Eunice’s Comments (group member since Oct 02, 2015)

Eunice’s comments from the Forms of Literature (Keating's Goodreads Discussion forum) group.

Mauricio wrote: ""Everyday Use" and "I Stand Here Ironing" both present unique family values. In both stories, the points of view are told by mothers and from this, we can get a point of view that truly understands..."

I agree with you Mauricio, that in "I Stand Here Ironing" Emily's mother thinks emotional bonding is what makes a family.I also agree with your other point that in "Everyday Use" the mother thinks, things like a quilt are what bonds a family.

Eliana wrote: "In both stories: "I stand here ironing",and "Everyday use " the concept that both stories share is family values and support.
Some of the similarities from both stories are that for example in eve..."

I agree with you Eliana, that in both stories the mothers provide the very best they can for their children and I also agree with your statement that the sister in everyday use are different, like maggie knowing her roots and dee shows her mental ability resulting them to not connect.

In “Everyday Use” and "I Stand Here Ironing," both are told by the prospective of the mothers. “Everyday Use,” the mother focuses on Maggie's and Dee’s well being, while the mother family values in "I Stand Here Ironing" are to provide for her children financially. Although Emily’s mother wanted to be their for her daughter like the mother in “everyday Use,” she couldn’t. The mother in “Everyday Use” is physically and emotionally more involved in her children's life compared to Emily’s mom. Both these stories are similar in which the mothers are the only ones that are providing or emotionally there for their daughters.

These ideas in these stories are like my idea of "family". A mother that works hard like Emily’s mother in "I Stand Here Ironing," she reminds me of my mom because like Emily’s mom, my mom works very hard to provide for us while working on getting a better education. These ideas are what make a family, working together to help each other when others can’t be their. Like Emily works with her mom “to help be a mother, and housekeeper, and shopper” for her siblings.

Alvaro wrote: "I think the most symbolic part of the story that I could identify was when Mabel was in the graveyard tending to her mother's grave. When Mabel is there, she "always [feels] secure" and fixing her ..."
Alvaro, I agree with you that Mabel feels secure at the graveyard because she feels close to death and not her mother exactly, Lawrence says Mabel "felt in immediate contact with the world of her mother” the key word there is world meaning death or the place her mothers in.

Esmeralda wrote: "Throughout the story “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter”, one of the main symbolism about the daughter, Mabel, is death. Mabel does not a plan or feel safe about her future like her three brothers do. Si..."

I agree with you Esmeralda, that one of the main symbolisms given is her uncertainty for her future and feels she understands her mother and understands that she might die.

The greatest symbolism in the story “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter” by D.H. Lawrence conveys the theme of death and rebirth is after her father dies and loses her wealth, Mabel goes to her mother's grave and “She felt in immediate contact with the world of her mother”. Mabel feels “secure” and “in contact” with a place of death, I think because she ultimately feels she is, after losing everything she cares about. The water is mentioned because water symbolizes rebirth, and the new beginning to come, which is with Fergusson.
Another example in the beginning of the story, is an analogy given between the brothers and the horses at their house. The horses symbolise how the brothers had a leader just like horses have a leader, which was their father. Without a leading horse, horses are lost just like the brothers would have been but Joe says “Luckily, her father, who was steward of a neighbouring estate, would provide him with a job” this is symbolic because it shows the character of the joe by him needing someone to lead him and him finding a new leader which was his wife's father and “he would be a subject animal now.”

Ruby wrote: "In “Soldier’s Home” , a short story by Hemingway, Harold Krebs, the protagonist , has transformed from a once outgoing frat boy to a stilled excluded person who wishes to remain distant from all ot..."

I think your statement is true that the tone is stern and cold and that Krebs may suffer from PTSD and this maybe be why he is distant and sees things through another prospective.

JC wrote: "In the story of "Soldier's Home" it is very descriptive about how Kreb's character has been altered. Hemingway gives good clues to interpret that Krebs was indeed a very social and active person be..."

