For this week’s assignment, the “best” short-story I chose is I Stand Here Ironing by Tillie Olsen (1961). I chose this story because of its character relatability (witnessed and own experience), nonfiction time period, and life realism (issues society is dealing with today, such as single mother households). I argue that I stand Here Ironing can be an autobiography or depiction of any single parent, any child, anywhere in today’s world then or now. I Stand Here Ironing is told from a single mother’s perspective and provides an uncanny look into her feelings of regret, guilt, and what was expected of mothers. The setting, the tail end of the Great Depression and start of WWII, works to reinforce and assign blame on the struggles and decisions …show more content…
I was not depressed or anti-social, but experienced the same “shuffling” of where to stay and who watched over me. It was not uncommon to be picked up by my great-grandparents, and then passed to my grandparents, then back home all in one day. My parents worked shift-work, grandparents 9-5 jobs, and great grandparents were retired. As I grew older, the shuffling stopped and I became the quintessential Latchkey Kid like my peers - it seemed normal, but allowed for destructive behavior (Rajalakshmi & Thanasekaran, 2015). I was never sent to a formal daycare or convalescent home like Emily, but the feeling of detachment was there; I knew I was never going to be in one place very long and getting too comfortable was not something I …show more content…
218, 8). Her eldest daughter, Emily, is the focal point because she appears to be depressed and anti-social, and is having problems at school. The issues that Emily suffered are qualitatively documented to the point that the Center for Disease Control stopped documenting the effects of divorce/separation on children in 1988 (Anderson, 2014). It is clear that the loss of emotional security is a direct result of a fractured household and being stuck in such dire poverty (Edwards, 2014; Miller & Davis,
"I Stand Here Ironing", by Tillie Olsen is a short story portraying the life and regret of a young mother struggling to raise her oldest daughter. The mother- daughter relationship is the major part of the story and the attitude of the mother toward her daughter, Emily, and the actual character of the mother are two very important elements. The character of the mother can be said to be strong and persevering, and along with her age and experience came her wisdom. At first her attitude toward her daughter seemed more of resigned and regretful, but as Emily grew up and became a beautiful and talented young women, the mother knows to let her be and leave her to live her own life. The character of the mother is crucial to the entire story, for it is this that will determine her attitudes toward her daughter. She at first, seemed very naïve and weak in a big scary world, with society constantly nipping at her heels, but, as she lives, she learns to take life as it comes and try her hardest to do her best. Which at that time was no easy thing to do. The strength and love that the mother exhibits constantly keeps the idea of hope with the reader. The character of the mother is a determining factor in her attitude towards her daughter. As her character changed, so did her feelings about Emily. In the beginning of the story, the mother talks of how sorry and regretful she is of her daughter’s childhood. She looks at her unfortunate daughter, Emily, with pi...
The United States Census Bureau defines family as “a group [of] any two or more people (not necessarily including a householder) residing, together, and related by birth, marriage, or adoption. A household may be composed of one such group, more than one, or none at all. The count of family groups includes family households, related subfamilies, and unrelated subfamilies.” A family composition is redefined due to remarried families with stepchildren, single-parent households, or other family forms that are caused by divorce. This form of families also redefines the roles of each family member. However, children are the most affected by the separation of parents because of an overdependence on older siblings. Dr. Bren Neale and Dr. Jennifer Flowerdew, who are both affiliated with University of Leeds UK, carried out a research of children’s non-beneficial effects of divorced parents. As they stated in their academic article in “New Structures, New Agency: The Dynamics of Child-Parent Relationships After Divorce,” “sibling can play a significant ro...
Life has plenty of harsher circumstance where attention should be focused on. Not all that comes out of divorce hurts. Of course, divorce is no fun at times, but once families settle, the freedom of the family allows for a peaceful home. When Kingsolver’s daughters friends tell her they are sorry that she is a part of a divorced family, she replies with a giddy answer, “Our house is in the country, and we have a dog, but she can go to her dad’s neighborhood for the urban thrills of a pool and sidewalks for roller-skating. What’s more she has three sets of grandparents!” (Kingsolver, 2014, p. ?). What better than to have two homes, to live in the country, and have three sets of grandparents? Children of divorce, along with the parents, face hardship, but once freed from the bondage of marriage, separation allows the children to mature in a safe environment, and to enjoy both sides of the family. Sadly, divorce rates have grown in the past decade, but the families are finding opportunities to make the best for their children and themselves. Should the attention then be focused on something with a need of help? Yes. Kingsolver claims, “The number of children in the U.S. living in poverty at this moment is almost unfathomably large: twenty percent.” (Kingsolver, 2014, p. ?). If the
The oppression of women by society has never been a secret. Many times it has been documented in works of literature, and one classical example of this occurrence is "I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen. This story illustrates the consequences of oppression in women's lives.
“I Stand Here Ironing” and “Everything That Rises Must Converge” are two different stories that were written at different times and by different authors, however, have much in common. Both stories tell about the problem of the relationship between children and their mothers. These are two stories that raise one of the most important social problems. Every reader can find a reflection of his or her relationship in these stories. That is why these stories are very popular among the people for many years.
