Dayshawna Hinton

AP English
Mrs. Babcock
06/03/2015

Within the two narrative passages discussing the bias treatment towards
the female and the male educational systems, passage 1 addresses the society
about the extravagance of the luncheon at the men's college which contrasts
with passage 2s frustration towards the plan dinner at the women's college in
order to, respectively, prove that there is discrimination of gender, implying that
women are submissive and have no desire to defend themselves against the
discrimination of the world.
Virginia Woolf explicitly describes the extravagance of each meal to
contrast the different nature of each college by demonstrating the emotions
within the environment, which conveys how each gender, were treated. Woolf
described the men college luncheon as being foliated as rosebuds but more
succulent . . . [and] wineglasses had flushed yellow . . . and crimson (lines 18,
24-25), comparing the passages by demonstrating how lively and privileged the
male college life is. This allows the readers to infer that man colleges have the
feeling of luxury. Woolf utilizes imagery to demonstrate how men are not hasty
nor rusty to finish their meals, which allows the reader to imply that their
relaxed and luxurious setting is a privilege that is given to them based on their
sex. This implies that men have been put on a pedestal for generations which
demonstrate their dominance over the women. Woolf conveys this by describing
men's arrogant and self-centered.
Although Woolf demonstrates how the men are treated with the
respect she unveils how the women are confined in the mens' shadow, which
conveys how the genders are not equal in the society. Woolf utilizes the word
plain (line5, 8), which demonstrates how the dinner is dull and not as luxurious
like the mens. This allows the reader to infer that women are looked down upon
by society. Plain conveys the extravagance of the dinner, but it also allows
Woolf to express her dissatisfaction. When she voices her dissatisfaction about
how submissive the women are and their unwillingness to change. This
demonstrates how the women have been trapped in the mens' shadow for
generations and their unwillingness to change is feeding the mens' egos. By
doing this, the women are giving the men more power and dominance over
them. However, theyll look at the same dull dinner, plate, and dining room, yet

they are not trying to do anything within their will power to challenge the mens'
superiority even slightly.
If Woolf never expressed her disgust with men lack of concern and
arrogance. Then women would have never seen how they allow men to be the
superior gender. Therefore, we, as a society need to devote ourselves to
establishing a society that treats each sex equally.