JC, I think you are right that the style and tone helped portray Krebs character and emotions. I think it is also true that Krebs alone had to worry about his team and himself and that is why he came back like he was.

In “Soldier’s Home” by Ernest Hemingway Krebs is characterized before war as a frat boy probably all about parties, social and didn’t mind were he lived. I would think that he was a happy boy, excited for what life would bring him because thats the character of a frat boy. But after war Krebs character changes to a man that questions life, doesn’t have friends, and is anti-social. Krebs also thinks thing are “not worth the trouble.”
Krebs feels detached from people so he lies, to get people to pay attention.
When Krebs says he wants “to live without consequences” he means he wants to live a simple life with no problems or troubles because he went through all of that in war and it took all his energy.
Throughout Hemingway style and tone of “Soldiers Home” is Krebs thoughts and feelings towards people and ideas. Hemingway style reflects how Krebs talks short and gets his point across.

Jesus wrote: "In the story "A Jury of Her Peers", the setting plays a major role in the story. The setting gives the story and the characters a sense of isolation because first of all, the house that the story t..."

Jesus, I agree with your statement that the two major indicators of Minnie being isolated are the setting, which is the home and her being "caged" by her husband. As well as Minnie feeling like a bird thats lonely and as if nobodys with her.

Leslie, I agree that in the "A jury of her peers" Glaspell uses a "Lonesome looking place" to indicate that the wrights home is isolated making Mrs. Wrights isolated from her old friends and change her to not caring about her appearance.

Throught the “A Jury of Her Peers” by Susan Keating Glaspell, Glaspell gives evidence that the Wrights live isolated from everyone else. “Gone up a little hill and could see the wright place now” indicating that the house can’t be seen from any other angle, which is isolated and the house has “always been a lonesome-looking place.” Mary Helen Washington makes this true when she says “that it’s a half a day's journey to Wright's home, that requires getting a horse and buggy so you have, again, a sense that women's lives are even much more isolated because of the prairie.” This isolation was what changed Minnie Foster personality from a happy women from “wearing pretty clothes and be lively” to wearing shabby black clothes, Minnie no longer cared how she looked because nobody ever came to visit her and made her isolated. Mrs. Peters mentions “we lived close together, and we live far apart” that minnie used to be a neighbor until she married and a happy person, that loved to sing.

Li-Yuen wrote: "“I Stand Here Ironing,” begins with Emily’s mother’s inability to account for Emily’s disposition. Because Emily is 19, most of her development happened “outside” and “beyond” her mother. Emily’s m..."
Li-Yuen, your prospective of Emily is right of Emily changing into a dynamic character when she starts expressing her comical side and becomes a round character when Emily goes on stage and performs.

Mariafernanda wrote: "In ¨I stand here ironing¨ Emily is a young girl with many feelings in her heart, she has never told her mother what she feels about her childhood but her mother knows that she is not happy but the ..."
I think your statement is true that Emily's mother does not care for Emily even though she knows how Emily feels and that Emily is portrayed as sad.

Throughout the story “I Stand Here Ironing” by Tillie Olsen, Emily is described by her mother portraying her as flat or one dimensional. To evaluate Emily’s character in “I Stand Here Ironing” I would evaluate her characteristics and find out if she's a flat or round character. Emily’s character that is described by her mother is a daughter that is unhappy “she does not smile easily” and I think this changed because her mother would always leave her and didn’t shower her love that the old man said she was missing, “It was only with the others I remembered what he said, so that it was the face of joy, and not of care or tightness or worry I turned to them—but never to Emily.”
Emily is portrayed as a round character because of the description her mother gives of Emily changes throughout the story. For example her mother says “there was non of comedy in her when she came back” home, Emily’s mother didn’t see that funny side of Emily only the sad but later Emily shows her mothers comical side by “Sometimes, to make me laugh, or out of her despair, she would imitate happenings or types at school” and then changing from not excelling in school and not being recognized to being seen, “Emily began to be asked to perform at other high schools, even in colleges, then at city and statewide affairs.”