Fay Weldon- "weekend" 5s591m

Weeekend by Fay Weldon - Martha’s life

Weekend is a fictional story that concerns a weekend spent by a rich English middle-class family, Martha and Martin and their children, at their country cottage. The story’s central focus is Martha and much of the writing represents her stream of consciousness as she struggles to ensure that her family and the weekend guests are properly fed and looked after. Martha is the kind of obedient housewife,who does everything that stands in her power to satisfy the needs of every member of her family.She doesn’t contradict her husband,she doesn’t quarrel.She does her job everyday without waiting for something in exchange.Even her car is equiped with accessories for an entire family.She doesn’t have her own car,like Martin;her car is her family’s car.Her husband’s car is just his.She must deal with great difficulties.Her car is also old.When Martin refers to the car as being old or “too wide about the hips” he is actually refering to Martha.Martha herself could hear her description in that of the car and just like all women on earth she worries about getting old and ugly. The fact that the kids have the same initial letter in their names- J (Jasper, Jenny, Jolyon) reflects the monotony in Martha’s life.She has to deal with all kinds of problems,regarding her children’s health,school,teachers,but also regarding her friends. The story progresses fast and dangerously,as Martha rushes from one task to another in an attempt to keep everyone–especially her husband, Martin - happy. She is always carefull not to make a mistake that could disturb or upset Martin.She thinks the ideal wife should be a super-woman.She always feels compelled to satisfy Martin’s needs.she knows what he wants,what he likes. We are presented with lists of things to be done, as when Martha drowses during the car journey and contemplates her responsibilities to her children: Doctors for the tonsils: dentists for the molars. Confiscate guns:censor television: encourage creativity. Paints and paper to hand: books on the shelves: meetings.With teachers. Music teachers. Dancing lessons. Parties. Friends to tea.School plays.Open days. Junior orchestra. We are given insights into Martha’s feelings about her marriage, her children and her guests - in particular the beautiful Katie. ‘I say,’ said Katie, holding out a damp towel with evident distaste, ‘I can only find this. No hope of a dry one?’ And Martha had run to fetch a dry towel and amazingly found one and handed it to Katie who flashed her a brilliant smile and said, ‘I can’t bear damp towels. Anything in the world but damp towels,’ as if speaking to a servant in a time of shortage of staff, and took up all the water so there was none left for Martha to wash up. The language is straightforward and descriptive. The simple and direct style contributes to the sense of routine and the false

image of a stable, simple life. But reading between the lines and looking under the surface we can sense Martha’s emotions bubbling up with the increasing pressures and demands that are placed on her shoulders.Martha is treated like a servant by almost everybody.It’s like she can’t get out of the circle she is imprisoned in.Martin is always patronizing her.he makes her feel small and insignificant.She doesn’t get any thank you! for all her work.And she doesn’t say a word.There is a fragment where ”Martha dreamt she was eating coal,by handfuls and liking it.” The dictionary of symbols says about coal that it is the perfect image of self-restrain in a tumultous person.Eating coal may suggest Martha’s repressed feelings,her incapacity to respond,to object.She’s very ive,she doesn’t make the effort to get out of humiliating situations.Everybody,especially Martin is criticizing her and he does nothing at all for her.She feels she has the duty to care for everyone,but she doesn’t care at all about herself.She doesn’t have the strength to fight the psychological agression of those close to her. The story deals with Martha’s domestic and emotional work along with social expectations from her husband and other adults. It is a powerful tale which makes the reader think about contemporary gender roles and although the story was first published in 1978 it does not feel dated and in some ways is possibly more typical now than then. Although the story is written in the third person, we see things entirely from Martha’s viewpoint. The reader is given a view of the Protagonist, Martha’s life. It is one of endless hardship and toil for her uncaring husband Martin. As the story quickly unfolds, it becomes evident that Martha’s strained life has taken its toll on her mind and that she is almost crazy; Fay Weldon ends the piece with a dramatic and thought provoking conclusion. The ending to the piece is very dramatic, perhaps not on the level of a massive explosion or a shocking event however it does make the reader pause for thought at the extensity of what it presents and the writer used many techniques to make the reader appreciate this. Everything in this piece is dominated by the issues that run throughout. Underlying themes of sexism, gender inequalities, body image and gender stereotyping are presented very strongly, making its presence very felt with the reader. For things to change,women like Martha should change their conception on life,their attitude towards life and people.Women should try to change the men that stand beside them and if they can’t be changed they must be given up.