"There was silence and everyone listened to Sarah's groans. Men bowed their heads; women covered their faces as if ashamed of Eve's curse" (Singer 229).
I really liked this quote because I feel there is a lot of depth. When I analyze this to the best and deepest ability, "Men bowed their heads" symbolizes to me that the men are looking down at their chest...almost as if looking for the rib they used to create woman. If this were true, then it is clear that men are represented as having a higher level of control. But this is obvious...the Bible has always portrayed men having more power and authority over women.
"women covered their faces as if ashamed of Eve's curse" represents to me that women realize they are the 'lower descendent' of man and they acknowledge their fault. What's interesting is these women don't realize they are accepting this label....but their subconscious is taking over and acting out for them. I also find it interesting the gender roles have not switched that dramatically since the time conveyed in 'The Slave'. It is the women who serve as Sarah's assistants...this is usually the case today. There is a very small amount of men who are involved in nursing and taking care of the women. The men in 'The Slave' were told to wait outside and let the women deal with the child birth. In today's hospitals, men act as the business behind delivering babies. Very few of them serve as nurses and the majority of men in the child birthing section usually deal in the actual physical removal of the baby from mother.
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