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Analysis of Judy Blumes Are You There God? Its Me, Margaret


From Catcher in the Rye and To Kill a Mockingbird to Perks of Being A
Wallflower and Looking for Alaska, the coming-of-age story is one explored quite often
in literature, especially through novels for young adults. These stories mark the journey
from childhood into adulthood and the challenges and experiences that characterize this
transformation. Each coming-of-age story, whether told through either a male of female
narrator, is characterized through some unique perspective or struggle. For example, both
Catcher in the Rye and Perks of Being a Wallflower are told through the perspective of a
boy struggling with depression. An interesting aspect to consider, however, is the way in
which a girls coming-of-age story is depicted. As young females experience the changes
brought on by womanhood, it is nearly undeniable to acknowledge that it is occurring in a
patriarchal society. What role does ideology play in a girls development into a woman
that reinforces patriarchy and the disciplines of society? Judy Blumes Are You There
God? Its Me, Margaret addresses several of the challenges of growing up in such a
society. Reading this coming-of-age novel through the lens of Susan Bordos Unbearable
Weight and Adrienne Richs Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence, one can
see that Blume identifies the demands of a patriarchal society on young women but yet
does not provide the female characters with the means of empowerment to go against the
disciplinary apparatuses.
To begin, a basic understanding of the plot and main characters in Are You There
God? Its Me, Margaret is necessary. Margaret Simon is an eleven-year-old girl who just
moved from New York City to suburban New Jersey. Amongst changing homes and
schools and making new friends, Margaret struggles to deal with religion. Her mother is
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Christian and her father Jewish, her parents tell Margaret she can decide what religion
she chooses to be when she is ready. Through these endeavors, Margaret talks to God
about bodily changes, boys, and any topics she cant discuss with her new friends. These
new friends, who call themselves the Four PTSs (short for Four Pre-Teen Sensations),
make up a secret club that swap stories about boys, kissing, bras, periods, other girls, and
the desire for larger breasts. Blume addresses several realistic issues in the novel: boys
teasing girls about their bodies, the medias portrayal of women, the expectation for
women to be experienced but virginal, a womans fear and the danger of being alone in a
crowded space, etc. This illustrates Judy Blumes awareness of the prevalence of these
gender related issues in society, but yet Blume has Margaret simply notice or reflect on
these issues instead of take action against the patriarchal society and disciplinary
apparatuses.
Again, instead of portraying Margaret or her friends bodies as their own, Blume
very much illustrates the ways in which the female body is manipulated or examined
throughout the story. The constant fascination with the female body in this novel speaks
to Bordos argument that the body is a medium for both social expression and social
discipline (Bordo 2240). As Bordo writes, Through the pursuit of an ever-changing,
homogenizing, elusive ideal of femininityfemale bodies become docile bodies-bodies
whose forces and energies are habituated to external regulation, subjection,
transformation, improvement (Bordo 2241). This ideal femininity and the impression it
has on Margaret and her friends are expressed through several different scenes in the
book. One prevalent example is when the girls are looking at pictures of the women in
her fathers Playboy magazine. The age of the model they are looking at is noted several
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times as being eighteen (only six years older than these young girls). The girls are
infatuated with the size of her breasts, discuss whether they will look like that at eighteen,
and compare the model to the girl in their class with the biggest breasts. The chapter ends
with the girls doing exercises that are supposed to make their chests growing while
reciting, We must, we must, we must increase our bust! These sixth grade girls view
the idealized, hyper sexualized version of ideal femininity and immediately try to
replicate it. Blume draws attention to the commonality of this ideological apparatus, but
yet does not have a single character empowered to speak out against this practice.
Blumes placement of Margarets first discussion of sexuality with her friend
Nancy followed by Nancy showcasing her makeup can also be interpreted through
Bordos discussion of the regulation of the female body as a result of the idealized
femininity. In Margarets first meeting of Nancy, Nancy tells her how she practices
kissing so that she will know how to be a great kisser someday and then immediately
shows Margaret her rather large collection of cosmetics that she uses to see how she
looks best, so when the time comes shell be ready (Blume 8-9). It is obvious that
Nancy, and therefore in turn Margaret, learn that women must be able to make men feel
pleasure and also women must always look their best for men. In order to achieve this
femininity, especially through appearance, women turn to cosmetics to alter their
appearance in order to please men. This is a direct example of Bordos statement that the
body is used as a medium of culture but also how gender is socially constructed through a
series of material practices (Bordo 2240, 2242). Unfortunately, Blume does not use this
opportunity to teach her readers this, but instead has Nancy laugh about how her mother
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is really thirty-eight, but says she is twenty-five, yet another example of the youthful
idealization of women.
