Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Ruth's Song
In "Ruth's Song" by Gloria Steinem, we learn about how people can go through changes in life. Ruth goes through many changes in her life. She goes from being a successful writer to being a depressed woman who hears voices. She then goes to a former Ruth of not being depressed or down. On page 162 Ruth tells her daughter about her past. Ruth's daughter questions her about not leaving her life for a new one. Ruth responds by saying that "if Id left you never would have been born." Ruth's daughter thought about this and said to herself "but you might have been born instead." What do you think Ruth's daughter means by this? Has there been a time in your life where you think you might have made a decision that could of made you born again? If not, explain a time where this could happen in your future.
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When Ruth's daughter says to herself that her mother would have been born instead, i think she is trying to say that if her mother and left the life that she was leading then she might not have had the depression that she had. Staying with her husband lead to moments where her mother was emarassed because she was worried and he was yelling at her. Also following her husband she left behind a career that the loved and cherished. If she would have stayed who knows what could have happened. She could have married the other man that she was attracted to at work and could have had a whole better life style and not have had the depression. Often times, when we start new stages in our lives we are "born again" and because of that we become completely different people. Which can lead to a postive os a neagtive effect on our lives.
When Ruth's daughter said that I think she was saying that if she would have made a different decision in her life, she may not have ended up so depressed and had such a difficult life. She left her career, that she was very good at, to be with Ruth's father. If she would have stayed where she was, she may have had a more successful life. I don't think I've had a time in my past where this situation has happened to me, but in my future I see myself starting a new life, and becoming a new person. I think it will be a good change because it will hopefully be beneficial towards my career and when I start my own family.
I think that Ruth's daughter is trying to get at when she says that to herself, is that her mother would of been able to live a different life. Her life would not of been full of depression. She sacrificed a lot of successful paths to live the life that she did. I have not had this happen to me in my life, but I do see myself turning into a new person. I just hope that what ever path I take, it does not have a negative effect on my life kind of what happened to Ruth.
It seems as though Ruth feels as though a mother should never leave a daughter or son. If she had not had children, i believe she would have left her husband to start a new life. When Ruth's daughter says "but you might have been born instead," i think she is explaining that Ruth would not have gone through the mental experience she went through if she had left her husband. If Ruth had been "born again", Ruth could have started a new life and pursued what she liked. Not only could have she followed her passion of being a writer, she could have had a chance to marry another person she truly loved.
Ruth goes through many changes in her life. These changes are both good and bad. I believe the most important change that Ruth had in her life was when she split with her husband. After they split, Ruth becomes more depressed and upset. Ruths daughter just wonders what would have happened if Ruth and her husband would have stayed together, or what if she would have married someone else. I believe a good example of being born again is when you start a new stage of your life in schooling. Like from middle school to highschool, or high school to college. I know my first day of college i felt like a totally different person with a fresh start at something new.
I think that by Ruth's daughter saying this that it means that if she would have left then maybe she would not have ended up living such a depressed life. She could have bettered her life and by doing that it would be as if she was living again. I have not had to make a some what life changing decision, but I think when it comes time to choose a career and find a job, I feel like if I don't make the right choice for myself then it could cause me to get of track and become a person that I don't want to be.
I think what Ruth's daughter means to say is that Ruth could've had a much happier life. She could've married the successful man she loved, pursued her career as either a journalist or a teacher and perhaps not be driven into her state of craziness. There have been a few times in my life where I wish I could've been born again. Times like this, I wish I could just go back and replay situations or past times in my life. Even though most of us are happy with our current lives, sometimes you wonder and think what if you had to do it all over again?
I feel that Ruth's daughter is trying to say that if she would have never gone down that path then she would have lived a different life. She left a job that she was good at and loved. That job may have made her more successful down the road if she stayed there. I have made decisions in my life that altered my life in a way, whether they are small or big i can think of a few times...For Example. where i chose to go to college for my first yr. i chose to go to a comuter school instead of OU. Who knows what i would be doing right now if i would have gone here a yr. early. When i was 16 i had a chance to go and live with my uncle in Hawaii but i never took it. Choices that we make affect us everyday. we just have to learn from them and try to make the best ones we can.
I think Ruth's daughter means that if she didn't live her life the way she did, she could have been born into a new woman and could have been somebody completely different. She could have been someone who wasn't "weird". I don't think this has ever happened to me but i think in my life, if i get married i could be born again into a new woman.
I think her daughter is saying this meaning that like her mother couuld have lived a different life than what she did. She could have lived life the way that she wanted to rather than how she did. This has never happened to me, but I'm sure it will at some point in time because i feel that it does to everyone.
When Ruth says this i believe that she means that if her mother would have left she would have been reborn, she may have not became scared of being alone and maybe would have never gone crazy. Her life would have taken a completely different turn, thus an overall different life. I can not think of a time where I had the chance to become born again but I think a chance where this may arise is if or when I meet a guy i want to spend my life with but our careers are steering us in different direction I am going to have to decide whether I want to go with him or be born again and go with the path that is set for me.
Ruth's daughter ment that instead of having her, and having her and allowing her to do everything she has done, her mother could have done things for herself and she would not of had to do all the things that she went through her in her life. I went through an experience sorta related to this in high school. My brother was going to be there the year after I graduated. He played basketball just like me and the coach just disliked me and my family. We wanted to make sure that he want treated like that. The only choice there was, was for me to quit and fight for him. I was so unhappy I did quit and once a month me and my father would attend board meeting lobbying for this coaches firing. I had to give up my love to make sure he would have his, I thought it was more beneficial for him to play 4 years then me 2. He ended up getting fired and my brother now has a fair chance and is playnig right now.
First I would like to say I thought this was a very good essay. It showed a lot throughout Ruth's life and the things that she went through that made her depressed at some points. The stories in her life helped me as the reader to understand as to what the author means when she asks her self a simple question about why her mother didnt leave for New York and a new life. Her mother says if she would have left then her daughter or the author never would have been born. Her daughter then thinks to her self, But you might have been born instead. I think what the author means by this is if her mother went to New York and would have opened up her life to a brighter one. Where her dreams could be lived with no depression. She could have been born again in a sense that she was starting a new life in a new place with a new job and a new man.
I think when Ruth says "if Id left you never would have been born." and her daughter responds by saying "but you might have been born instead." there could be many interpretations. Mainly so many things would have been different in Ruth's life. She may not have went through the stages of depression and pain, dependency and silence. I dont recall a time in my life where one simple decision could have affected the outcome of my life. I've started new stages in my life like high school and college but nothing as meaningful as we read about.
I think what she means by this comment is that her mother is not really living when she goes through these stages of fear. I think that eventually her mother was "reborn" again when she started acting like her self when she was younger toward the end of the essay. She was starting to make jokes and converse with people again. I don't think I have ever felt like I needed to be reborn again. But i find it interesting how Ruth's daughter uses the words "born instead" like her mother has never lived at all.
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