Spoiler
There is more tragedy in Nine Days than there is joy. To what extent do you agree?
Toni Jordan’s historical fiction, Nine Days, tracks the joyous and tragic moments experienced by the characters from four generations of the Westaway family. Many tragedies occur in in the text, mostly due to conservative attitudes and the dramatic effects of war on Melbourne society. Although countless tragedies are what shape the narratives of many characters, joyful moments are still shown to emerge from their lives. The novel demonstrates the fragility of life in both war-ridden and modern-day Melbourne, as well as the consistent losses and adversity needed to be endured by women. Despite the hardships in character’s lives, it is shown that happiness can still be uncovered. As the narrative evolves, Jordan consistently explores the line between tragedy and joy, to show readers that even short-lived happiness amongst difficulties can allow one to feel purpose in life. I like your intro, however, it doesn't explicitly tell me if you think there is more tragedy or more joy - you only state there is both but there is no specific statement that clearly says which one is given more weight. I think taking a side would greatly benefit the direction of your essay as well (obviously don't fully agree/disagree, more like a 60-70% agree/disagree.
The difficulties of being a woman prior to the Women’s Right Movement is discussed by Jordan, mostly due to the scarring tragedies encountered by women during the war. I'm being nit-picky here but I think this sentence structure could be improved. Also, I'm not sure since I haven't read the text, but is 'due to' the correct phrasing? Do you know definitively that this is why the author has discussed this? I'd be careful with this phrasing, but please take this with a grain of salt, I haven't read the text so everything I'm saying could be wrong. Due to Jean’s determination to preserve her family’s reputation and adhere to social standards, a ‘backyard abortion,’ caused Connie’s tragic death. I think you could explore this idea more! Jordan condemns the little possibilities available for women in the 1960s, and draws parallels good with Charlotte, who was given a ‘choice,’ when she too fell accidently spelling pregnant. Through Jean’s ignorance and indirect initiation of Connie’s death, the author seeks to warn readers of the dangers and tragedy that can occur when one cares more about outside voices than their own family. this would stand out if you compared it to joy - just a simple 'the triumph of tragedy over joy reveals .....' because you;d directly be addressing the prompt and referring to the lack of joy (in line with the feedback I gave for the intro) Annabel’s story also evokes much sympathy, due to her role as a woman during the war. Her struggles to support herself are shown as the ‘girls got their marching orders,’ when ‘the men came home,’ from war, which also demonstrates the priority received by men. Her mother ‘died in childbirth,’ which was a common occurrence in old times, due to the limited medical facilities. This resulted in Annabel growing up with ‘no mother,’ and needing to make extensive sacrifices to look after ‘[her] old man.’ Through this, Jordan references the ongoing tragedies faced by young women. Despite the hardships, Annabel is able to instil a positive outlook in life, whilst prioritising her family’s needs, thus exhibiting that if hardships are overcome, one has hope to live a happier life. Through the inclusion of many feminine characters in her novel, you only analysed 2: Jean and Annabel, so saying 'many' of the feminine characters may be a bit misleading. I also think it would be better to refer to them as 'female', instead of 'feminine', as male characters could be feminine too. Jordan discusses the countless hurdles and tragedies they faced, due to the limited opportunities and adversities faced by women during old times.