Story Exposition

CHAPTER ONE

Every woman knows what they are expected to be and how they are expected to act. I have been designed by society, custom made to satisfy men. I am constantly confined to the edges of life, cooking in the house and birthing babies for my husband. I can do nothing I want, nothing I need. For, I am not supposed to want, to need. I am just supposed to be. Be the woman on the edges, making life comfortable for man.
In this society there should be no reason for me to question my place. It has been clearly defined by the generations of women before me, twisting back through the memories of time.
Like every woman, I too am being forced into this confining mold. I am only seventeen, yet there is no mystery to how my life is going to unfold. I sometimes wish there was more uncertainty, more room for me to grow. Maybe even a chance for me to learn about myself without society holding so tightly to my hand. I want to be set free, but I can’t. My life is already planned out for me.
I have what every women should long for, every woman should want. I have a man who is deeply in love with me. I come from a wealthy family. I am an attractive and well educated woman. However, for one reason or another I not satisfied. My father, Eric, and my mother, Mary, expect me to happily slide into my custom crafted mold. They expect me to turn out exactly like them.
The loved crazed boy whom desperately wants to marry me is named Julian. He is kind and funny, and relatively handsome. It is not that I do not like him, for I do. I just do not love him. Like society, he also has expectations of me. After our proposed marriage, Julian wants me to mother his seven desired children, to cook and clean for him, and care for him the rest of his life. And worst of all, my parents agree.
Most women would love this kind of opportunity thrust at them with such vigor and approval. I am just not one of them. At times I consider speaking up, asking for my life to be different. But I can’t imagine what kind of woman I would become. I am afraid my family would shun me and society would reject me. As much as I want to break out the role, which like quicksand, is slowly and painfully pulling me in, I do not want to end up living in the shadows of this world. Being shunned would be worse than conforming to society. I think anyway.
I do not know what I even want. I do not know what to even ask to be different. All I know is that I have this burning and un-ignorable desire to be different; to take my life into my own hands. I want to strive to be more then just society’s little house wife of a woman.
Maybe it was my parent’s mistake to educate me. I know what is out there in the world. I know the possibilities. I know there is more. And I refuse to forget about it. I don’t know why I am expected to be happy with my life plans. I probably should be. It is most likely not a good idea to question my place. I mean, shouldn’t I be happy about my Julian and my marriage proposal. Isn’t that what every woman waits for, even longs for? So, then what is wrong with me? Why am I so unsatisfied? Why am I so unhappy?
Part of me is afraid to change. To flee the life I have looming just within reach; the life that is just an arm’s length in front of me. The life that could be mine with one simple step forward. The life that would be mine by me uttering the word “yes” to Julian. I don’t want to be a disappointment. I am not sure my desires are worth disappointing my family and possibly loosing them.