I Stand Here Ironing Essay

I Stand Here Ironing Essay
I stand here ironing I Stand Here Ironing lies in its fusion of motherhood as both metaphor and
experience: it shows us motherhood bared, stripped of romantic distortion, and reins fused with the
power of genuine metaphorical insight into the problems of selfhood in the modern world. ironing
is a metaphor for "the ups and downs, back and forth of pressing pressures to make ends meet and a
determination to pass through life's horrors and difficulties by keeping the mind intact and focusing
on the beauty and blessings that [lie amidst] the dark times"? So the ironing is like a drug, to keep the
mother calm and sedated. The story seems at first to be a simple meditation of a mother
reconstructing her daughter's past in an attempt to...show more content...
"You think because I am her mother I have a key, or that in some way you could use me as a key?
She has lived for nineteen years. Over and over, we are told of the limitations on choice––"it was the
only way"; "They persuaded me" and verbs of necessity recur for descriptions of both the mother's
and Emily's behavior. " In such statements as "my wisdom ! came too late," the story verges on
becoming an analysis of parental guilt. With the narrator, we construct an image of the mother's own
development: her difficulties as a young mother alone with her daughter and barely surviving during
the early years of the depression; her painful months of enforced separation from her daughter; her
gradual and partial relaxation in response to a new husband and a new family as more children
follow; her increasingly complex anxieties about her first child; and finally her sense of family
balance which surrounds but does not quite include the early memories of herself and Emily in the
grips of survival needs. In doing so she has neither trivialized nor romanticized the experience of
motherhood; she has indicated the wealth of experience yet to be explored in the story's possibilities
of experiences, like motherhood, which have rarely been granted serious literary consideration.
Rather she is searching for
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I Stand Here Ironing
The narrator of "I Stand Here Ironing" laments the choices she has made as a mother when
questioned by a social worker in regards to her daughter Emily. She reveals the dark side of being a
parent and discusses the heartbreak, lack of control, and hopelessness that is often seen in
low–income and lower–middle–class households. Throughout she gives an honest view of
motherhood that is typically left out from the idea of the "ideal mother" that society expects women
to embrace. The blame for what happened in "I Stand Here Ironing" rests on society.
At the beginning of "I Stand Here Ironing," the narrator indicates that since she had Emily so young,
she lost the ability to stop and analyze situations in order to determine the best course of action.
...show more content...
When her mother had to work long hours she had to take on the role of mother. "There were four
small ones now, there was no time for her. She had to help be a mother, and a house keeper, and a
shopper. She had to set her seal," (611). It was in those years that her life was planned. She needed
to become a mother. She had to spend her days taking care of the kids and her nights laboring
over her school work, she had nothing to herself. Emily sadly believes there is nothing to look
forward to in life. She believes that "in a couple of years [they'll] all be atom–dead" (612). Having to
follow the expected path that society planned for her she feels as though society has given her
nothing to look forward to. She has a dream and a gift to be a comedian, yet, because of the
economic status of the family and having to help her mother, she can make nothing of it because
she does not have the money to do so, and in turn she cannot follow her dreams of being a
comedian. Rather she has to follow the path that society has laid out for her. She must become a
proper house wife and mother one

Essay on I Stand Here Ironing by Tillie Olsen
"I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen is a depiction of a mother–daughter relationship that lacks
involvement and warmth. The whole story composed of the mother's memory of her relationship
with her daughter, Emily. The memory was a painful one comprised mostly of the way the mother
was much less able to care for Emily. The forsaken of Emily demonstrates the importance of physical
and emotional support.
The mother was an invisible parent for Emily. Her reason for not being there for Emily was because
she was a "young and distracted mother" (Olsen 262). The real reason she was inattentive was
because she was inexperienced. She lacks the understanding of how essential it is to be there
physically for Emily. Emily needed her mother for...show more content...
Emotional support also plays an important role of Emily's well being. The idea mother suppose to
care, support, and value their children needs. Emily needed this nourishment. She needed her mother
to smile at her in order for her to feel a connection with the person that she supposed to be able to
depend on. Emily's mother did not know how to communicate with Emily. The mother–daughter
relationship has an element of coldness, it lacks warmth. "There were years she did not want me to
touch her" (Olsen 262). Emily's mother inability to interact with her, leaves Emily unloved and in
return, she shall not express any love toward her mother. Emily's mother feels her "wisdom came too
late" (Olsen 262). With this thought in mind, Emily's mother shall never show communication or
love to Emily, therefore the relationship shall continue to be doomed.
Emily's mother felt like she was forced to neglect Emily. Her excuse was that the time was hard, it
was the age "of depression, of war, of fear" (Olsen 262). Although things were not under Emily's
mother's control, she takes responsibility anyway. In society, parents are thought to provide physical
and emotional support so that their children can advance through life with prosperity. This paper is
the property of Virtual Essays .com Copyright ©