A large portion of Bordos argument is the discussion of womens weight, the
societal expectation of slenderness, and taking up as little space as possible. Controlling
hunger is an expression for the female to be fragile and powerless. The control of female
appetite for food is merely the most concrete expression of the general rule governing the
female construction of femininity: that female hunger-for public power, for
independence, for sexual gratification-be contained, and the public space that women be
allowed to take up be circumscribed, limited (Bordo, 2245). Even at eleven and twelve
years old, the girls in Are You There God? Its Me, Margaret have been exposed to this
expectation of controlled appetite and the desire for femininity through slenderness.
When the first of the four girls gets her period, she says, My mother said now Ill really
have to watch what I eat because Ive gained too much weight this year (Blume 99).
The obsession with weight and the ideal femininity is placed directly after Gretchens
first menstruation, marking the change from a girl to a woman. It is as if Blume
acknowledges that womanhood is plagued by the desire for thinness. This reinforces
Bordos statement about females continual bodily transformations: her indictment of
a culture that disdains and suppresses female hunger, makes women ashamed of their
appetites and needs, and demands that women constantly work on the transformation
their body (Bordo 2248). Yet, Blume does not have a single of Gretchens friends reply
with a comment about how her body is beautiful the way it is, that appetite control only
reinforces patriarchy, or how slenderness is an idealized feminine characteristic
constructed by society.
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In addition to the portrayal of the characters bodies as means of communication,
Blumes novel also addresses several aspects of Adrienne Richs Compulsory
Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence. Richs text argues that compulsory
heterosexuality serves as a political institution that disempowers women (Rich 1591).
This can be seen through the power that men exert over women, the way that women
perceive their sexuality and desires to please men, the lack of acceptance of lesbianism,
etc. Are You There God? Its Me, Margaret, can be viewed through Richs argument that
adolescent women learn to define themselves not as autonomous beings but rather
through their relations to men.
This is established through the exertion of mens power over women, especially
in relation to femininity and sexuality. Before examining the several examples of this
inequality and patriarchy in Blumes novel, it is important to view and understand a
quotation by Kathleen Barry in Richs theoretical text:
As sexual power is learned by adolescent boys through the social experience of
their sex drive, so do girls learn that the locus of sexual power is maleearly
adolescence is probably the first significant phase of male identification in a girls
life and developmentAs [her heretofore primary relationships with girlfriends]
become secondary to herher own identity also assumes a secondary role and
she grows into male identification (Rich 1600).
This quotation is extremely relevant to this novel because it examines adolescence as the
early stages of the creation of unequal power and patriarchy. As men begin to exert their
power over women as a result of male sexuality and masculinity, women begin to lose
their relationships with both themselves and other women. These relationships become
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less important as they are replaced by male power. Judy Blumes novel is a direct
representation of this quotation. It focuses heavily on young girls first experiences and
interactions with males in a sexual sense, while simultaneously portraying the
relationship between the girls during this phase.
There are several examples of male power exerted over the girls in the novel. For
example, Margaret tries to protect her body by holding her towel tightly around herself in
case the boys were trying to sneak a look after Nancy tells her that all [boys] were
interested in was dirty books and naked girls (Blume 12). This is the first minor
experience that Margaret has demonstrates the power of male sexuality over women. The
way Margaret holds her towel tightly around her body shows how she feels she must
protect herself from men, as if she does not have control over their actions, as if they had
the right to look at her body as a sexual object if they chose to. This is reiterated through
Nancys comment that all boys cared about were sexual books and naked female bodies,
implying they could not help themselves. Nancy and Margaret are taught that the
responsibility falls on them to protect their bodies, instead of the responsibility falling on
men not to harm womens bodies. It implies that men cannot control their sexual appetite.
This can be a metaphor extended to victim blaming in rape cases, in which women are
often told they were asking for it based on their clothing choices for example. Though
victim blaming and teaching women not to get raped instead of teaching men not rape is
much more extreme than what is occurring in the novel, Blume is instilling the same
basic principles in young girls through this scene.
As the novel progresses, these illustrations become stronger and more dominating.
Margaret and her friends discuss their teachers attitude and actions toward a girl in their
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class, Laura, with the biggest breasts and most womanly body. They discuss they way
he looks at her differently than the other girls in class, stating that naturally, men cant
help looking at her and that he never calls on her in class (Blume 32, 45). These are
examples of the characteristics of male power that are listed in Richs text. The male
power to force male sexuality upon women (and within that category, the socialization
of women to feel that male sexual drive amounts to a right) can be portrayed through
the male gaze of the teacher upon the female student (Rich 1594). The portrayal of the
older mans interactions with the female student may illustrate several different lessons to
Blumes young readers. First, it may illustrate that men have the right to look at women
as sexual objects by the fact that the teacher looks differently at Laura, as if she is a
woman and not a child, implying sexually. It also reinforces the earlier point made by
Bordo about ideal femininity. Because Laura has largest breasts, which is associated with
ideal femininity, she is more desired than the rest of the girls in the class. It also creates
an excuse for men, teaching young girls that men cannot help themselves and that the
male sexuality is one so powerful it cannot be controlled.
