In the short stories "Wants" by Grace Paley and "The Collector of Treasures" by Bessie Head they both have powerful similarities with the male characters. The men are often portrayed in stories as the providers, but in these stories they are liars, inconsiderate and selfish. These men behave as if they were the only ones in their families and act only to calm their cravings for something other than what their families can offer.In Bessie Head's "The Collector of Treasures" the man leaves his family because he wants to pursue other women; other desires that he longs for. He seems to be very materialistic as well. Dikeledi's husband, Garesego, after ignoring his family, enjoyed wasting mo ...view middle of the document...
Both women make sure that the children are taken care of, even though the reality of their struggles is tough to bear.A major difference between these two stories is with the men. Garesego, in "The Collector of Treasures" plays off this facade that he doesn't care about his family and that20he is happy seeing Dikeledi struggle to make ends meet. However, when the neighbor Paul begins to encourage and help Dikeledi his rage rises and confronts Paul; arguing that he should not help her out at all. This proves that he has become jealous of another man in his "wife's" life. On another note he indeed cares for what happens to her and the children, with the lack of judgment about Paul. He dislikes the idea of someone else interfering with his family, although he is still a selfish and jerk-ish man. The ex-husband just doesn't care at all. Realizing that the family is not rich but not doing anything to be a part of the children's lives, he shrugs them off and continues on his rant about not being able to buy this and that, and not being able to have company over to show off their fancy things.Happiness is...