A Victim of Depression
In the 1930's, America was hit with the worst economic depression of the twentieth century. It lasted
over a decade and resulted in twenty five percent of the population without jobs. What was once the
land of opportunity was now the land of desperation. In "I Stand Here Ironing" a mother looks back
on her struggle of raising her daughter Emily, during the great depression. The author, Tillie Olsen,
uses the setting of the book to explain the decisions the mother made and the lasting effect it had on
her daughter. [ Informative]
The story begins with Emily's mother ironing some clothes for the following day. The reader is
witnessing an internal discussion she is having with herself, over her oldest daughter...show more
content...
By the age of seven she had been to a babysitter, her fathers family, a nursery school, and a
convalescent home. Emily's mother describes the effect it had on her daughter though out the
years, "When she saw me she would break into a clogged weeping that could not be comforted, a
weeping I can hear yet." (284) Even when they were together Emily would cry because she knows
that eventually her mother would have to leave again. Emily's character is shaped based on the
conditions in which she was raised. As a baby Emily was described as a beautiful and happy.
When Emily was given to her fathers family her mother was not able to see her until she was two
years old in which she describes her as "walking quick and nervous, and thin like her
father."(284). Another incident is described where Emily is left alone while her mother and new
step dad go out for a good time. When they come back Emily is crying and their clock is lying on
the floor. When asked what happened she described that the ticking of the clock was bothering her.
To Emily the ticking of the clock obviously meant that every tick was just a reminder of the time
passing with her being alone once again. With the abandonment of her mother Emily had grown up
learning to control her emotions and rely on herself for help.
Emily's character is also shaped due to the era in which she was raised. It was very hard for

feminist criticism focuses on the negative female stereotypes in books illustrated by men and
point out other characteristics from other women. Feminist criticism also analyzes how the
societal mechanism is dominated by men over women. In Tillie Olsen's "I stand Here Ironing"
one of the major themes is the feminist movement of the 1950's. Not only was the narrator being
oppressed by the capitalist system, the absence of men that she encounter also contributes to the
negative aspects of her life. When Emily was born her father abandoned. He left Emily and her
mother who was 19, to care for their little baby on her own. "For I worked or looked for work and
for Emily's father, who "could no longer endure" (he wrote in his good–bye note) "sharing want with
us."(292) it was already hard enough for a women to find work during this time period so for a 19
year old moth to be on her own was very hard to find work. Because of the abandonment of Emily's
father the narrator was forced at the hand of a man to find a, what would have been...show more
content...
Even though the narrator had to make choices that she is not proud of, one has to recognize the
fact that she never gave up when things got hard she stayed and did what she had to do to ensure
that her and Emily would be alright. "After Emily is grown, the mother regrets, "We were poor
and could not afford for her the soil of easy growth" (ibid., 271). Although the circumstances
reflect hard times for all Americans, the mother is unable to forgive herself for being a poor
provider" (Snodgrass) The choices she made were solely because of the action her husband
(Emily's father) made, and that goes to show that how weak of a man he was to basically say that
Emily and her mother was too much of a burden for him. It is very evident that the narrator is not
proud of her decisions because she cannot even forgive herself 19 years

Parables, fables, folktales, anecdotes, and fairy tales are the earliest of short stories written
(Kirszner & Mandell, 2012). Short stories are not as long as novels, only going into the specific
and certain details as necessary. Reading the five short stories and comparing notes on two in
particular, "I Stand Here Ironing," written by Tillie Olsen, would happen to be the best short story.
Although not in the same time period, hard working single mothers are able to relate to the short
story in today's times, with fictional elements that include the characters, the setting, and the point of
view from the narrator, as it shows the choices that were made and consequences that happened
afterwards, leaving the narrator wondering what if and could have been.
Tillie Olsen's short story, "I Stand Here Ironing," expresses a single mother's ability to care for her
first born child Emily. She feels guilty over how she lacked showing her love and affection. At only
nineteen years old during the Great Depression and Emily's father leaving only eight months after
the birth of Emily, she was forced to start working long hours at night. Eventually, Emily's mother
had to leave her daughter with his family, causing distance and lack of a bond between the two. The
theme of "I Stand Here Ironing" involves a mother wanting her child to have a better upbringing and
life overall, however, due to poverty, remarriage, four more children, inability to show love, and
frequent absences, her guilt