Increasing divorce rate - a.... ... middle of paper ... ... Offspring’s adjustment relies on certain factors: socioeconomic status, parental disaster and relationships between parents and children. Despite the divorce, some children are able to skip these difficulties, if parents are aware of the proper approach (attitude) to children. Children feel honored when parents have a kind relationship with each other and take care of their children. Therefore, parents should sustain (encourage, continue) pertinence with children after separation, and only in that case children can cope with pain (hardship, adversity) and become more successful.
The character's action I chose to analyze in this Essay is Emily's mom from "I Stand Here Ironing. " In the story Emily's Mom struggles a good amount in raising Emily. Many of her actions are based on doing what she has to do to survive and what is customary during the time of the Great Depression. Her actions include when she has no money and has to have Emily stay with her grandparents, when she has to work so she has to put Emily in a daycare and convalescent school where they don't care for the children, and how she does not show Emily much psychical affection during her lifetime.
While divorce can either bring or relieve emotional burdens, the biggest burden generally revolves around finances. It is not a new phenomenon that poverty has deep, damaging effects on children. In Jonathan Swift’s 1729 essay, “A Modest Proposal”, it is clear that a single parent’s life has not changed when it comes to bearing the weight of poverty. He even goes on to suggest the idea of eating children, rather than putting them through the pain of poverty. Nevertheless, our communities urge the importance of a strong idealistic family rather than attempting a stronger attack on improving the lives of poor single parents. While I was fortunate enough to be raised in a household with an upper middle class income, I have seen first-hand what it is like for the lower class to survive. The families of most of my close friends in high school struggled to find money for even the most basic essentials of everyday life. Personal transportation was never an option and some couldn’t even afford to eat a school lunch. What I have noticed is students in that situation feel partially responsible for the lack of finances in their families. Because of this sense of responsibility, the child will focus less on school and more on providing for their families. It’s difficult for millions of Americans to grasp on to the fact that there are children in America who go to bed hungry. Far too often the blame is placed on the single parents who are trying to raise them. Maybe, instead of shaming them for getting a divorce, we try helping them and their fight to successfully raise healthy
In 1990, seventy-one percent of sixty-four million American children lived in a two parent household. Fifty-eight percent lived with their biological parents. Since the 1970s, there has been a huge increase in the amount of children living with single or divorced mothers. This only is right considering the increase in single women having children, although not all of those women don’t have a significant other. Currently 7.3 percent of children live with an unmarried parent, 9.1 percent live with a divorced parent and 7.4 percent live with a separated or widowed parent. Every year since the 1970s, over one million children have been affected by divorce (Shino and Quinn). Nowadays every where you look, someone has divorced parents. It could be your own parents, your best friend’s parents, your classmate’s parents or even your teacher. In 1988, fifteen percent of children lived with a separated or divorced parent, while 7.3 million more children lived with a stepparent. It is estimated that almost half of the babies born today will spend a portion of their life living in a one-parent family (Shino and
“Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope. It is a tool for daily life in modern society. It is a bulwark against poverty, and a building block of development, an essential complement to investments in roads, dams, clinics and factories. Literacy is a platform for democratization, and a vehicle for the promotion of cultural and national identity... Literacy is, finally, the road to human progress and the means through which every man, woman and child can realize his or her full potential.”
Anxiety and mistrust brought about by their parents’ divorce often causes early childhood depression. “Children of depressed parents are at higher risk for depression themselves” and “are at high-risk for other behavior maladies” (Raymond and Andrews, 2009). Adding to the probability of depression, children will experience higher levels of anxiety and worry stemming from their parents’ divorce. A depressed child will exhibit poor academic performance and is more apt to have lowered immunity
Married couples should be open to trying everything they possibly can to stay together not only for themselves but for the child’s sake because a union of a couple demonstrates a form of “commitment, stability and unity,” author Natalie Abendschein concludes in her article, “The Divorce and What it Has on Children.” These main possessions help a child to grow in the way they should be when reaching adulthood. It is very important for all parents to ac...
Finally, she finishes with Andrew Cherlin’s research on children before and after the divorce of their parents then compared that data to kids with married parents. In conclusion, he found that there were problems that arose with the kids who suffered through divorce. The article finishes off with the quote of Cherlin, which says “Most children are not affected in the long-term, but divorce does raise a risk that there will be problems in some
For many people throughout the United States, it is a melancholy but common sight to see broken families, separated children, and squabbling spouses. In a society in which over 20% of marriages end in divorce, it is not surprising that the majority of today’s children grow up in a one parent marriage. The National Center for Health Statistics estimates that in 1993, about 1,187,000 divorces were granted in the U.S., affecting 1,075,000 children. Sadly, some children are even deprived of seeing their mother or father throughout their entire childhood. Many others are allowed to visit one of their parents only once or twice a month. This lack of family unity results in emotional and psychological problems for both the parents and the children.