Introduction
Gender remains one of the primary sources of contention in society, spanning various periods. In her poem “You Foolish Men,” de la Cruz describes the hypocrisy and injustice in gender relations. Note that the poem was published in the late 1600s, a time when women were confined to domestic duties. Comparatively, Espaillat’s poem “Find Work” is about the fate of a young woman widowed at an early age and forced, against all odds, to seek a source of her livelihood. Although both poets present the issue of feminism differently, they show that the traditional gender roles were demeaning to women and led to social injustices and moral concerns.
Similarities
Men as a Cause of Gender Inequality
In both poems, men are the primary cause of the problems that befall women in society. For instance, the first poem openly states that men shift blame to women without realizing their role in the problems. The poet states, “you foolish men who lay the guilt on women, not seeing you’re the cause of the very thing you blame” (de la Cruz lines 1-4). Women are often made to feel guilty for the mistakes made by men who are uninformed or unaware.
Similarly, the sonnet describes how the persona’s grandmother was widowed at a tender age and lost either her virginity or a child, depending on the reader’s interpretation. The persona sets a somber mood for the first line, “my mother’s mother, widowed very young of her first love, and of that love’s first fruit” (Espaillat lines 1-2). It is acceptable to suggest that the term fruit connotes the virginity of the woman, as inferred from the story of Adam and Eve. Another possible inference from the word is a child born from a union. Notably, there is a double standard, as women were traditionally expected to remain at home while their husbands provided for them financially. However, in the case of being widowed, the woman now has to find work.
Double Standards
De la Cruz further describes the double standards that men give to women, especially as regards their sexuality and modesty. She states, “with foolish arrogance, you hope to find a Thais in her you court, but a Lucretia when you’ve possessed her” (de la Cruz lines 18-19). Men have a secret desire for Thais during courtship and hope they end up with Lucretia after commitment. Thais was a prostitute, whereas Lucretia was a noblewoman who committed suicide after she was raped (“Sor Juana Inés De La Cruz” para.4). The woman is sexualized in a way that she can never satisfy the standards of patriarchal society.
Comparatively, despite the grandmother Espaillat’s poem being modest with her sexuality, the culture forces her to have multiple husbands. She was widowed at an early age and had to remarry. The persona describes her fate as “widowed again, with children, in her prime, she spoke so little it was hard to bear” (Espaillat lines 9-10). Her sorrow is multiplied by the fact that she now has children to fend for. Arguably, no man would be interested in marrying her with children because she is more of a burden. Moreover, life’s misfortunes and her prime age make her a poor competitor against young women and virgins.
Differences
Several differences in feminist perspectives are evident in de la Cruz’s and Espaillat’s poems. De la Cruz takes a firm stand against the traditional gender roles. She urges men to cease the guilt and outrage and instead “have them as you make them or make them what you will” (de la Czruzlines 59-60). The implication is that men should not complain when women are changing due to their actions. She criticizes men for judging women who become prostitutes to earn a living because the men are the ones who pay for their services. Thus, she successfully exposes the irony of men setting unreasonable standards for women and then blaming them if they fail.
Conversely, in Espaillat’s poem, the woman is a mere victim who resolves to continue with her traditional roles despite suffering. The grandmother changed multiple cultures and countries, but her status and societal roles remained the same. She “moved through her father’s farm, her country tongue and country heart anaesthetized and mute with labor” (Espaillat lines 13-14). If she were a man, she would have had many opportunities to explore and build her legacy. Yet, her fate is depicted in the persona’s memory, “I recall her floors, scrubbed white as bone, her dishes, and how painfully they shone” (Espaillat lines 13-14).
The depth of her grief is unfathomable because, despite all of her struggles, all she had to show was a neat house. Now that her second husband had died, she probably did not have a home to keep clean anymore. The contrast with de la Cruz’s poem is that she chooses to wallow in misery instead of confronting the unfair customs.
Conclusion
The poems show how society creates double standards for women. Interestingly, the poems were written by authors who lived in different times and had diverse backgrounds. Yet, some of the themes are closely intertwined—the sexuality of women and the expectations set by men for modesty or freedom intersect. No matter what the women do, there is always something to blame for their behavior. If they remain naïve and dependent on their husband, then the unprecedented death of the breadwinner exposes them to turmoil and grief.
The energy in de la Cruz’s poem is to speak against the ironic oppression. However, the grandmother in Espaillat’s poem stuck to her traditions and reaped misery, which leaves the readers pitying her condition. The traditional gender roles create injustices and blame women, but women have a choice on whether to rebel and find liberty or conform and bear the pain.
Works Cited
de la Cruz, Sor, J. “You Foolish Men.” Poets, 1680s.
Espaillat, Rhina, P. “Find Work.” Poetry Foundation, 1999.
“Sor Juana Inés De La Cruz: Latin America’s First Feminist.” COW Latin America – Research About Latin American, 2020.