What Is The Theme Of I Stand Here Ironing
I Stand Here Ironing "I Stand Here Ironing" is a remarkable short story written by Tillie Olsen.
Olsen was known for her short stories regarding working–class Americans. "I Stand Here Ironing" is
just that, set in The Great Depression Era, here the narrator of the story is a young mother giving
a glimpse into her life during that time, choices she made as a mother, and being a single parent.
While in a defense mode during the story as she spoke to someone that had great concerns for her
daughter, Emily, she portrayed the struggles and guilt she faced raising Emily but knowing deep
inside that Emily was fine and this person needed to "let her be". I nominated "I Stand Here
Ironing" as the best short story because from the beginning it had...show more content...
The mother suggests to Emily that she should do something like that in the school amateur show.
This is the point of the story where Emily's life took a drastic change. One morning Emily phoned
me at work, hardly understandable through the weeping: Mother, I did it, I won, I won; they gave
me first prize; they clapped and clapped and wouldn't let me go." At this point in her life, she was
somebody. This was the climax of the of Emily's life, even for her mother. She was asked to
perform at other high schools, even colleges, then at city and statewide. She was so happy now; so

The short story "I Stand Here Ironing" (1961) by Tillie Olsen is a touching narration of a mother
trying to understand and at the same time justifying her daughter's conduct. Frye interprets the story
as a "meditation of a mother reconstructing her daughter's past in an attempt to express present
behavior" (Frye 287). An unnamed person has brought attention and concern to her mother
expressing, "'She's a youngster who needs help and whom I'm deeply interested in helping'" (Olsen
290). Emily is a nineteen–year–old complex girl who is atypical, both physically and in personality.
Emily's upbringing is plagued with difficulties. She is the first–born of a young mother and the
eldest of five brothers and sisters. As a baby, she is...show more content...
She is self–conscious about her appearance. She constantly compares herself with other girls and
even expresses envy. She suffers while says, "'If I had that cooper hair,' 'If I had that skin....'"
(Olsen 294). In spite of her suffering, it is almost shocking how Emily behaves extraordinary
well even in stressful situations. When she is left at nursery school, she acts unexpectedly
contrary to most kids her age. "'She did not clutch and implore "don't go Mommy" like the other
children'" (Olsen 291). She prefers to stay at home but even while trying to convince her mother
to let her stay, she does it subtly, "'Never a direct protest, never rebellion'" (Olsen 292). Does
Emily behave well by choice? Her mother is worried and wonders, "What in me demanded that
goodness in her? And what was the cost, the cost to her of such goodness?" (Olsen 292).
It is difficult to understand, even surprising, how she neither shows nor expresses being upset even
though she experiences plenty of justifiable situations. She acts calm when she is left alone at
night, when under normal circumstances it would be upsetting to any other kid. She is collected
while confronting unfair situations and Olsen makes it extraordinary easy to visualize when
Emily's mother recalls, "Susan telling jokes and riddles to company for applause while Emily sat
silent (to say to me later: that was my riddle, Mother, I told it to Susan)" (Olsen 294). She has the
right to get angry and to express it

