The Luck of Roaring Camp and Sissy

I found it interesting how pronounced the gender norms were in Sissy because throughout the story, Mrs. George Kellogg differentiates what Willie does in terms of the things he does that girls do or the things he does that boys do. Kellogg emphasizes how Willie is neither solely a boy or a girl but rather a "boy-girl- not half girl and half boy, but all boy or all girl, as occassion demanded." (546). I was wondering why a boy can't do all those things that a girl does without being thought of as a girl,but gender differences were heavily emphasized during the 19th century and that would make it a lot harder for a boy like Willie to be who he is.

This brings me to the fact that Willie might have been liked by both girls and boys because "there was an immediate demand" (546) for him, yet he was still stigmatized for being different than the other boys. It was interesting to see how Margie did not think that Willie could sow at all or bake because he is a boy and says,"But you can't sew. I know you can't." (548). She says that almost as if she had the idea ingrained into her head since she had been born. This scence between Margie and Willie made me think that maybe Willie didn't have any friends because they all thought he was weird not because of his mannerisms but because of the things he did like sewing and baking. There were such strict gender norms back then that Willie was left isolated even if he was liked for his kindness or the things he did. Today, a man would not be stigmatized for being able to bake or sew because for one most of the professional chefs are men and many can sew and not be seen as less of a man. Overall, it was very interesting to see how much gender norms have changed since the 19th century and how people thought certain characteristics fit just boys or just girls.