Blog 5

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Response to “Many Rivers to Cross” by June Jordan
After reading June Jordan's essay “Many Rivers to Cross,” I couldn't help but notice the feminist voice and her attack on patriarchy, and the traditional definition of gender roles. In this essay, Jordan portrays the burden that women have to carry as a result of living in a patriarchal society. She shows that the traditional definition of gender roles is not based on any merit-based system. Rather, she argues, men use the traditional definition of gender roles to cover up for their inadequacies and failures as husbands and fathers.
The “many rivers” that the author crosses refer to the problems and challenges that she had to overcome as a woman. In the literal sense, a river is an obstacle that stands on one's way, such as when one must cross to the other side to accomplish a goal. In this regard, the title of the story is a metaphor of the problems caused by the men in her life. The first river she crosses is dealing with her mother's suicide. She says that her mother died because of the legacy that all women inherit; the donkey's work they do as housewives and mothers, toiling everyday to compensate for the failures of their husbands to provide for the file. The second river is the separation from her husband who left her for another woman. She had to face the shame associated with “destitution and divorce” (Jordan 233). With nowhere to go and without a means to support herself and her son, she returns to her parents' house. The action of her husband portrays the burden that women have to carry when their husbands leave them- taking care of the children. Finally, she must cross the river of standing up to her father, whom she fights to defend her rights.
In conclusion, I view June Jordan's essay as a rebellion against patriarchy. She emphasizes this idea at the end of her essay when she says that “We will not die trying to stand up: we will live that way: standing up" (Jordan 241). This is an assertion of her resolution to challenge male domination and speak for herself and other women. Jordan realized this goal through her writings, which promote the female voice in literature, politics, and other spheres of life. That is her purpose in life, never to be late again in defending her rights and those of ...