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In Alice’s everyday life, power is often linked to the material possessions you have. For example, Alice’s family can’t afford to buy her a sleeping bag. The girls she is “friends� with at school use this against her to tell her that she isn’t good enough to hang out with them and isn’t worthy of their friendship. Her friends demean her sense of self worth by telling her that because she doesn’t have the things they do, she is inferior. Men are another symbol of power in Alice’s everyday life. The women who don’t have men in their lives don’t have the social advantages of women who do. Alice’s mom is a single mother and because of this, she has to work harder than most mothers do. Her mother’s friend (I forgot her name) is disadvantaged because the man in her life left her. She feels desperately alone and talks about how the next time she sees him with another woman, she’s going to say or do something about it. However, every time she sees him, because of her insecurities she keeps quiet. Another example of how men hold power in “Cusp� is shown when a bunch of elementary schools boys convince the teacher to go over number nine on their homework by chanting while Alice quietly raises her hand and is ignored. Another aspect of Alice’s life that limits her opportunities is the fact that she is still a child. Because adults always know better, her opinions are often laughed at or completely disregarded.