In the story “The Girls in Their Summer Dresses” its ...
Kathia Cordero Caban Cordero 1
Professor Mongar
INGL3104-141
May 7, 2003
Final Essay
It is very hard to understand why a married man has to “visually betray” his wife. The phrase “visually betray” is an example when a man is with his wife and at the same time he can not stop watching other women. In the story “The Girls in Their Summer Dresses” its author, Irwin Shaw, used characterization to show how the setting was affecting his obsession and how he was destroying his marriage with his wife Frances.
Michael was fascinated with women’s glamour. He lived in New York and he was watching all the time fabulous women. In New York is easy to find all kinds of women. When Michael described all the women he liked, he was referring to all the women that rounded him everyday. Michael said, “ When I think in New York, I think of all the girls on parade in the city”(Shaw 722). He mentioned office girls, actresses, sales girls, women at theaters, “girls in their summer dresses” and others kinds of women. It is obvious how the place where he was living was affecting and feeding his fascination.
At the other hand was his marriage with Frances. She felt that she was not enjoying her relationship. She wanted to spend more time with him. It is shown
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when she said, “I want him to talk only to me and listen only to me” (Shaw 719). She was aware of her husband way of looking at other girls but she did not know why. The reason that explained his constant watches to women was not in Frances’ mind. Sometimes she tried to skip her knowledge about the problem but it was hurting her. It was demonstrated in the passage “I try not to notice it”…“but I feel rotten inside”…(Shaw 721) when they were going to the bar. At almost the end of the story she was so hurt that asked him if he wanted to be free and referred to her as a pretty woman too. She was suffering because Michael was distracted with women. He used to look at them everywhere he went. He never cared if he was with his wife or not. The worst part is when he told Frances what he thought about all women. He revealed himself when he said what kind of women he liked. His frustration was shown when he said “I got all this stuff accumulated in me because I’ve been thinking in it for ten years”(Shaw 722).
A writer in the Internet used Michael’s and Frances story as an example of “meaningless and loveless marriage”. It may change in other’s mind because a responsive poem to the story by Ronder Holder expresses the ‘sincerity’ of Michael. Michael was not being sincere with Frances; he was being cruel to her expressing his fascination to women. His psyche was full of what he liked of women and he was not thinking in his marriage. His time to spend with women was gone. Michael was not a teenager anymore. He was an adult and a marriage man. Michael only liked beautiful women and when he thought “what nice
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legs”(Shaw723) of his wife is when the reader discovers his obsession. He had an obsession with the physical side of women, no matter if that woman was his wife or not.
It is shown in this story a stage on a man’s life which most be fulfill at that moment in order to avoid further negative consequences. It is what happened to Michael’s marriage because he was destroying what he had and his place of living was worsening the problem. It was so huge that his marriage almost ended. Such frustrations should be faced in the early stage of life. If the person is aware of what is happening, he should try not to be dominated by the situation. The most reasonable action is tried to live a normal life and to valorize what is possessed in the present. In Michael’s case he should enjoy his life with his wife Frances.
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