“But I don’t know why it is, a girl of fifteen or sixteen is accounted a woman, but a boy of fifteen or sixteen is still a boy.”
I find it unnerving how a story told that is meant to be set in the 1850’s is still so relevant today. At sixteen Grace is held accountable for anyone who shows interest in her, as we see earlier she is distressed by the man grabbing her at the inn not just for her own safety, but because it would look bad to her new employers, even though it’s of no fault of her own. This is easily comparable to how oft times white men who have committed crimes are portrayed as children despite being as old as in their twenties, and images of them when they were younger are the ones that articles and news sites choose to represent them, while other groups aren’t afforded the same privileges. Throughout Grace’s telling of the story her voice and experience is so strong that I keep forgetting that she is so young when all of this is actually happening. I wonder how the story would have been different if Jamie were the one thought to have aided McDermott.
I agree with your post and it gave me a different perspective of the quote. However, I somewhat saw this quote more literal upon reading it. I took it as an early feminist statement that goes along with the idea that boys can play and be rough as long as they want but girls cannot. Moreover, boys are called ‘boys’ yet girls are called ‘young ladies’. It’s always been a problem and it’s interesting to see a woman speak up about it at a time where it was considered almost sinister to think that way.