In the story, "I Stand Here Ironing", written by Tillie Olsen, the iron symbolizes the role of poverty
and loneliness in the mother's life., hence the title. The iron itself represents the mother's current
circumstances; poverty, loneliness, and other misfortunes whereas the actual motion of ironing
represents the mother's train of thought.
The very first thing the narrator says is, "I stand here ironing, and what you asked me moves
tormented back and forth with the iron," (Olsen 292). This establishes that the iron is more than a
chunk of metal that makes clothes look neat. Poverty and loneliness do not directly represent the
iron, but the iron represents what the mother is thinking and talking about. Poverty and loneliness
play a role in the life of the narrator and as a result, she ponders about it and how it has affected her
and her daughter. "1 was nineteen. It was the pre–relief, pre–WPA world of the depression," (293).
She was struggling financially, and because of the Great Depression, she was struggling to find a job,
especially as a woman. And on top of that, she has a child she hardly has time to take care of
because of her quest for a job and money to support herself and her daughter. Not only is she
financially struggling, "for I worked or looked for work and for Emily's father, who "could no longer
endure" (he wrote in his good–bye note) "sharing want with us."", her husband abandoned her
because of her financial situation (292). What else is more tormenting than thinking about how
much of a financial hell hole one is in and that the only partner they can depend on has given up
all hope? Her thoughts and feelings are linked to the iron and the iron is linked to poverty and
loneliness. As she moves the iron back and forth, so are her thoughts. The thoughts are tormenting,
"And when is there time to remember, to sift, to weigh, to estimate, to total? I will start and there
will be an interruption and I will have to gather it all together again. Or I will become engulfed with
all I did or did not do, with what should have been and what cannot be helped," (292). These
consecutive questions remain unanswered and show how much she is thinking about her life. These
deep,

I Stand Here Ironing, an Analysis Essay
"I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen is a short story that talks about a handicapped child. Emily
had to struggle a whole lot on her short life, but at the end she proved to be a very strong child.
Tillie Olsen's characterization of Emily shows a strong female protagonist who overcomes numerous
odds: loneliness, humbleness, vulnerability, and her disability.
The story is based on a child named Emily that has a physical disability. Emily lived in a family of
five children. "She always had a reason why we should stay home" (Olsen 601). Emily is lonely.
When she was a toddler, she was left in a day care so Emily's mom could bring income to the house.
Emily is a child that, as many others, grew up mostly on day care. Emily was...show more content...
She was looking for a way to keep her mom within her reach. Unfortunately her mom had to go to
the hospital and have a baby. "Susan telling jokes
and riddles to company for applause while Emily sat silent (to say to me later: that was my riddle,
Mother, I told it to Susan)" (Olson 603). Emily was a child that did not have any envy towards her
sister Susan, because she was so much different in many aspects. The difference of the age did not
interfere. Emily was always willing to play and teach her sister new things. They shared so many
things and enjoyed the company of each other. Their mother sometimes would keep Emily home so
they could spend time together. Emily would take advantage of her illnesses, so her mom would
keep her home.
Emily is very vulnerable mostly because of her appearance. "She tormented herself enough about not
looking like the others, there was enough of the unsureness, the having to be conscious of works
before you speak, the constant caring–what are they thinking of me? Without having it all magnified
by the merciless physical drivers" (Olson 603). Emily is a skinny, fragile, and sick child, and in
the outer world, other kids without values would point her out. Emily is always insecure about
what she says, or does in front of others. The insecurity of not being able to be her own person is
always on her mind.
Emily spends time with her mother at night time. She makes

Summary: I Stand Here Ironing
Give two examples of each of the following elements of fiction and nonfiction from the texts you've
read in Units 1, 2, and 3. Characters: (Named 2 of the main characters) "I Stand Here Ironing" Emily
– Was a shy teenage girl who had a very difficult childhood. She kept to herself and she didn't really
have a care for anything generally. She sees the world for what it is, even at a young age. She was
pretty hopeless, as her mother would say. She has a talent for comedy acting. Emily was a child of
her age– depression, war, and fear of abandonment. Emily's mother– Had her first child at a young
age. She had made mistakes parenting her first child, Emily. She carries many worries for Emily.
She also carries many regrets on how she parented...show more content...
The difficulty of being in poverty, being a single parent, having no experience, and during the war
years was beyond difficult and it impacted the childhood of children. It showed the emotional pain
and self–blame of a parent who had undefeated love for her eldest daughter. But also showed that
maybe society was at blame, too. "The Jade Peony" Theme– I believe the theme of this story was to
show that keeping to traditions and your culture heritages regardless of where you move to is
important. He shared a story that many immigrants go through and therefore relate to. The
relationship between him and his Grandmother was incredible. Style: "I Stand Here Ironing" Style–
It started out as a phone call from someone asking about her daughter, Emily. That is when the
mother tells the story of her parenting and about her daughter. The story is written one–sidedly. It
was like a reflection of the mother's life and a reflection of her daughter's childhood. The word
choice showed the emotional pull that the narrator had. "The Jade Peony" Style– The style of this
story was more about the struggles that Sek–Lung and his family had to face. I would consider this
story to be dramatic due to the author's choice of words. As the story went on the intensity grew.