The girls recognition that the teacher does not call on Laura also reflects one of
Richs mentioned characteristics of male power: the power of men to withhold from
[women] large areas of the societys knowledge and cultural attainments which refers to
the unequal education of women, silencing of women, and exclusion from science and
other professions (Rich 1596). Because this student has womanly characteristics, she is
not encouraged to share her ideas or called on to speak in class. When contrasted against
the other girls in the class who could still be considered children because they may still
be prepubescent, this could be interpreted to mean that maturation into womanhood
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results in the loss of voice. In other words, once a girl becomes a woman, she loses her
rights to speak, express her ideas, or have a place in the classroom. The classroom
becomes dominated by men, representative of a society dominated male power.
Rich also addresses the implications of male sexual power, which is that the
relationships between women become secondary to relationships with men. This is
illustrated through the constant discussion of males between Margaret and her friends
throughout Blumes novel. From each having a boy book of boys names they like, to
talking about which boy in their class was a good kisser, to studying the anatomy of the
male reproductive system in an anatomy book, these girls are continually expressing their
fascination for boys. The only times they are discussing something other than boys is
when they discuss their bodies, which has previously been addressed to show that this is a
reflection of their desires to conform to ideal femininity and please men.
The underlying religious factor in the novel, Margaret struggling to identify with
one religion but still developing a relationship with God, even begins to overlap with her
boys. Her religious beliefs, which should solely reflect her relationship with herself and
her identity, instead reflect her relationships with others. She prays for bigger breasts, her
crush, her desire to be normal, to get her period, and for feeling bad when she picks on a
girl in her class. In her search for religion and God, she is defining herself in relation to
and in comparison of others. This coincides with the idea that religion is a disciplinary
apparatus. Religion, which supports compulsory heterosexuality and gender roles, serves
to discipline individuals in society to accept and act in a certain way. In other words, the
one aspect of the novel that deals with the narrators identity is merely a reflection of
societal discipline. This further illustrates the ways in which compulsory heterosexuality,
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and in turn male domination, disempowers women from autonomous beings to secondary
in relation to men.
In defense of Are You There God? Its Me, Margaret, the novel was published in
1970, a decade before Richs Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence and
nearly two decades before Bordos Unbearable Weight. These and other feminist
theoretical texts helped change the ways in which people began to think about the female
body and male power. The fact that Blumes novel was published prior to this could serve
as an excuse for what she portrays in the story. However, Are You There God? Its Me,
Margaret was listed in Time Magazines All-Time 100 Novels List in 2005 as well as
Scholastic Magazines Parent & Child 100 Greatest Books for Kids in 2012 (Judy Blume
on the Web 1). This book, perhaps because it is one of few young adult books to address
female sexuality and bodily changes, is evidently still being taught in schools. The young
girls in fourth, fifth, and sixth grade who pick this book off the library shelf most likely
do not have a prior understanding of feminist theory. Having never been taught Bordos
or Richs theories, or even more simplistic feminist arguments, Blumes target audience
is unable to identify the problems with this novel. Because of this, Are You There God?
Its Me, Margaret may serve as one of their first exposures to male power over woman
and the desire for female body transformation without any characters in the novel to tell
them it is wrong.
Instead of empowering young women to be autonomous thinkers with higher
aspirations than to please a man and fulfill ideal feminine beauty, Blume reinforces the
issues that she chooses to identify. Though she acknowledges the patriarchal society and
ways it influences young girls, she aids in creating this norm. As Rich writes, The
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adolescent male sex drive, which as both young women and men are taught, once
triggered cannot take responsibility for itself or take no for an answer, becomes,
according to Barry, the norm and rationale for adult male sexual behavior (Rich
1601). Unfortunately, Blume is teaching her young, female readers to accept this. In the
same way that Blume does not have a female character learn to stand up for herself, she
does not teach her audience to say no to mens sexual approaches, violence, inequality,
the transformation of their bodies, dieting, or pressure for an unattainably ideal body.
















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Works Cited
Blume, Judy. Are You There God? Its Me, Margaret. New York: Bantam
Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc., 1970. Print.
Blume, Judy. Judy Blume on the Web. 2007. Web. 17 December 2013. JudyBlume.com
Bordo, Susan. Unbearable Weight: Feminism, Western Culture, and the Body. Norton
Anthology of Theory & Criticism. Ed. Leitch, Cain, Finke, Johnson, McGowan,
Sharpley-Whiting, Williams. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2010. 2240-
2254. Print.
Rich, Adrienne. Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence. Norton
Anthology of Theory & Criticism. Ed. Leitch, Cain, Finke, Johnson, McGowan,
Sharpley-Whiting, Williams. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2010. 1591-
1609. Print.