Compared to the other readings that we have previously read in class, this is the first time a boy is the main character. In our previous text we were able to see how little girls should act but in "Ragged Dick" we were able to better understand the way little boys in the 19th century were expected to act. Reading this story we were also able to come up with major differences between the roles and place in society boys and girls held during this time period. Girls were taught to be pretty, elegant, a home maker, and most of all a good mother and wife. During this time girls/women were not seen as capable of doing the things that boys/men should and could do even though in "The Hidden Hand" Capitola made it very clear that girls can do whatever it may be and better. The differences that we saw were very disappointing to me, because boys had it much easier than girls did.
Dick was your typical boot black boy in New York. As a boy Dick was able to provide for himself without worrying about if he would be taken seriously. I cant help but think about Capitola, for she understood that she would not be able to get any work even if she had her own business such as a boot-black if she didn't change her appearance and make the world think she was boy. As Ragged as Dick looked, he was still able to make money despite his dirty face, button-less vest, too big pants and his black but once was white handkerchief. Boys of this time period did not have any worries, everything was care free in a scene. As long as you made an honest living you were seen as an okay guy, which is far from the case for little girls.
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I think this book shows how men were supposed to thrive in the outside world while women were to work mainly in the home. Men were the ones who supported the family by providing for them financially while women supported the family by being a good mothers.
ReplyDeleteI also thought of Capitola a lot while reading Ragged Dick. To me, Capitola is Ragged Dick's counterpart. Like Dick, she works hard and does whatever she must do to survive, she hardly ever complains, she ignores what people will think of her, and lives life day to day. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI think that in addition to the thought of the time period being that girls/women weren't capable of doing a boys/mans work was only part of the reasoning behind the placement of women in society. I think it's possible the men knew the women were capable, but didn't want to loose the power of being the provider.
ReplyDeleteThe difference between girls roles and boys roles in the 19th century was emphasized as we studied Ragged Dick. Girls were expected to do so many more things than the young boys. All boys had to do was be honest and ambitious enough to make a living and figure out a way to survive.
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