Essay Sample on Romeo and Juliet: A Tale of Forbidden Love

Introduction

Most coming-of-age stories are quite beautiful. The girl meets her first love in a rather romantic approach, which makes it seem as if fate has brought them together intentionally. The same is what is experienced in the romance novel of Romeo and Juliet. Although they come from rival families, these two individuals cannot help but fall in love at first sight. When Romeo was heartbroken by Rosaline, who would not return his love, he was forced to attend the Capulet party, which is where he ran into Juliet, almost immediately after he went into the Capulet home. These two characters had something in common in the sense that they were both talked into attending the party. However, the fact that the two came from rival families prevented their relationship from becoming established. Juliet's parents had already chosen someone to marry her rather than let her choose for herself. This relationship between Romeo and Juliet compares to that of Gidget and Moondoggie in the sense that both couples represent a society where women are being considered inferior to men.

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By learning to surf herself, Gidget empowers herself by not following a similar path as the other teenagers who are of her age group since she pushed herself to do what she liked despite it being labeled a male sport. Even though the boys make fun of her at first, she manages to become their friend, which is why they start to teach her how to surf when hanging out. However, she also disempowers herself by falling in love with Moondoggie, who she settled for so she could fit in with the group of surfers. Before she could be recognized as a great surfer, the public had to be convinced of the fact that she was already hanging out with one of the best male surfers on the beach. The movie triggers a question about first-love experiences and how true these feelings can be. "Are the feelings young individuals have towards the opposite sex genuine or just infatuations?"

Gender Politics in Gidget: Gender Inequality and Sexism

Gender inequality is a commonly held belief that men and women cannot be equal. Sexism, on the other hand, is the discrimination against women by focusing on the differences between these two genders. Although Gidget is an outstanding surfer, she fails to get the recognition she needs due to the fact that she is a woman. It is believed that she cannot be as good as the male surfers, and her success is only acknowledged in relation to other great male surfers on the beach. Gidget goes to the beach with her friend in search of handsome boys. However, unlike the other women her age, Gidget is more interested in the surfing act more than the boys. When she got stuck on seaweed and had to call for help, the surfer boys came to her rescue (Kohner 11). That is where she got her first surfing experience. The film and original novel Gidget greatly impacted the surf boom that was experienced in the early 1960s at around the same time the story came out. Before that, women did not know that they would surf and become great at it. Hence, even though many had an interest in the sport, they did not participate in it. After Gidget, many women surfers could be seen on the beach as they had been inspired by the story. By learning to surf herself, Gidget empowers herself to do what she liked despite it being labeled a male sport. She also disempowers herself by falling in love with Moondoggie, who she settled for so she could fit in with the group of surfers.

Even though she was short and did not have any male-like physical characteristics, Gidget empowers herself to engage in surfing as she had an interest in the sport. When she indicates that she wants to learn how to surf, the boys who saved her after getting stuck in the water make fun of her (Kohner 11). This scene should be interpreted as a representation of gender inequality because of how the boys laughed at Gidget. They assumed that she would not master the required surfing skills. They did not think that she can manage to become good at surfing until she balanced on the board. Gender inequality is also seen in the scene where the boys gave her the nickname Gidget, a female version of Midget since she was also very short (Kohner 20). They were focusing on her physical characteristics and could not just accept that a woman can be great at surfing. Hence, the alteration of a name so that Gidget fits into the male category is a representation of gender inequality. These scenes represent gender inequality and how Gidget empowered herself by refusing to be stereotyped.

Gidget disempowers herself by getting romantically involved with Moondoggy as she still had an interest in people of the opposite sex, just as it was the case with other girls. Her relationship with Moondoggy was mainly because she wanted to feel like she belonged in a society where all girls had a crush or relationship (Kohner 26). Unfortunately, when she became successful, the stories were tied to how she hangs out with some of the best male surfers. Almost as if she would not have managed without them. Another example is seen when women had an interest in surfing, but none would take the step to engage and try out the sport (Kohner 28). They had become accustomed to the fact that it was a male sport. Therefore, this discrimination against women, whereby it is assumed that they cannot be great surfers, is a representation of sexism. The scenes summarized above are an example of how Gidget disempowered herself, even though she would have been successful on her own.

Conclusion

By learning to surf herself, Gidget empowers herself by not following a similar path as the other teenagers who are of her age group since she pushed herself to do what she liked despite it being labeled a male sport. Even though the boys make fun of her at first, she manages to become their friend, which is why they start to teach her how to surf when hanging out. "Are the feelings young individuals have towards the opposite sex genuine or just infatuations?"

Work Cited

Kohner, Frederick. Gidget. Berkley Books, 2001.