Seminar paper from the year 2005 in the subject American Studies - Literature, grade: 1,0, University of Siegen, course: Protest and Liberation: American Literature of the 60s and 70s, 12 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: From its beginnings, American society was a system based on certain values, e.g. Christianity. These values are affected by events like war, waves of immigration and the fluctuations of economy and therefore change constantly. In those changing times, family was meant to be a fixed value in society but in the 20th century they started to disintegrate, especially referring to the role model of women. This paper discusses the presentation of gender and sexuality in Rita Mae Brown’s novel Rubyfruit Jungle , including female role models and homosexuality in the context of the ever present conventions in 1960s America.