I Stand Here Ironing, By Tillie Olsen
"I Stand Here Ironing," which is a popular short story by Tillie Olsen describing the hard lives of
people during The Great Depression in the 1930s, focuses on the numerous difficulties of a
mother who had to take care of a child by herself. The short story begins with a view of an
apartment room where a woman is ironing. Her work is interrupted by a call asking for her help
for understanding Emily, her first daughter. By recalling and gathering all memories between her
and Emily, the narrator realizes that there are a lot of things which make her feel guilty and
regretful about her daughter. In the end, turning back to the present, she believes that Emily will
be fine with her true value inside despite of the rocky childhood. In the setting, the narrator is
doing her housework, ironing, as an ordinary activity at every late night weekend after taking her
children to bed. Actually, the ironing, which is such a boring work for everyone, makes her mind
easily follow the mental process of flashback about Emily's childhood, especially after she receives a
call from Emily's counselor.
By the time of the post–Great Depression, most of working–class families still lived in the small, old
and hovel apartments in urban or suburban areas. Each apartment only had two or three rooms
where all family members had to share their spaces to live. Under the glimmering, dim yellow light
of a lamp, the room in the setting appears as little, simple living room which is combined with the
dining

&quot;I Stand Here Ironing&quot;, 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...show more content...
From the beginning we hear about the mother's self– inculpating thoughts of all she &quot;did
and did not do.&quot; To many people, the ideal mother– daughter relationship is not like the
one we find in this short story. This is neither the fault of the mother or the daughter. Through her
own relative thoughts, the mother illustrates the relationship that evolved with her daughter.
Secondly, Emily, as a little girl wasn't the epitome of what the ideal child should be Emily was
&quot;dark and foreign looking&quot; when all the girls her age should be Shirley Temple
look–alikes. Because she didn't fit in she was awkward, therefore isolating herself from the rest of
the kids her age. This attitude and feeling toward Emily has changed since then, and now she
realizes that Emily is a talented young woman with the chance of a great future. As Emily grew
older and the mother grew wiser, her attitude toward her daughter changed as well. When Emily
grew out of her awkward stage, the mother realized what a beautiful and capable young women
she had grown to become. The mother can clearly see this, and does not realize any problems with
her daughter. When the social worker calls, she basically tells them to back off and let Emily be.
Her main hope for her daughter is that she realizes what potential she has, and she won't conform to
society, but have

"I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen was the best short–short story in my opinion because the
storyline, even though in a completely different era, happened to be similar to the various challenges
I encounter every day as a single mother. This short–short story shares the difficulty of its character's
life, her warranted and unwarranted choices as a mother, and her relationship with her eldest
daughter during the setting of a calamitous, unfortunate, prevalent setting in U.S. history, The Great
Depression. The plot conveys to the reader the adversities this family faced, and the outcome of the
relationship between a mother and a daughter during this time and thereafter. Interpreting the
characters in this story, the narrator and...show more content...
140)." Emily's mother was strong and became independent because she agonized and experienced
tons of grief in order to keep her family alive. This meant giving up her life as a stay at home
mother, finding a job when jobs were scarcer than ever before, and finding a way when there
seemed to be no light at the end of this disheartening tunnel. Ress said, "They lost jobs, economic
security, and perhaps most important, their bright outlook on life. In essence, they lost hope (Ress,
2010, p. 787)."
The plot of the story has the mother, the main character in the story explain the hardships she and
her daughter endured while she worked including: sitters, daycares, illnesses, and travelling. She
never doubted the love she had for her daughter but knew her experiences caused Emily to battle with
depression. She explained her love for her daughter so passionately including how she despised
leaving her with strangers for her to work. She expressed in detail how much her daughter missed
her mother as well while she was away. It was an enormous transition for both of them. She
continued to explain the difficulty of being without her daughter and having to send her daughter to
stay with her abandoning husband's family. How difficult to consistently relocate your baby to
different places and strangers in order to assure she is safe and in the best care because you are
working too much to

