FEMINIST APPROACH

The Virgin
by Kerima Polotan

The story revolves around Miss Mijares, a typical Filipina who finished school, took care of her family and stood as a benefactor, especially to her late mother. This story portrays a woman through the character Miss Mijares. Her thoughts, imaginations, fears, longing, and frustration as a woman were reflected in this short story.
In the feminist approach, I will be using the three words that are most likely to be related to a woman, feminine, feminist, and female. Let’s look at the first word mentioned – feminine. It is the internalization of its standards, meaning, feminine is all woman. In this story, we can see that Miss Mijares had done many things that benefitted her and her family without the aid of male companion, but as we can see as the story goes, she is feminine in the sense she seeks completion with a male partner.
The second word is feminist - it is the protest of the set standard of feminine. Example would be conversation of Miss Mijares and the carpenter where she sarcastically, in my opinion, replied to the carpenter and showed her superior experience with the opposite sex. Also, the time where the carpenter was absent without notice where she reprimanded the person for being absent.
The word female on the other hand was proven in the earlier part of the story, where she took care of business in providing for her family. But she was able to do these things because of the female instinct, the discovery self and her capacities.
The words feminine, feminist, and female were given examples as different phases of the character’s womanhood. But the fact remains that three words mentioned though separated in action and circumstances belonged to a single individual who is a woman.