Gender Roles and Marriage - Essay Example

Gender Roles/Marriage A sense of responsibility crops into an individual’s life when he or she attains adult age. This sense of responsibility leads to a feeling that one should set into marriage life. The need to accomplish family tasks become eminent when one settles for marriage life. Sometimes some people leave their previous lifestyles in order to accommodate the new life they have acquired. Psychologists believe that emotions, behavior change, or reactions to issues affecting ones environment depend on cognitive development and environmental factors. Many approaches that people take when handling issues in marriage or daily life depend on biological factors that influence cognitive development and the physical factors that influence growth. In writing, authors present psychological response of characters differently. This paper compares psychological response of character in the story “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” and “The Story of An Hour” and the influence of the response to normal body functions. In “The Story of An Hour” Mrs. Mallard had been leading a strict marriage life. The marriage relationship did not meet the expectation of Mrs. Mallard because she felt that her husband had imposed several rules in her love life thereby denying her a chance to experience love in marriage. Marriage exposes couples to various conditions that they did not imagine in their previous lives. Sometimes some couples are not able to accept the challenges they meet in marriage. This results into a lackluster relationship as experienced by Mrs. Mallard in this story. In the story, Mrs., Mallard suffered illnesses because of her marriage perceptions and conditions. Psychologically, emotional imbalances in an individual’s life influence the immune system of the body. Couples in dull marriage relationships experience a series of illnesses that occur because of dullness or a feeling of deprivation. Mrs. Mallard did not enjoy the presence of her husband. It is apparent that when she heard of her death, she overwhelmed in joy (Chopin, 2011). Breaking the death information to her was not easy, considered that she had been ill. It is arguable that emotional response to an issue is a direct interpretation of the brain. Psychologically, any information that leads to hilarious emotions is dangerous to people who are suffering from diseases such as heart disease (Delamater, 2006). Mrs. Mallard sudden change of emotions is an indication that self-imposed rules in marriage can influence psychological or physical health of an individual. Apparently, Mrs. Mallard was not able to deal with her conditions in marriage effectively (Chopin, 2011). Largely, she was not able to control emotional dullness that she feels in her life. Indeed, she longed for freedom or change which she got briefly when she digested the meaning of the information that her husband was dead. It is apparent that Mr. Mallard had imposed rules or values in their marriage life that had influenced the views and health of her wife. It is arguable that matters touching on relationship influence general life of an individual. Psychologically, exposures to factors that influence stress levels in human brain reduce the activity of neurons, which are responsible for other body functions (Kalat, 2010). The brain coordinates body activities through neurons, which may die during high level of stress. In the story “Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, Mitty, the main player in the story has to face a hard time in his marriage. His marriage does not offer anything pleasurable. He feels that his wife has dominated the marriage. He looks for a means, which could help him escape problems associated with his marriage life. Mitty’s relationship with his wife does not seem to illustrate that they are able to think or do things together. Largely, Mitty leads a life of fantasy in order to escape physical realities in his relationships. Mitty engaged in series of daydreams which keeps his mind occupied from the naked reality that seems to tear his psychological abilities (Thurber, 2008). Psychologically, fantasy or daydreams influence one’s ability to perform activities in the normal society. Psychologists have observed that daydreams contrasts real things that people observe or do in the society. However, daydreams are the genesis of great inventions that the society boosts of today. In the story, Mitty’s fantastic life takes him away from real life. His wife observed abnormality in his actions or perceptions towards life. These observations made the wife to think of seeking a medical attention. It is apparent that Mitty’s fantasies led to psychological problems. It is arguable that a prolonged fantasy can lead to psychological problem as witnessed by the actions of Mitty in the novel. Mitty argued that he is about to win a battle which is not there in the first place (Thurber, 2008). Psychoanalysis of the two stories reveal that pressure pile up in marriage life can lead to inability to lead a real life or the inability to think like others (Barlow & Durand, 2011). In both stories, the protagonists suffer from mental illnesses. The protagonist Mitty failed to see his real life situation, but led a life that is far from reality. It is arguable that interpretation given to a situation or a condition that influences ones life can lead to psychological disorders. Social monogamy theories in psychology tend to explain factors that influence relationships, ties, and feelings in marriage. It is arguable Mitty’s marriage and Mrs. Mallards marriage were fulfilling during their early years of marriage. The intimacy they developed influenced the ties they had before settling in marriage. Psychological theory of relationship satisfaction argues that