In Agatha McGee and the St. Isidore Seven and Rufus at the Door the main women in these stories play masculine roles to have authority and power over situations. In Dodgers Return, the main character, Ross, fails to portray masculine traits making him appear to be weak and hold no significant value or power in the outcome of Dodgers life, even if he thinks he did. Hassler indirectly states that you need to take on the male stereotypical traits of being bold and having control over situations in order to have any sort of power. Through these three stories John Hassler portrays the role of power only through characters who take on masculine roles.
I'd like to see how you are going to prove that each of the female characters take on a masculine role. In my own understanding Agatha McGee stays feminine, unless you argue that power and control are masculine traits. In Rufus the female teacher does have control and authority, you might want to also look at the male teacher and show how even though he is a male, he really has no control, like when he stopped for lunch and told the children they could eat, the woman teacher undermined his authority and kept them until they had answered her question. In Dodgers if you wanted to keep with the pattern of women who have control and power you could look at how her explanation of Dodgers return seemed more valid and how she is more masculine. But I also like that you wanted to point out the feminine traits of Ross, this helps us see both sides. Overall I think you have valid points and you have a clear thesis.
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