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Life Beyond "Being Country"

In: English and Literature

Submitted By hmshore92
Words 686
Pages 3
Life Beyond "Being Country"
As an 11 year old girl growing up on a farm, Bobbie Ann Mason, remembers not wanting that life. She has bigger dreams and aspirations, such as being "…an airline stewardess." (137) These are the dreams of many young girls who are idealistic and want to spread their wings. Mason questions her Mother and Grandmother's position on women's roles by screaming out in frustration, "Can't ya'll talk about anything but food?" to which her Grandmother replied, "Well, what else is there?"(137) This demonstrates the difference between the generations. Where Grandma willingly accepts her role, Mason emphatically questions her role and strives to create a different future for herself. Mason uses pathos, structure and tone to explain her point of view.
Mason's argument is emotional which appeals to the audience who will empathize with her desire for freedom. She illustrates that farm life is "…fraught with anxiety and desperation." (138) There is an air of helplessness as they rely heavily on Mother Nature for their survival. The weather has the ability to make or break the family on a daily basis. Mason describes how "farmers didn't take initiative" (138) and were reactionary against forces outside of their control. It is this "dependency on nature" (138) that fuels Mason's desire to rebel against the life that is expected.
Being a story about Mason's childhood, the structure is descriptive and based on personal experience. Mason illustrates childhood on the farm as revolving around food. "All the ingredients except the flour, sugar, and salt came from our farm" (138) and her mother was always "…butchering and plucking and planting and hoeing and shredding and slicing and creaming and pressure-cooking and canning and freezing and thawing and mixing and shaping and baking and frying." (138-139) She then paints a picture of life in town where things

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