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Oppression is an issue that has long been debated over the years. It is also one of the most important issues that continue to persist until today. In relation to gender, women are the common target of this phenomenon due to the patriarchal mindset that most societies have. In an article by Kathy Caprino, women’s oppression was described as “the most critical moral challenge of our time.” Unfortunately, this treatment of women had become so common and even accepted that people no longer care to study it. However, literary works often become the bridge to get the message across. By scrutinizing some of the best stories or poems, we can see that they usually have social relevance. Two particular poems that can be taken into consideration when studying gender roles in general and women’s role in society are “The Cinnamon Peeler” by Michael Ondaatje and “The Forsaken” by Duncan Campbell Scott. The mentioned poems show through a literary structure that women’s oppression had began long ago in different cultural and historical setting.
In ‘The Cinnamon Peeler’, the title itself shows the social status a women has in. Notice that even though the poem is basically written for the woman, the title of the poem directs the attention to the man – the cinnamon peeler. This shows the dominance of the man over the woman, even if that woman is, in the context of the poem, his wife and is supposed to be his equal.
Women’s oppression can be seen by the way the narrator of the poem objectified the woman through several key phrases. An example is the way the author used “your bed” instead of simply “you” in the first stanza (Mandel, 1987). Also, there was the constant need to mark the woman as his property by making her smell like him, a cinnamon peeler. This carries the notion that a woman’s identity in the society she is in is determined by her husband identity.
This is further emphasized in the later part where the woman told the narrator of the story that it was no use to be a lover of a man who cannot leave her scent on her. The particular lines were: “what good is it/to be the lime burner's daughter/left with no trace. (Ondaatje)” By saying those lines, the woman was implying that a woman is defined not by her own achievements but by her husband’s social status which consequently shows that if a woman married a man of lesser social status, her value as a person in the society decreases (Mandel, 1987). The woman’s lack of individual identity indicates that she is treated as a submissive and passive possession (Mandel, 1987).
In Duncan Campbell Scott’s ‘The Forsaken’, the Chippewa woman was illustrated as maternal being whose sole purpose is to give birth to children and raise them as can be seen by the lines, “While the young chieftain/Tugged at her breasts (Scott).” The mere usage of the word ‘chieftain’ to describe the woman’s son implies superiority of the boy. The mother may have wanted the child to survive simply because it is her own but if we consider social context, we can deduce that the child was important also because he was a boy and therefore, the carrier of their family’s name and the one to ensure their bloodline. That is why the woman should “serve” this “young chieftain” to the point of hurting herself for his good. “Baited the fish-hook/Drew in a gray-trout/Drew in his fellows.” Just like the woman in “The Cinnamon Peeler”, the woman in “The Forsaken” was treated as merely a tool and not an individual.
The woman in the poem did everything for her son willingly even without anyone outright asking her to. This can be a representation of the women who had been lured into thinking that this is indeed their destiny – to provide for the men and for her children. Indeed, in some level, it is true that it is the mother has the duty to care for her family but her worth is not restricted to this. The woman obviously had a strong will as can be seen by the usage of the words “valiant” and “unshaken”. She was also smart considering she thought of using her own flesh to draw in fish. But these characteristics of the woman were not recognized by anyone. Even if the woman in “The Forsaken” was technically out of the social restraints that were present in the woman in “The Cinnamon Peeler”, both women have already accepted the role that society had given to them. In “The Forsaken”, this was represented by the mother enslaving herself for the survival of her son without resting. “Sure of her goal/And the life of her dear one/Tramped for two daysThen she had rest.” (Scott)
At the last stanza of “The Forsaken”, the poem showed how women are treated like disposable items. The moment the Chippewa woman can no longer perform her ‘womanly duties’, she was rendered useless and was therefore left behind, despite her earlier sacrifices. “Left her alone forever/Without a word of farewell/Because she was old and useless.” This aspect of objectification is present in both “The Forsaken” and “The Cinnamon Peeler”.
In “The Forsaken”, the woman did not hold grudges against her son for leaving her. In fact, she was able to silently die, still the strong woman that she is. This “dying” however can be a depiction of the loss of the woman’s identity. This is similar to the lack of identity of the woman in “The Cinnamon Peeler”.
In terms of influencing the readers, however, it would seem like “The Forsaken” is the more effective poetry. First, the message is straight-forward so the readers can easily pick up the theme of the poem. Second, the woman was presented as someone with a strong will, a smart mind and a fit physique. She was not weak or meek. By presenting her as such, the poem clearly showed that the oppression against women cannot be justified. It is unfair for women to be boxed to a certain category or behavior because in reality, their capabilities lie beyond being just a mother or a wife. The poem also clearly showed the loss of personal identity of the woman by illustrating how her world revolved only in serving her son all her life and even up to death.
Through analyzing the poems “The Forsaken” and “The Cinnamon Peeler”, it can be concluded that both signify women’s oppression. The women, in both poems, are treated more like objects or tools than an actual human being. Their value is determined by the value of their husband or their children (male child, in the case of the Chippewa woman). It is important to study evidences of women’s oppression such as presented by the two poems because that issue is still happening even today. Studying how women were oppressed in the earlier days might provide clues as to how they behave in the present. Eventually, once the issue is fully understood, a solution for real equality may be achieved and women may enjoy a world where they are no longer oppressed.
Works Cited
Caprino, Kathy. “Why Women's Oppression Is The Moral Dilemma Of Our Time - Sheryl
WuDunn Speaks Out.” Forbes. Forbes Mag., 29 Aug. 2013. Web. 9 Jan. 2014.
Ondaatje, Michael. The Cinnamon Peeler: Selected Poems. London: Vintage, 1997. Print.
Mandel, Ann. "Michael Ondaatje." Dictionary of Literary Biography, Vol. 60. Canadian Writers
Since 1960, Second Series. Ed.W. H. New. Detroit: Gale Research, 1987. 273 – 281.
Print.
Scott, Duncan Campbell. New World Lyrics and Ballands. Toronto: Morang, 1905. Print.
