Transformation of the Main Character in Boys and Girls Essay

A Foxy Girl

In the story Boys and Girls by Alice Munro, the main character is a young girl that is in a struggle to find herself. Her outlook on life changes dramatically from being tough and much like a boy to being frilly now acting like a stereotypical girly girl.

At first the main character of the story is much like a boy. She lives on a fox farm in Canada that raises silver foxes for their fur, and she gets much pleasure form helping her father do chores on the farm and working hard and getting dirty much like a boy would. A hard worker she often carries a water barrel through the barn yard to the fox pens to get them their water. Along with watering the foxes, she helps her father cut grass to cover the fox pens with it to keep their coats from becoming dark form the summer sun light. Her father has become very proud of her ability to work like a boy and even refers to her as his new hired man and this statement makes her very happy.

It is now fall and as she is beginning to feel the pressure of people wanting her to act like a girl. While wheeling the water tank out of the fox pins back to the barn she notices her mother standing in front of the barn talking to her father. Her mother is complaining about how she is always outside helping her father and that Laird should be the one out there doing the boys work. She makes her do housework in the kitchen and every time this happens she always runs outside as soon as the work is done. As she wheels the tank up to the barn she overhears her mother say, Wait till Laird gets bigger, then youll have real help. Shes not too happy about hearing her mom say this; after all she thinks that Laird is pretty much useless. Shortly after the conversation her mother had with her father things start changing in the way she is being viewed by the people around her. Laird has finally started to grow up and become stronger and while wrestling with her he pinned her to the ground for a short time and really hurt her. Her grandmother has come to visit and is going to be staying with them for a few weeks. While her grandmother is there she hounds her continuously about acting like a proper girl.

It is now spring and the girl is beginning to act more like a girl instead of a boy. She has witnessed for the first time a horse being killed for the purpose of feeding the foxes. She actually seems to feel a little bit of remorse for the horse that was shot as her legs are shaking from the scene of the dead horse and blood on the ground. This is the first of signs that she is becoming more of a girl than previous times. A few weeks later it is now time for the female horse to be shot for meat. However, this time the girl didnt even consider watching. She was out in the yard picking up tree branches that had been broken off during the winter when she noticed the horse break free from the barn. Her father and his hired hand attempted to corner the horse but once again the she was able to get away. The horse began to run across the field toward an open fence and the girl ran to shut the fence but instead let the horse run out of the field and off of the property. Her father and his hired hand and laird immediately jumped into the truck and began to pursue the horse. Once the men where gone she told her mom about what had happened and then went to her room and began decorating her side spreading lace curtains over the bed and setting up a dressing table with a skirt made from leftover curtains. At night while she is in bed she begins telling stories to herself as if she where a being saved by boys from dangerous situations. When her father returns home Laird tells of how she just let the horse run free and how she didnt even attempt to keep her in the pin. When her father learns of this she begins to cry and all her father had to say to her is, Shes only a girl.

The girl has made some drastic changes in her personality. She has gone from acting and working like a boy, to feeling the pressure to change into acting like a proper girl, to finally doing the kinds of things associated with being a girl.