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What role do women play in this society, and how does being female affect Kira's character development?

In Kira's society, women are second-class citizens, and they live very separate lives from the men for the most part. Women seem to be primarily in charge of child-rearing, gardening, tending chickens, washing, and weaving. Although women are in charge of the "tykes" for the most part, there is no education to speak of, and nurturing seems rare. Most mothers let their children run around wildly and don't attempt to teach them manners or values. They discipline them by yelling at them and hitting them. Women are not allowed to go on hunts; they are forbidden to learn to read; they cannot serve as guardians. 


Because Kira is a female character, she is less assertive and has lower goals for herself than she might if she were a male. Although she exhibits better analytical thinking skills than Thomas, a boy about her age, she doesn't try to take the lead over him. She asks him for assistance with Matt and with Jo. When she suggests to Thomas that they can perhaps make their future different, and Thomas doesn't seem to understand, she does not press her case, but responds to his asking what she means by saying simply, "Nothing." Kira is very interested in reading, but because she is female, she isn't allowed to learn, and she does not rebel against that restriction. Thomas can read, but doesn't seem compelled to use that ability to change his society, although he does offer to use his literacy to help Kira remember the dyes. Kira discovers many unpleasant truths about her society, yet she remains relatively unassertive in her response, possibly because of the gender roles her society has ingrained within her. 

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