satisfaction as perceived by individual before marriage usually decline in the first years of marriage (Barlow & Durand, 2011). It is apparent that Mrs. Mallard and Mitty did not enjoy their marriage life. They complained of lackluster relationships, characterized with dullness and boredom. Psychologists believe that emotional erosion in the first years of marriage is responsible for the lackluster relationship presented in both cases (Delamater, 2006). When one settles in adult stage, a feeling of love and to be loved develops. This feeling makes people to develop the urge to settle in relationship. However, environmental factors such as work, attention, attachment to other issues may erode the affection felt in marriage. When emotional erosion occurs, a person would feel bored, stressed, and often develops an urge to walk out of the relationship. For instance, Mrs. Mallard felt imprisoned by her marriage and was happy when she heard that her husband was dead. Conversely, Mitty developed mental problems and showed happiness whenever he engaged in mental movies. It is also arguable from the relationship satisfaction theory that motivational erosion was responsible for the conditions of the protagonists in these stories. Psychologists believe that motivation plays a great role in shaping individual’s emotions. Motivated persons usually show good health, enthusiasm in activities they do, and show affection in marriage (Barlow, & Durand, 2011). Apparently, in both stories the protagonists did not show any sign of motivation in their marriage life. Instead, each of them built a mental picture on how to walk out of their current cocoon and enjoy what the future had in store for them. It is evident, that a motivated person does not experience stress. Mrs. Mallard had a lot of stress, which led to her poor health. It is apparent that Mitty and Mrs. Mallard were vulnerable to marriage conditions, which they did not visualize. Normal rebound did not characterize their marriage relationships. Psychologists believe that when couples loose normal rebound, their relationship is likely to be unsatisfactory (Barlow & Durand, 2011). Non-satisfying relationships usually influence behavioral attitudes of the couples. For instance, Mitty and Mrs. Mallard felt well in the absence of their marriage partners. Psychological research on long term relationships or marriages argue that values of the partners involved in a marriage influence period that the relationship would take (Delamater, 2006). The story of Mrs. Mallard and Mitty indicated that their marriages were not fulfilling, but they held it because of different values. For instance, Mitty spent most of his time in the world of fantasy while Mrs. Millard fathomed about her life without her husband. In both cases, they had values for their marriage, which kept the couples in the same relationship. Satisfaction in a relationship influences divorce or separation. Psychologists believe that partners who fail to see satisfaction in the marriage life do not see the point of continuing in the relationship (Delamater, 2006). For instance, Mrs. Millard was not satisfied with the conditions in her marriage (Chopin, 2011). She felt relieved when she fathomed about the death and the impact of her husband’s death on her life. She echoes the word free indicating that her relationship was not satisfying. Psychologists attribute reaction of couples in marriage as a factor that contribute to emotional erosion in marriage. The following character reactions are probable factors that erode emotions in a relationship. Criticism, contempt, stonewalling, and defensiveness are factors, which make many couples to lose the love in their relationship (Chrisler & McCreary, 2010). For instance, in stories of Mrs. Mallard and Mitty, contempt played a great role in making their marriage unsatisfactory. Largely, many couples feel and need good treatment in relationships. Marriage partners feel that they should have a stake in their marriage. For example, when Mitty lost a stake in his marriage, he preferred to fantasize as a means of satisfying his abilities (Thurber, 2008). Conversely, Mrs. Mallard does not feel involved in the marriage. Instead, she viewed her condition as a small prison, which denied her love life. Personal attachment is very crucial in keeping the relationship satisfying. The stories of Mitty and Mrs. Mallard are a revelation that attachment influences marriages. In conclusion, psychological fulfillment plays a vital role in marriage life. In the story Secret Life of Walter Mitty and The Story of An Hour protagonists in these stories suffered psychological torture because their relationships do not offer what they had expected. Psychologists believe that satisfaction in a relationship would influence psychological abilities of partners in relationship. Psychologists cite interactional factors such as criticism, stonewalling, defensiveness and contempt as factors which contribute to emotional erosion. Consequently, emotional erosion in marriage can lead to lackluster relationship characterized by stress and boredom. It is also important to note that psychological problems in marriage influence normal biological conditions of the human body. References Barlow, H. D. & Durand, M. V. (2011). Abnormal Psychology: An Integrative Approach. New York: Cengage Learning. Chopin, K. (2011). The Story of an Hour: And Other Stories. New York: Pinball Publishing. Chrisler, C. J. & McCreary, R. C. (2010). Handbook of gender research in psychology, Volume 1. New York: Springer. Delamater, D. J. (2006). Handbook of social psychology. New York: Springer. Kalat, W. J. (2010). Introduction to Psychology. New York: Cengage Learning. Thurber, J. (2008). The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Minnesota: The Creative Company. Read More