In Anne Tyler’s Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, the negative effects of a broken marriage on the family are continually presented through the use of multiple characters’ internal and external dialogue, along with their interpretations of events that determine their overall outlook on the world. Contrary to the “normative” family structure consisting of two parents, this family is run solely by the mother, Pearl Tull, who is often overwhelmed by her role of being the exclusive support for her three children - Cody, Ezra, and Jenny. The constant dissatisfaction of their mother and the early desertion of their father, Beck Tull, cause many issues throughout the relationships of the family members and those who become intertwined in their lives. Though inadvertent, each child seems to end up becoming an exact specimen of the very personality type that is attempting to be avoided. This is especially true for the oldest son, Cody Tull, who is most affected by his father’s absence, yet seems to display the same absent behavior towards his own son, Luke. After thorough examination of the characters, it is clear that a dysfunctional marriage can adversely affect the relationships within in a family, further causing permanent damage that has a profound effect on one’s relationship with self and others throughout one’s adulthood. The mother, Pearl, is a very complex character who is portrayed as a very independent and hardworking woman, yet seems to disapprove of anything except perfection. Unfortunately for Pearl, she “never learned to let go, to give in, to float on the current of a day, but must always fuss and pull at the stray threads and straighten the corners of things” (14). She sets extremely high expectations upon her children ... ... middle of paper ... ...The ultimate consequence of Pearl Tull’s disintegrated family is her children’s negative perspective of the world, themselves, and the relationships they engage in throughout their youth and further into adulthood. Considering that these consequences are not only detrimental to the Tull children’s view of self, but also the way they handle issues in their own families, it could be inferred that a generational cycle of dysfunction had begun the day of Beck Tull’s abandonment; and if left unaddressed, will continue on in the future generations of the Tull family. Even though the Tull children indeed survived without a father, it is apparent that the multiple issues they each face in their personal lives are often rooted in the dysfunctional upbringing they endured. Works Cited Tyler, Anne. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant. 1982. New York: Ballatine, 1982. Print.
Pearl is reluctant to approach Dimmesdale, and she throws a fit when she sees her mother’s scarlet letter on the ground along with her hair down. Pearl has assumed the role of a living scarlet letter, so when she sees the letter on the ground she sees herself being disregarded by her own mother. Hawthorne’s purpose of this chapter is simple, he wants the reader to understand what is happening through Pearl’s perspective. For her or for any child, change is hard, and Hawthorne clearly demonstrates this idea throughout this
As a living reminder of Hester’s extreme sin, Pearl is her constant companion. From the beginning Pearl has always been considered as an evil child. For Hester to take care of such a demanding child, put lots of stress onto her life. Hester at times was in a state of uncontrollable pressure. “Gazing at Pearl, Hester Prynne often dropped her work upon her knees, and cried out with an agony which she would fain have hidden, but which made utterance for itself, betwixt speech and a groan, ‘O Father in heaven- if Thou art still my Father- what is this being which I have brought into the world!’” (Hawthorne, 77).
Hawthorne uses vivid descriptions to characterize Pearl. She is first described as the child, “…whose innocent life had sprung, by the inscrutable decree of Providence, a lovely and immortal flower, out of the rank luxuriance of a guilty passion.” (81). From the beginning of her life she is viewed as the product of a sin. Physically, Pearl has a “beauty that became every day more brilliant, and the intelligence that threw its quivering sunshine over the tiny features of this child.” (81-82). The exquisite dresses and her beauty cause her to be viewed as even stranger from the other typical Puritan children, whom are dressed in traditional clothing. As a result, she is accepted by nature and animals, and ostracized by the other Puritan children. “Pearl was a born outcast of the infantile world… the whole peculiarity, in short, of her position in respect to other children.” (86). Pearl was not accepted by the children; her unavoidable seclusion was due to the sin of her mother. On the rare occasion that the children show interest in Pearl, she lashes out at them.
“Pearl kissed his lips. A spell was broken. The great scene of grief, in which the wild infant bore a part, had developed all her sympathies; and as her tears fell upon her father's cheek, they were the pledge that she would grow up amid human joy and sorrow, nor forever do battle with the world, but be a woman in it. Towards her mother, too, Pearl's errand as a messenger of anguish was all fulfilled.” (Hawthorne 281)
...er to overcome the passion, once so wild that had brought her to ruin and shame." (Hawthorne, 165) It was Hester's motherly sentiments to nurture and love her child that saved her from temptation and from death and opened her heart to the poor and needy around her. It was the torturous fixation of her child upon her shame that tempered and refined her character and led her toward the precious virtue of being true to herself and others. And it was the reflection of her own character, even at Its worst, in her child that brought Hester to a greater understanding of herself and a desire to build a better life for Pearl. Pearl was more than merely her mother's tormentor--she was her blessing, her life, and the giver of the freedom to live a life true to herself and to her God.
Pearl is never, in the entire book afraid to speak her mind. Her mother, embarrassed by many of these outbursts, tries in vain to...
...final note, Pearl was more than her mother's only treasure or sometimes headache; she was her mother's only source of survival.
