So Big By Edna Ferber Essay Example

The central theme in the novel is feminism. The women characters who have displayed an extra-ordinary ability to take care of their families without necessarily the support of their men have displayed feminism. For instance, Selina the main character of the novel decides to venture into other economic activities after the death of her husband to ensure her son has a bright future. She is even daring enough to not only take her son to school but also influence his decisions pertaining to career. What she displayed is a feature that has been considered manly in the society.
The novel revolves around women and the shift from the traditional roles that were played by women to the modern responsibilities that they have adopted. The author focuses on the process that transformed a woman from being dependent on the man. The point the author wanted to drive home was that despite the criticism that have been raised against women empowerment, they were driven into it by their prevailing circumstances and not arrogance. It has mostly been assumed that women empowerment is a vice that was aimed at rebelling against the man who has traditionally been considered the sole provider in the home.
However, from the circumstances that surrounded Selina, we realise that the aggressive spirit in her was prompted b the need to give her son a bright future. Just like many women of her time who were left with no alternative but to work hard for their families. It is through such an expected change of losing their husbands that they realized they had the ability to work with their hands. Circumstances made them realise that society had simply deprived them of the opportunity to thrive. Even though most women have men in their lives who are able to provide for them, they chose not simply sit at home and wait for everything to be done for them. They learned that they can also supplement for their family income.
Apart from the advantages that have been mentioned in the novel on feminism, there is also another category of women that have not quite well utilized the opportunity. Feminism was to empower women to venture into acceptable activities to earn income rather than venture into other immoral activities. When it comes to generating income for a woman, some have mistaken this to using their feminine features to earn income. This hence implies that some women are not willing to do the dirty manly work but rather venture into activities such as prostitution to earn some income. This has polluted the initial meaning of feminism.
The society has also equated feminism to equality, which has caused a rift between the roles to be played by men and women. It is rather obvious that the males cannot replace some of the feminine roles of childbirth and taking care of the family. This hence implies that in as much as women can take up the responsibility of working in farms and the likes, they will still have to give birth and take care of the children. The basic principle here was the amazing ability of women to multitask and minimize on the abuse they were exposed to, due their inability to provide for their families. The novel however proves to us that there are women who venture into economic activities with a clean heart, not as a form of arrogance but necessity.