bashoGWSS1

The way gender and power is depicted in Cusp, isn't necessarily everyone's "everyday", but shows a great deal of all the different depictions present in society as a whole. Already at Alice's young age, she is learning the concepts and differences gender and power hold in society. To an extent her observations and frustrations might be a little distorted from the norm of society, but at the same time very present in society for certain people.
For Alice, there is really not male figure present in her life, everything she is told makes men seem bad, and there are really no totally good figures in her life at all. What she is told and showed by her mother and Lila is that men are no good and that they always leave. Also, that you must look good in order to get one and that inevitably you need one in your life to make everything okay. This shows Alice that in order to be a woman she must perform her gender in these ways. She must look good and find a man. It also shows her that men have power over women.
Also, showing male dominance is all the events at school that Alice goes through. The teacher specifically gives the boys in the class power over the girls by calling on them, rewarding their bad manners and punishing Alice's good ones, and by allowing them to make noises and laugh at Alice when she is in front of the class. Not only does this show male superiority, but also the fact that it is okay for boys to act certain ways but not girls. It is normal for boys to be rude, loud, and disrespectful.
Alice faces many limits that prevent her from being able to fully be herself and be accepted. First, because of Alice's financial status, having a single mother with low income, she is made fun of for not having a sleeping bag. This causes her to lose her best friend and makes it hard for her to put up with her school life. Having a single mother also prevents Alice from having a normal home life because she is expected to do more and has more responsibilities than some other kids.