Its Hard to Feel Alive…

In the 1950s, women in American society relied on men to provide them a stable future filled with security and income. Cathy struggles greatly trying to be happy with her life because Frank, her husband, never appears or puts the effort to show he cares. It seems though impossible, keeping her family together when he barely comes home most nights, and her kids don’t have the feeling of a father figure in their life. As Frank avoids being affectionate with Cathy and instead with other men; slowly, this tares her down and her family apart. The fear of losing him, she only hopes with time and treatment his disease would get better, but truly  it only got worse. Cathy gets physically abused by Frank. Women during that time period were considered property owned by their husbands, therefore it was very common for women to get hit.

Turning to Raymond, an African American man, Cathy begins to feel important, and meaningful in his presents. Though society does not accept Raymond, Cathy thinks he’s simply beautiful. Unable to express how she feels to her husband, Raymond allows her to talk about any of her problems. However, as the community begins to see them causally standing together, others start to talk and awful rumors continue to spread. Its hard for Cathy to live without no longer having a man who loves her, and Raymond to rely on when he leaves town. Cathy is vulnerable once she is left with almost nothing to make her feel alive.

“You’ll Be Free or Die…”

The powerful words of Harriet Tubman. A strong, black, womanly figure, in American History during the countless years of slavery. Brutally beaten and injured by savage white men; she had put herself before others and gave over three thousand slaves the choice to live freely or to die chained.

“There was one of two things i had a right to, liberty or death; if i could not have one, i would have the other; for no man should take me alive…”

Conducting the Underground Railroad; Harriet Tubman, took the audacity, not fearing and having the boldness to take nineteen trips back and forth to rescue others over her own self. This was a self-less act made by Harriet and unlike most slaves, she believed it was either between life or death – and by life, she did not mean staying “alive” but more so, being “free.” Harriet had always carried a pistol around with her. This shows not only the seriousness she took each trip but also, the power she carried as a black women. Zinn mentions the power Harriet had through her actions. Even using the pistol to threaten the fugitives; she said that running away isn’t an option but a choice to finally break-free. She influenced and changed many lives of blacks; giving them the freedom to live their own lives, no longer making them fear or suffer from mistreatment and cruelty by whites. One women saving the lives of hundreds who were constantly whipped, with scared marks all over their body repeatedly, like disobeident animals; Harriet gave them the ability to escape and never to return to a place so haunting.