implication of negative literature on the life of young adults is the manner in which societal problems are more severe for members of the group. The ability of young adults to address societal challenges are compounded by gender stereotypes that come along. According to the text “Fault in Our Stars”, the author demonstrates the daily regimental difficulties that young adults encounter. Specifically, the male gender is preferred to their female counterparts even at the point of death. Hazel suffers stigma at the hands of Augustus mother for having cancer despite the fact that Augustus had cancer too. In the text “The Hate U Give”, interactions of Starr with other members of the society is based on her race. As a member of a minority group, she is torn between identifying with both the White and the Blacks. This illustrates the extent to which young female adults from minority groups are more vulnerable to societal challenges compared to others from host societies (Thomas 10)

Optimism is a byproduct , once readers previously aware of the negative roles of women in previous literature, can witness a more positive shift away from gender inequalities, once an informed choice is eminent in some modern works YAL. The prime approach used by authors to this end, is the elimination of societal cleavages that are enmeshed in gender orientations. Life and death, thoughts, cares and concerns are exhibited in the relationship between Hazel and Augustus clearly depicts life and death in the daily experiences of young adults whenever they encounter challenging situations. These particular young adults are capable to confront issues that most young adults will not have confronted in their lives, and their concerns concentrate on common existential themes, for instance how the death of an individual affects the lives of others (Yang, Gene and Lark Pien 8). There is a general concern in the novel about how the actions of an single individual can, will and do ultimately affect the lives of other people. Hazel is concerned about how her death will cause pain to the people around her and this makes her distance herself from her family and peers. This literature is important to young adolescents as they are able to learn about caring about the feelings of people. Clearly, there are circumstances in which young adolescents cannot avoid, but it is important to distance this actions as much as possible in order to avoid hurting them.

The challenge of gender inequality propagated by modern literature is further compounded by racism in society. In this case, YAL among minority groups in society is overlooked not only on basis of their gender but also with regards to race. In the text “Brown Girl dreaming”, the author highlights the plight of one young African American female in the day to day operations in society. Growing up in a culture dominated by a particular group can be very disadvantageous for minorities. For instance, growing up as an African-American’ adolescent both males and females were culturally poised to encounter intense discrimination like racism.

“My birth certificate says Female Negro. Mother: Mary Anne Irby, 22, Negro. Father: Jack Austin Woodson, 25, Negro” (Woodson 18).

Therefore, it is apparent that race is represented as an important aspect to consider for writers of YAL in their pursuit of solutions for problems that have gender inclinations. Race is an important standalone issue that young females face on daily basis, and motivational messaging should be considered as a focal point in the establishment of remedies sensitive to those challenges of gender inequality that are eminent effecting members of society.

Another point in support of the changing altering roles of youths YAL in modern literature is the effectiveness with which determined and perseverant persons overcome societal challenges. According to “The Hate You Give”, in the face of injustice and racism, young adolescents through the literature are encouraged to show bravery, coming together and speaking up against injustice. The author depicts the strong cultural identities as providing substantial barriers to young females in the elimination of gender-based challenges. Starr recognizes the need to belong that predisposes her to desire to identify with both the whites and the blacks without been viewed as leaning too much on one side. To this end, the construction of cultural identities should take into cognizance the interdependence between different cultural groups. In this case, flexible cultural orientations that accommodate members of other groups is advised (Thomas 3).

Gender inequality challenges faced by young adolescent females are illustrated by the plight of Heidi in the text “Whale Talk”. Heidi suffers at the hands of her stepfather and her entire life is aimed at trying to achieve acceptability by making him satisfied with her. To this end, she is alienated from her role as a productive, competent, contributing member of society and therefore this is a case in point of the negative implication of gender inequalities of young adult females. Consequently, it is imperative to introduce remedies that are conscious of settings in which there exist more positive images optional to being adopted. This includes the physical and mental challenges that they experience facing down bullies when having a faultless physical disability.

"In the end, write it down. Back up and find the story The trick is to dig out the people and events that connect and connect them” (Crutcher 1).

The author underscores the need to understand the relations between people and events because this informs valuable insight into their cultural, character and moral identities. This provides a stepping stone that can be embraced towards gaining a better understanding of different groups in society and therefore eliminate unnecessary conflicts. Gender inequalities are sources of friction among different cultural groups in the society and therefore the most viable remedy lies with understanding values that seek to inform and improve intergroup relations.