Character Analysis: I Stand Here Ironing
In "I Stand here Ironing" tells about a mother, who feels guilt about her daughter present situation.
Emily grew thin and sickly, and has always been uncomfortable of her dark hair and appearance.
What mistake did Emily's mother make to influence negatively in Emily's life? Excavating the past,
Emily's mother realizes that she did not give the necessary attention to Emily during her childhood,
affecting negatively in her behavior. Events as sending Emily to live with her father's family,
spending long periods in a convalescent home, adjusting to a new stepfather, and a new baby,
influenced in Emily's somber loner personality. In the other hand, "Two Kinds" totally contrast "I
Stand Here Ironing". This story tells about Soguan, a mother who forces her daughter to take piano
lessons in the hope to make her a child prodigy. Indignant...show more content...
Emily grew thin and sickly, and has always been uncomfortable of her dark hair and appearance.
What mistake did Emily's mother make to influence negatively in Emily's life? Excavating the past,
Emily's mother realizes that she did not give the necessary attention to Emily during her childhood,
affecting negatively in her behavior. Events as sending Emily to live with her father's family,
spending long periods in a convalescent home, adjusting to a new stepfather, and a new baby,
influenced in Emily's somber loner

Analysis Of ' I Stand Here Ironing '
Modern America still grapples with the ideas of gender and class. We struggle with the meaning
of feminism in a world where many see the concept negatively. We struggle to break gender roles
in a world that for all its progress, will not entirely let go of the past. We struggle with how to
alleviate the consequences of poverty in a world where those with money and those without it have
never been farther apart. These struggles, though they take place in an America unimaginable to
many of its long ago citizens, have their roots in the past. Stories like Tillie Olsen's "I Stand Here
Ironing" also tried to piece their way through the murk of gender and class relations, and can offer
modern American students more insight into the complexities of this subject. Through this piece of
female literature, the forgotten women of midcentury America are brought back to life on the page.
For too long in American history, women with little time and energy, like the story's narrator, have
been sidelined in literature, while their richer or male counterparts remain in focus. People like the
narrator and her daughter Emily, despite being a significant portion of the human population, tended
to simply disappear. While this trend has been on the decline in recent years with the rise of writers
like Toni Morrison, literature that addresses these women from their own time periods is rare.
Reading Tillie Olsen can rectify this problem and expose Academy students to a section of the
human race

In the short story "I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen the conflict between a mother whose giving
is limited by hardships is directly related to her daughter's wrinkled adjustment. Ironing, she reflects
upon when she was raising her first–born daughter, Emily. The mother contemplates the
consequences of her actions. The mother's life had been interrupted by childbirth, desertion, poverty,
numerous jobs, childcare, remarriage, frequent relocations, and five children. Her struggling
economic situation gave way to little or no opportunity to properly care for and nurture her
first–born child. In spite of the attention and love Emily craved and never received, she still survived,
and even made strengths, and talents, out of the...show more content...
This was the only way she felt she could do both. Harder still was that Emily would cry and beg
her mother not to that nursery school. As these separations press on Emily and her mother, the
mother feels guilt and her child is torn by a separation made even worse as she's placed in several
undesirable locations. When Emily was ill, her mother believed that the best place to get care for
her child was in a special home. This contradicted the real needs Emily had. Soon after the last
child was born, Emily became very ill with red measles, and once again the mother had to send
her away to a convalescent home in the country where she could be cared for until she was well
enough to return home. The mother thought to herself, "She can have the kind of food and care
you can't manage for her, and you'll be free to concentrate on the new baby" (602). For the first
six weeks, Emily was not allowed any visitors. The child sat in this strange home for six weeks
not knowing anyone at all until her mother could visit her every other Sunday. When her mother
did visit, there was an invisible wall "not To Be Contaminated by Parental Germs or Physical
Affection" (602). The wall represents the distance between Emily and her mother, which has
always been and continues. Emily had told her mother one day "They don't like you to love
anybody here" (602). She wanted to love and to be loved so badly. It didn't seem that there was
anywhere she could go to