Pearl displays her kindness towards others despite being placed in a situation where her life could be subjected to change. During the scene where Pearl flings wildflowers at her mother, she dances around the garden every time she hits the scarlet letter, exhibiting that she was having a good time. Pearls mother asked whose child Pearl was, and was given a response filled with joy and compassion. Hawthorne describes Pearl’s response as saying “Oh, I am your little Pearl!”(Hawthorne 89) Pearls response means that Pearl is Hester's child, and Hester's child only. Her response, and creation of a game that was originally made to be a punishment displays not only her compassion for her mother, but also her utilization of her imagination to make the most out of an unfortunate situation. Perhaps the most painful example of Pearl’s compassion comes through a passage which Hawthorne writes about the conversation between Dimmesdale and Pearl writing “But wilt thou promise to take take my hand and my mother's hand, to-morrow noontide,” and
The three family members are adults at the time of this play, struggling to be individuals, and yet, very enmeshed and codependent with one another. The overbearing and domineering mother, Amanda, spends much of her time reliving the past; her days as a southern belle. She desperately hopes her daughter, Laura, will marry. Laura suffers from an inferiority complex partially due to a minor disability that she perceives as a major one. She has difficulty coping with life outside of the apartment, her cherished glass animal collection, and her Victrola. Tom, Amanda's son, resents his role as provider for the family, yearns to be free from him mother's constant nagging, and longs to pursue his own dreams. A futile attempt is made to match Laura with Jim, an old high school acquaintance and one of Tom's work mates.
Pearl lived a different life than any of the other puritan children. She is a free spirited child. Hester lets her blossom intointo the brilliant child she blooms into through the story. Pearl is not afraid to speak her mind. “She could recognize her wild, desperate, defiant mood, the flightiness of her temper, and even some of the very cloud-shapes of gloom and despondency that had brooded in her heart” (Hawthorne 93). Hester saw the light in her child and embraced it. The other Puritan children are confused by Pearls behavior. They have never been around a child li...
Marie, who is a product of an abusive family, is influenced by her past, as she perceives the relationship between Callie and her son, Bo. Saunders writes, describing Marie’s childhood experiences, “At least she’d [Marie] never locked on of them [her children] in a closet while entertaining a literal gravedigger in the parlor” (174). Marie’s mother did not embody the traditional traits of a maternal fig...
Hawthorne uses vivid descriptions to characterize Pearl. She is first described as the infant, "...whose innocent life had sprung, by the inscrutable decree of Providence, a lovely and immortal flower, out of the rank luxuriance of a guilty passion." (Hawthorne 81). From the beginning of her life she is viewed as the product of a sin, as a punishment. Physically, she has a "beauty that became every day more brilliant, and the intelligence that threw its quivering sunshine over the tiny features of this child." (Hawthorne 81,82). Pearl is ravishing, with "beauty that shone with deep and vivid tints' a bright complexion, eyes possessing intensity both of depth and glow, and hair already of a deep, glossy brown, and which, in after years, would be nearly akin to black." Combining with her extreme beauty, are the lavish dresses that she wears. The exquisite dresses and her beauty cause her to be viewed as even stranger from the other typical Puritan children, whom are dressed in traditional clothing. As a result, she is accepted by nature and animals, and ostracized by the other Puritan children. "Pearl was a born outcast of the infantile world... the whole peculiarity, in short, of her position in respect to other children." (Hawthorne 86). The children did not accept Pearl, her unavoidable seclusion was due to the ...
...n she acrs as their mother. When the Darling children’s return to the nursery they accept the rules imposed on them, in effect trading freedom for security. They will have to accept the dominance of Mr. and Mrs. Darling and leave behind their pirates, redskins, and mermaids and in turn grow up. “Soon they settled down to being as ordinary as you or me” (218). They give up their world of wonderment for an average life where they must enter into a society with certain expectations for them.
The perfect, suburban family has become a prominant theme and stereotype in American culture. Families from the works of Anne Tyler represent the exact opposite of this cultural stereotype. None of Tyler's novels contain families with faithful, domestic wives, breadwinning husbands, and 2.3 well-behaved, perfect children. Tyler kills this misconcieved stereotype in Breathing Lessons, Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, and The Accidental Tourist. Anne Tyler grew up with her parents on a series of experimental communes, so she developed a different perception of family life. She observes domestic life from the view of an outsider looking in. Minor-- and sometimes major-- flaws characterize the average family in Tyler's novels because many of today's families are imperfect. Because of her communal upbringing, she observes family life more honestly than do writers who romanticize family life. Tyler's novels show that the picture most people see when they think of the typical American family is shifting from the Cleavers to the Simpsons.
Amanda, somehow, finds a way to be both selfish and selfless when it comes to Laura. Amanda wants Laura to be happy and successful, but does not understand that Laura is too shy and unmotivated to be either. When Amanda discovers that Laura has stopped going to typing class she is beyond disappointing. When discovered Amanda yells at her daughter saying, “Fifty dollars’ tuition, all our plans- my hopes and ambitions for you- just gone up the spout, just gone up the spout like that.” Laura quit something as simple as learning how to type; this realization struck Amanda because if she cannot do that there is no way Laura could provide for herself without a husband. Mrs. Wingfield’s worst nightmare is is for her children to become dependent on relatives and not being able to take care of themselves. After Laura drops out of typing school Amanda says, “What is there left but dependency all our lives? I know so well what becomes of unmarried women who aren’t prepared to occupy a position. I’ve seen such pitiful cases in the South—barely tolerated spinsters living upon the grudging patronage of sister’s husband or brother’s wife!—stuck away in some little mousetrap of a room—encouraged by one in-law to visit another—little birdlike women without any nest—eating the crust of humility all their life!. Amanda had always wanted for Laura to find a nice husband, but then the situation became desperate when the younger women