Two novellas are paired here as they share a similar theme--the lingering parental influences on the relationships adults create. In "Island Ash," mothers and mothering figure strongly, while the paternal role shadows the protagonist's actions in "The Father." / "Island Ash" takes place on an island off the coast of Maine. The narrator, Christine, meets an older lesbian, Marty, and is quickly enmeshed in her and her mother, Ethel's, lives. Christine witnesses the conflicted dynamics between them, learns about the child Marty had as a teenager and gave up for adoption (a girl who would be the same age as the narrator), and hears about the sexual abuse Marty suffered at the hands of her brother. But it takes Ethel's death, and working with Marty's brother to build the coffin, before Christine admits the similarities between Marty's life and her own (a violent brother; an uninvolved mother). When she discovers that Ethel has listed her as a beneficiary in her will (mistaking her for the granddaughter she never knew), Christine makes the decision to visit her own mother after many years of silence between them. / The second novella, "The Father," takes place in western Massachusetts. Two settings interweave throughout: the daycare center where the protagonist Theo works, and the community center where she is participating in a Christmas pageant. Theo's sense of self is beginning to unravel, after the ending of a rough relationship (both women reliving the hurt of earlier experiences through sex). Meanwhile, three events coincide: the anniversary of her sister's death, the role she's cast in as Joseph, and the possibility of a relationship without violent overtones. The timing aids Theo in sorting out the part sacrifice and surrender play in "unconditional love," and helps her realize the conditions attached to "seeing" for her blind sister. Understanding, as Joseph, the position of "stand-in" parent, also helps set her on the risky path of daring to love another again. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-04, Section: A, page: 1621. / Major Professors: Janet Burroway; Bonnie Braendlin. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1996.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_77704 |
| Contributors | Reid, Catherine Abbott., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 196 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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