The chapter starts off with “Georgie knew before he left that Lanae would be fucking Kenny by the time he got back to Virginia” (87). This sentence really sets off the rash mood of the story. Right off the bat the reader can notice that Georgie is trying to reassure himself even though she does this she still loves him and needs him. Later he states that him and Lanae are a pair and Kenny is just a pastime. He refuses to believe that she has fully moved on. This shows his insecurities in wanting to feel needed. 

  Society gives us the stereotype that women are the ones that need the feeling of being wanted because they are overly emotional but this story contradicts this by having the character be a man. Georgie is going through a rough period in his life where he is coming home from the army to having no one wanting him by Esther so he holds on to her and spoils her but ends up pushing Lanae away. 
            Another theme that takes place in this chapter is the black female body. Even though Georgie thinks he is being a good “dad” in trying to help Esther win the contest, the contest revolves around wearing make-up and looking perfect which is not something a four year old should be doing. It is causing her to grow up to fast, but this is a problem in society today. With young girls wearing make-up at a young age show that they need to wear make-up to be pretty which snowballs into many other things like having sex at a young age. So even though Georgie didn’t realize what he was doing was wrong it points issues with the black female body.

Going off the theme of the black female body for young girls, it is proving to be an issue in society today. There are multiple shops having "beauty parties" for young girls to learn how to put on make-up and every year the ages are getting younger and younger. By having girls wear make-up at such a young age is causing them to grow up faster then girls in previous decades. When I was growing up the only thing I was allowed to wear was lip gloss and I didn't start wear full make-up (eye liner, mascara, eye shadow, foundation) until I was a Junior in High School. I think the reason this has changed is because society has changed, the TV shows for young children have even changed (Hannah Montana, Shake it Up, etc), so therefore young girls want to grow up faster and wear make-up sooner because it makes them feel older. The thing that is disturbing about this is that if society has changed drastically since I was young, what is going to happen in 10 years or 20 years? This video about the Abercrombie Padded Bikini Top is a great example of this idea of society wanting young girls to grow up faster then they should. Looking back I loved my childhood of innocence but that is changing with today's society. Little girls shouldn't have to make sure their face and body looks perfect just yet, they need to just enjoy being a kid. 
Do you think this idea of young girls growing up too fast is going to get worse or continue?
What should we do about it?