Recommendations

Contemporary authors of Young Adolescent Literature integrates many themes in their analysis that helps better understand the scope of social challenges betterment. There are many themes that exist in relation to gender inequalities facing young female adults. They range from injustice to bravery. It is imperative to consider these themes for improved positive resolution of societal problems. Due to their social vulnerabilities young adult females are braced to understand the scope of the societal problems they face and as writers, in this case, they are better placed to adequately address the problems readers may face. Change of cultural orientation of roles is the most viable approach for addressing the problem. In particular, emphasis should be focused on the creation of flexible cultural values that invites and allows easy interaction of members of different groups. Authors in future Young Adolescent literature should incorporate an optimistic approach to the analysis of gender discrimination. Despite the overbearing nature of gender-based discrimination, remedies can be attained with a keen analysis of different cultures (Crutcher 1).

Oppressive regimes, constant surveillance, being denied freedom and conforming to the rules are among the aspects that adolescents have to face daily. Effects of parental control and peer pressure make adolescents feel as if they are trapped and that they need to look for proper means to alter their current situations. Humans in societies have been assigned different roles of behavior, moralities , and thoughts established in men and women. They often used the biological distinction to exhibit the difference of gender, for instance during the 18th century English Standards of feminine, women were required to devote their lives limited to undertaking domestic chores. Additionally, women were not supposed to question the opinions of men as they were regarded ad their guardians. Education, social experience and financial background affected readership of women. Women were not admitted until the 18th century. This, altered changes of their roles of participation in literature as opposed to men. During the 19th century, women from both the middle class and the upper class had leisure time and financial resources to access literature through serial publications. This is some of the oppressions that YAL, aims at discouraging and thus setting the grounds for young female protagonists to overcome this historical oppression by giving a new hope for the future. As young protagonist female adults begin the journey of searching for an identity, it is crucial to understand that the world in which they live in not perfect, and there is no freedom. In Lois Lowry’s ‘The Giver’, is an example of a dystopian novel where the main aim is to demonstrate a world in which everything is controlled and decide for the citizens. Citizens in the novel are controlled on whom to marry, the kind of children that they ought to receive and where they will work. There is the narrator, Jonas, who realizes the undoing of the society and strives to unveil his knowledge to the members of the society. Contemporary literature, therefore, is designed at testing the protagonist ability to survive in such that kind of a world (Lowry 20).

Fiction Literature of vampires, werewolves is a demonstration that portrays how teens wrestle with identity is a dystopian setting with themes that are concerned with the role of individuals to the community (Balaka et al. 15). Most of the dystopian literature especially for the young adults might expose the young teenagers as being delinquent. On the other hand, they help present a world with a lot of hardships, and therefore teens are required to find connections and solutions to the problems existing in their lives. The depiction of hopelessness as demonstrated in dystopias literature is not to depress adolescents, but on the other hand, they have a more positive purpose. The primary objective is to provide a social explanation of the appropriate ways in which adults have to live and to deal with challenges of life. This help adolescents to develop concrete knowledge about the world if in any case, they have to progress and share their experience to others and spread the hope required to overcome the challenges that exist in the world.

Conclusion

Young Female Adolescents as protagonists in both contemporary and traditional literature are portrayed as being capable of overcoming the challenges that they encounter on a daily basis. This is despite the immense challenges they face in day to day relations with other members of their society. There exists a relationship between language, literature and socio-economic factors that influence how young female adolescent read literature. Even the traditional literature which is concerned with a dominant male society helps the female readers to deal with the challenges that exist even in the contemporary world and the means in which they can disseminate the knowledge on how to deal with the upheavals that live in the society. Both the modern and traditional literature have a similar perception of adolescents. However, they are different in the ways they help integrate adolescents in reading the literature. Contemporary literature is mainly concerned with a real world, and even fiction literature promotes commentary of what indeed faces adolescents on a daily basis. In this way, it will be possible for young female protagonists to avoid the traps of life that may come their way. YAL aims at presenting female adolescents, themselves and as adults themselves in a different perception that are relatable regarding young female adults literature’s fan base. Young adolescents are comprised of socially constructed phenomena, literature aims at dismantling this perception that helps the adults to have a different opinion of themselves that would result in the difference in the society. Therefore, construction of a positive literature that focuses on effecting necessary changes is necessary for the elimination of gender inequality challenges that young female adolescence’s face.

FIN

Works Cited

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