Setting

The events described in the short story “Through the Wardrobe” by Lucy Caldwell take place somewhere in Northern Ireland: “The GP, who will insist there is no service anywhere in Northern Ireland that can help you.” The reference to Donegall Place, where the store with the princess dresses is located, as well as Windsor Park stadium could indicate that the boy lives in the town of Belfast. 

However, the social setting is probably the most important, as it helps readers understand what the main character is going through. The boy lives in a society where gender roles are clearly defined, where girls are supposed to be feminine and boys are supposed to pursue manly activities. 

Much to his father’s frustration, the boy challenges gender norms since he is a child. For example, one of the boy’s earliest memory is peeing sitting down, much to his father’s annoyance: 

Your earliest memory: wanting to push your willy between your legs as you sat on the toilet, and your father getting frustrated and setting you on your feet, showing you how to aim at the back of the bowl, and your mum saying, Don’t be cross with him Alan.

Alan, the boy’s father, believes that the presence of too many women can...