Many children feel as though they do not have their parents’ constant love and support while growing up, even if their parents may be trying their best, they still allow this thought to affect the path they take in their future. Emily in “I Stand...
Research/Analysis Regardless of whom they are and/or how they were raised, I Stand Here Ironing tells readers that everyone has the ability to be more than what the people around them as well as society as a whole tells them that they have to be....
The Struggles of Parenthood in “I Stand Here Ironing” The narrator in “I Stand Here Ironing” has been making several attempts to improve Emily’s fortunes, but to no avail. This is attributed to the fact that she faced several spiritual defeats, thus making it necessary...
Introduction The pressure to obey expectations of familial roles provokes a conflicting sense of self among both youthful protagonists. Within Tillie Olsen’s “I Stand Here Ironing” (Olsen, 1961), the clarity of Emily’s self-image is greatly hindered by her expectation to conform to her mother’s forced...
Tillie Olsen’s “I Stand Here Ironing” and Flannery O’Connor’s “Everything That Rises Must Converge” relay the theme of parental and child relationships within the family, using strongly developed characters to convey flawed relationships and the resulting impact upon each family member. Written during the time...
“I Stand Here Ironing” by Tillie Olsen is a first-person story following the narrator’s daughter starting from birth all the way through the most important moments in her daughter’s life. The narrator feels as if she was not invested in her daughter’s life nearly as...
Within Tillie Olsen’s “I Stand Here Ironing” story, Emily comes out as an impatient character; Emily is unable to put up with certain situations. For instance, after Susan loses and damages Emily’s collectibles, Emily permanently hates Susan. In addition, after being rejected by one boy,...
In her short story, “I Stand Here Ironing,” Tillie Olsen explores the ways in which the choices of parents contribute to their children’s coming of age–or lack thereof– in several regards. Her story just barely falls short of a bulleted list of what not to...
New Historicism and “I Stand Here Ironing” Tillie Olsen’s short story “I Stand Here Ironing”, appears to be a byproduct of an oppressed, single, working-class mother. With many elements also containing feminist influences, it would make sense to take a Feminist or Post-Feminist approach to...
Introduction In the stories “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker and “I Stand Here Ironing” by Tillie Olsen, both narratives delve into the theme of maternal guilt and its impact on their daughters’ lives. These mothers express self-criticism and anguish over the paths their children have...
