The story “Three Girls” by Joyce Carol Oates takes place in March 1956 at an old book store known as Strand Used Books. It involves three characters, hence the title of the book. The three include a celebrity Marilyn Monroe and two other girls who are lovers (lesbians). The two lovers approve the book store and see a lady inside the book store who looked like Marilyn Monroe. They are conflicted within themselves, wondering whether actually, it was her; secondly, they wonder whether they should approach her or just let her remain unnoticed (thereby protect her identity), and they are also conflicted on whether they are actually in love with each other or not. The theme of power struggle between genders run through the story.
In the first instance, we see Marilyn Monroe, a celebrity of her stature, avoiding being noticed at the book store. This is an accomplished film-maker in her own right who needed not only to be noticed but to be celebrated because of her accomplishment. Instead, she is only noticed and perceived as a sex object. To this end, she had to maintain her sex appeal to her male counterparts. On page 79, the narrator describes that “That figure was a garish blond showgirl, a Hollywood ‘sexpot’ of no interest to intellectuals.” Marilyn Monroe’s significance is described from the spotlight of her sexual appeal and her appearance and not her intellect and achievements, never mind she is in a book store looking for a book she could read/ add to her knowledge. She is portrayed as one who got attention not because of her accomplishments and her endured struggles to establish her career, but because of her alluring beauty and appearance. She represents the female celebrities and achievers in life who were only seen as sex objects, and their role in society was that of satisfying men sexually. So, despite her accomplishments, this great celebrity of the time is portrayed as one who was subjected to the principles and decisions of the patriarchal society.
In “The Moths,” Helena Maria Viramontes tells the story of our narrator, who is sometimes portrayed as mischievous and rebellious to her parents. She resists attending the mass on Sundays, and this criticized by her family-she seems to be questioning religion and not fully accepting it. The narrator, a fourteen-year-old girl, is subjected to several cultural-skewed oppressions ranging from defined gender roles, family obligations, and religious observation. She uses her grandmother and her grandmother’s house as a form of escape from these oppressions. She sees her grandmother’s house as a sanctuary from her oppressive family and the patriarchal society. She is later obligated to take care of her ailing grandmother, who dies, and she is washing her body. This is a significant loss for the girl but had to happen so that she let go of her resentfulness and embrace rebirth into her new self. She equates her grandmother with god by saying that when her grandmother looked at her, she felt like “how god should really make you feel.”
Like the moth, a woman’s liberation from the patriarchal oppression will someday come when she dies. The moths at the end of the story signify the metamorphosis motif after fluttering from the body (cocoon) of the grandmother the woman can reach her full development, although it might be in different conditions like that of death (Brady, 74). The tomb, in this case, becomes the womb for her rebirth. Death brings freedom. By the moths leaving her grandmother’s body, it signifies that the grandmother is finally free from all forms of oppression. It also signifies the freedom the girl experiences from her previous resentfulness. She is actually seen in a bathtub, and she dives in it almost to signify some form of baptism.
In the end, the narrator is not only mature but has been reborn, and no longer hold grudges with her family. She longs to reconnect with her mother, and she narrates, “for the first time in a long time I cried, rocking us, crying for her, for me, for Amá, the sobs emerging from the depths of anguish, the misery of feeling half-born, sobbing until finally, the sobs rippled into circles and circles of sadness and relief” (Viramontes, 305).
From the two stories, society is largely portrayed as patriarchal, and the womenfolk are not given their rightful place. Women are often considered inferior to men, and their role in society is equally looked down upon. Women are also seen to fear to be in the presence of men. In Oates’ work, the celebrated film-maker seems scared as she approaches the male cashier, and she reaches out for her pair of dark glasses in an effort to conceal her identity (Oates,82). Additionally, we see the two lovers cautious of ‘uncovering’ Marilyn in the bookstore because of the fear they had over the men who manned the store. Oppression, though in different forms, is a common theme in the two stories. In “Three Girls,” a woman’s significance is pegged on her body appearance and sexual appeal and not on her achievements and her contributions to the development of society. In “The Moth,” a woman’s job is restricted to hands and sewing; these are seen as symbols of a woman’s work.
To fight the said oppression, Oates has introduced feminism. This is expressed by the sexual relationship between the two girls. Throughout the story, the reader experiences the love feelings shared between the two girls. The language used portrays two love birds who use romantic dialogue to express how they feel for each other. “In an agony of unspoken young love, I watched you.” (Oates, 15) This is enhanced by the presence of Marilyn Monroe, who is a symbol of beauty and femininity. The story concludes by the two girls kissing for the first time, “That magical evening of Marilyn Monroe when I kissed you for the first time.” The womenfolk seem to come out from the oppression of the patriarchal society and, for the first time, enjoy the freedom of loving and being loved (Gale, 42). Their spirits are set free too, and they enjoy not only their beautiful bodies but also the gift of love. The woman is set free to do what she deems fit without the fear of being judged or condemned. The writer lets the women know that they can choose to break free and enjoy life even in the midst of the social-cultural norms that seem to favor the men. Women can choose another form of freedom. This is the same idea propagated in “The Moth,” where a woman is seen to break loose from the chains of cultural oppression, although this happens at death. The woman’s chains are broken at death, and she can be reborn to lead a free life once again. Marilyn Monroe is symbolically presented to show the struggle of women in breaking the chain of oppression. She is in the old store dressed almost like a man. She is in a man’s navy coat t her uncles, and her sleeves are covered past the wrist. She is also wearing a man’s beige fedora hat to the extent that most of her hair is covered. She is also ni cowboy boots and black trousers. She seems to be running away from femininity, which has been used by society for a long time to oppress women. She is no longer sexually appealing. The color of her clothes is very dull and not attractive. Her whole body is fully covered. You can’t see her arms, her legs, or even her hair. She is tired of the femininity and wants to break free.
In both stories, there is the theme of realism. In “The Moth,” the narrator resembles Hellena Maria’s early life, where she lived with her grandmother and found solace and comfort under her custody. This is the same case with the fourteen-year-old girl who prefers to live with her grandmother as opposed to her family. In the “Three Girls,” the celebrated Marilyn Monroe had a difficult childhood where she was physically abused by both her family members and strangers. She had struggled, endured a lot of pain and took a lot of effort to get her career to where it got. She is a symbol of hard work and determination.
Works Cited
Gale, Cengage. “A Study Guide for Joyce Carol Oates’s “Three Girls”. Gale, Cengage Learning, 2018.
Brady, Jacqueline. “The Moths” by Helena Maria Viramontes.” Prezi.com, 21 Feb. 2014, prezi.com/-smuhwlz_k3i/the-moths-by-helena-maria-viramontes/. Accessed 10 May 2020.
Oates, Joyce Carol. “Three Girls.” The Georgia Review 56.3 (2002): 771-779.
Viramontes, Helena M. The Moths, and Other Stories. Arte Publico P, 2014.