Motherhood and Womanhood as Illustrated in Tillie Olsen’s Essay

Tillie Olsens I wrack Here Ironing, is a short story presented in monologue comprise which reverberates a gets angst over sufferhood and the stereotypical images inclined by society to the female gender ( particular(prenominal)ly to woman and takehood), which as a result becomes an image that the reflected takes on.The niggle, whose identity was non divulged, illustrates the slips familiar relevance in terms of the images that she creates in the minds of the readers that as atomic number 53 listens to the fathers reflections whiz may find herself entangled in the homogeneous situation and, perhaps, even shargon the same sentiments with the protagonist, even if the reader comes from a different time and place.The whole monologue translates the metaphorical iron out-out or straightening what she perceives as the wrinkled part of her personality of and the world around the main oddball using imageries that seem to conceal what is rightfully happening within the someo nes reality.Her recollections of the past suggests one of the definitive behaviors women, regardless of time and space, hurt performed (sometimes with resentment but most of the times willingly perhaps since the removed perceived pressure is insurmountable or they just want to view as their sanity despite of the challenges) inability to translate into assertive words and actions what they really feel at the time when these should have been their refuge to their predicament.Hence, resentment is contained in a vacuum until such time when the self could no perennial contain the pressure she begins to vent out her emotions to other persons, things or events. thus we hear the protagonist, in the end saying, My wisdom came too late. She has much to her and credibly little will come of it. She is a child of her age, of depression, of war, of fear (par 50). identification dawned on her at a time least expected when relationships (between mother and miss) seemed to be on the rocks, w hen old age that could have been considered most precious to the mother as well as to the mother have already past, and when everything else (the tenuity physically and emotionally) of both characters (mother and miss) could have been restored. Imagery colors the mothers world long ahead reality sets in. She was a beautiful baby You do not hypothesis how new and uneasy her tenancy in her now loveliness (par 4) I was nineteen.It was the pre-relief, pre-WPA world of the depression (par 8) you spoke of her rare gift for comedy on the stage that aroused laughter out of the audience so dear they motion and applaud and do not want to let her go (par 17). purge the convalescent home where Emily was forced to stay after her mother could not keep her any longer is described in the mothers monologue as a place that resembles a saintly bema Oh it is a handsome place, green lawns and tall trees and fluted flower beds.High up on the balconies of each cottage the children stand, the girl s in their red bows and white dresses, the boys in white suits and giant red ties (par 26) she is to a greater extent than this dress on the iron out board, helpless before the iron (par 51), which illustrates the paradox in the main characters and her daughters life the iron represents her as the mother who tries to straighten out the wrinkles (seemingly problematic condition in her daughters life as well as in her personality, which are equal by the dress being ironed out before it was beautiful and served as a covering for the body, figuratively a conceals the characters soul and real identities) both and the board and the iron served may be perceived as the away pressures the mother, represented by the iron being pressed by profound others stereotypical conception on motherhood and womanhood and the board, may be perceived as the sturdy socio-cultural norms that unavoidably shapes others light of the main characters roles and identities.In all of these situations, reality (which is generally described as depressing) are presented alternately with the pleasant imageries creating an impression of concealing what is in institution like the mask that the mother has, perhaps put on for a long time before she finally had the courage to accept the born(p) order of things. The mother in the story, while ironing, attempts to understand or iron out her ambivalent feelings towards her nineteen year-old daughter Emily, the oldest among her five children, and who is described as having a troubled childhood. Her monologue moves between the present and the past, starting from Emilys birth during the Depression era of the 1930s when the she was herself was just nineteen years old. With the monologue, the mother painfully recollects how she neglected Emily because of circumstances beyond her control.Throughout the mothers monologue, the intended recipient of the message remained unnamed, although at that place was a particular mention of a social worker in the sto ry (par. 30) and one hears the third person at the beginning of the mothers monologue, Shes a youngster who needs help and whom Im profoundly interested in helping. In the monologue, the mother reveals her responsibility and guilt in motherhood. As the finishes her monologue, one could feel how she is caught between feeling responsible for her daughters unhappy childhood and recognizing her powerlessness and lack of alternatives. Nonetheless she realizes her suffer identity is separate from her daughter even though she is part of her daughter yet separate from her, hence her daughter has a life of her own.In the end the mother ends her monologue She is a child of her age, of depression, of war, of fear. Let her be. So all that is in her will not bloom but in how many does it? There is still enough left to live by. unless help her to know-help make it so there is cause for her to know that she is more than this dress on the ironing board, helpless before the iron (par 51). In m uch the same way, the person having a mind of her own, may elect to follow or reject how her world-shattering others (in this case, the mother) training (so Emily is described as, She kept too much in herself, her life was such she had to keep too much in herself) (par 50). Such behavior is explained in a study conducted by Robert Karen (1990) in which he stressed there are traits that are intimate that whether a person trusts others or not, whether one anticipates love or rejection, whether one will feel good close himself as a person depends on how much an individual learns from his significant others These are not inherited traits, they are learned and although subject to change, they are initially determined by the sensitivity and reliability of the care you current in your first years (in Karen 15). Because of the pressing work out the characters have learned to adjust to imposing situations (how they react whether positively or negatively depends on how they perceive th e process). Both characters personalities were subjected to the pressing forces of society and each persons reactions to these pressures.The ironing process ended up straightening wrinkled dress (problematic characters) the change did not take place out of the individuals efforts but because they were forced by external empowering factors. Without these outside forces, these characters might have remained wrinkled nonetheless. Hence both the process of ironing out has become both a necessity and a luxury (since there could be different modes of ironing out (others could be less tiring and takes only a while).Works CitedKaren, Robert. (February 1990) Becoming Attached, Atlantic Monthly. Retrieved April 09, 2009 from http//www. psychology. sunysb. edu/attachment/online/karen. pdf Olsen, Tillie. I Stand Here Ironing