Essay about I Stand Here Ironing
A Mother's Decision In the short story "I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen, the reader is
introduced to a mother faced with a strong internal conflict involving her eldest daughter Emily.
Emily's mother makes a very meaningful statement at the end of the story. Her statement was "help
[Emily] to know that she is more than this dress on the ironing board, helpless before the iron"
(Olsen, 582). This statement shows the reader that the mother wants her daughter to have a better
life than what she has had up to this point. Emily's mother feels as though she has neglected her
daughter in some sense. Throughout the story she describes two negative aspects of Emily's
childhood. First she talks about sending Emily to live with her relatives as...show more content...
Emily's mother pondered several ways to comfort her daughter's physical insecurities. The next big
decision that Emily's mother had to make was sending Emily to a convalescent home. The mother
was persuaded to send Emily to this school by a social worker. Emily was still a thin girl; the school
would often notify her mother that she would not eat. "It took us eight months to get [Emily]
released home, and only the fact that she gained back so little of her seven lost pounds convinced
the social worker" (Olsen, 580). This statement shows the reader that at this point in time the
mother is trying extremely hard to make her life with her daughter normal. Emily came home to
a new father and sister. She often felt threatened by her sister Susan "who for all the five years'
difference in age was just a year behind Emily in developing physically" (Olsen, 581). The reader
is able to see a change in the behavior of Emily and her mother at this point in the story. Emily's
character starts to change. She goes form a quiet, funny looking girl to a comedic teen. Emily's
mother is proud of her and, in the end only wants Emily to know that the world is more than the
dress she wears, it is the strength that she possess. The mother constantly referred to the bad
decisions that she had made for Emily throughout her childhood. These decisions caused the mother
to constantly nag at her internal self. This is why the reader is shown an

I Stand Here Ironing And Two Kinds
Every mother has their own way on how to raise their child. After reading the three different
stories "I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen, "Two Kinds" by Amy Tan, and "Everyday Use" by
Alice Walker I can see how each of these mothers show a different model of parenting. Each story is
also created on different time periods, and different cultures in which I believe may have an effect
on their parenting. Something they may have in common is that they are all trying to do what they
believe is best for their daughters.
"I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen was published in 1961. This story was based on a mother who
had a daughter named Emely. When she had Emely she was very young and didn't have much
money to be able to support her. Instead she decided to focused more...show more content...
The daughter always felt pressured to do what she wasn't able to do just because that's what her
mother wanted her to be. She had this specific image of her daughter and wanted to transform her
into someone she wasn't forming her daughters identity without letting her create her own persona.
This caused the daughter to become unconfident with herself. She became shameful of herself and
her own actions as well as her inabilities. The daughter never really stood up for herself and her
beliefs until she participated in a showcase playing the piano which was also her mothers choice. At
the showcase she failed really badly and disappointed everyone. Her mother had left with no words,
she was very upset. When the end of the story was approaching her mother had passed away. That
was an eye opener for the daughter because then she realized how much potential she had. The
daughter acknowledged that all her mother wanted was the best for her. Perhaps the mother saw this
potential in her daughter that the daughter wasn't able to see in

The Distant Relationship between a Daughter and Her Mother Senior year is time for high school
students to celebrate their accomplishments and move on to their new life – an independent life
from parents. However, you should respect and appreciate these last moments of love, care and
support from your parents because many unfortunate children such as Emily in "I Stand Here
Ironing" story written by Tillie Olsen have not received all the care from their parents since their
youth age. Olsen expresses successfully in this monologue story the distance between a mother and
her daughter along with the mother's guilty feeling of not being able to fix their relationship. "I
Stand Here Ironing" story begins with the dialogue of the unnamed...show more content...
Suffering from tuberculosis, Emily was sent away from her mother again to a convalescent home,
where she could be better cared for. While Emily is at the recovery center, she is cut off from almost
all communication especially relationship with her own mother. Even the letters the narrator writes
to her are read to her once and then thrown away. Parents are allowed to visit only every other
Sunday, when the children line up on the balconies of their cottages and conduct shouted
conversations with the parents who stand below. Emily's balcony in particular represents the
emotional distance between the narrator and her daughter. The narrator seems unable to establish
direct contact with Emily, either in the recovery center or their home life. The narrator notes how
Emily grew slowly more distant and emotionally unresponsive. Emily returned home frail, distant,
and rigid, with little appetite. Each time Emily returned, she was forced to reintegrate into the
changing fabric of the household. Clearly, Emily and the narrator have been absent from each other's
lives during significant portions of Emily's development. After so much absence, the narrator
intensifies her attempts to show Emily affection, but these attempts are rebuffed, coming too late to
prevent Emily's withdrawal from her family and the world. Although Emily is now at home with the
narrator, the sense of absence continues even in the present moment of the story. Emily, the
narrator's central

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