In Jean Toomer's Cane, women are, as critic Meagan Abbott writes, "damaged by functioning primarily as bearers of the meaning of others." Using a combination of prose and poetry, Toomer metaphorically alludes to the effects of sexuality on Karintha, the protagonist of Cane's first story, “Karintha,” over time. Because of her sensuous beauty, Karintha is prematurely thrust into the sexual arena out of her own accord, becoming burdened rather than invigorated by her beauty. His early exposure to a licentious prey hunt leads to the loss of his identity. Toomer's language exposes Karintha as a damaged "vessel" of a patriarchal society, in which men are the decision makers, holding positions of power and prestige, ultimately giving them the power to define reality. The images allow Toomer to express the stark reality of Karintha's sexual victimization. Her beauty, the result of mixed racial heritage, is described as "perfect as the twilight when the sun goes down" (3). Karintha's beauty, not Karintha as a person, was "the male's interest" (3). He was a sought-after sexual object to be conquered, used and then discarded. At a young age, “The old men rode [Karintha] the wooden horse on her knees” (3), a sexually suggestive act done to her, rather than something she took part in, confiscating her agency. Because Karintha was a child, she was vulnerable to adults who abused the power of their age. Likewise, men continually abused their supposed patriarchal right to use Karintha however they wished, regardless of her approval. Young and old waited until they could mate with her, the older men asked God for “youth” while the young “counted the time that passed,” as if Karintha was speechless about her own desires (3). Men wish...... middle of paper ...... story of the end of a day and the decline of Karintha's happiness (3). As a teenager, Karintha was "a wild flash who told other people what it meant to live," declaring her independence (3). Once people began to talk about his mischievousness when he "stoned cows, beat his dog, and fought with other children," he began a rapid descent into adulthood (4). From then on the old men "could no longer ride her little horse on their knees" and the young "counted faster" knowing that Karintha was approaching the moment when she could mate. As part of the chain reaction, men began earning and saving money because they assumed they only had to “count time,” but money alone would not meet Karintha's needs (4). During childbirth, Karintha's "baby fell from her womb", indicating that the birth was involuntary rather than planned.